Prospects of a Pb$^{2+}$ ion clock

Abstract

We propose a high-performance atomic clock based on the 1.81 PHz transition between the ground and first-excited state of doubly ionized lead. Utilizing an even isotope of lead, both clock states have I = J = F = 0, where I, J, and F are the conventional quantum numbers specifying nuclear, electronic, and total angular momentum, respectively. The clock states are nondegenerate and completely immune to nonscalar perturbations, including first order Zeeman and electric quadrupole shifts. Additionally, the proposed clock is relatively insusceptible to other frequency shifts (blackbody radiation, second order Zeeman, Doppler), accommodates "magic" rf trapping, and is robust against decoherence mechanisms that can otherwise limit clock stability. By driving the transition as a two-photon E1+M 1 process, the accompanying probe Stark shift is appreciable yet manageable for practical Rabi frequencies.