[time-nuts] Microsemi up for sale?

[Anders Wallin]

>
> richard at karlquist.com said:
> > 2.  Magnetic state selection, as used in the 5071A, would be replaced by
> > optical pumping.  Len Cutler was heartbroken that HP/Agilent management
> > wouldn't fund this effort.
>
> > It turns out that, even now in 2018, optical pumping is not ready for
> prime
> > time in a working standard because the lasers drift over time.
>
> Is there something fundamental in there, or is the lack of products because
> nobody has made the big investment required to figure out how to do it.
>

FWIW, OSA has been giving at leat one talk per year on their optical Cs
work, and as others have noted it's been coming "real soon" for a couple of
years now.
Here are some links:
2015 November:
http://www.chronos.co.uk/files/pdfs/itsf/2015/day2/1410_High_performance_optically-pumped_cesium_beam_clock-PBerthoud-Oscilloquartz.pdf

2017 April:
https://www.atis.org/wsts/library/2017/5-03_Oscilloquartz_Berthoud_Michaud_Optical%20Cs%20Beam%20clock%20for%20ePRTC%20applications_revision20170327.pdf