Development of a Quantum Blackbody Thermometer toward Primary On-orbit Thermometry

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Beierle, Peter J., Tremblay, Denis, Schlossberger, Noah, Holloway, Christopher L., Eckel, Stephen P., Norrgard, Eric B.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Beierle, Peter J.
Tremblay, Denis
Schlossberger, Noah
Holloway, Christopher L.
Eckel, Stephen P.
Norrgard, Eric B.
author_facet Beierle, Peter J.
Tremblay, Denis
Schlossberger, Noah
Holloway, Christopher L.
Eckel, Stephen P.
Norrgard, Eric B.
contents We present a roadmap to a deployable, intrinsically calibrated thermometer with long-term accuracy of 30 mK, exceeding existing on-orbit resistance-based thermometers. Our quantum blackbody thermometer is based on measuring fluorescence ratios of optically excited rubidium atoms in microfabricated vapor cells. The key advantage of the quantum blackbody thermometer is that long-term stability of the fluorescence ratios is guaranteed by the immutable physical properties (transition strengths) of the rubidium atom. This should be compared against resistance-based thermometers, such as platinum resistance thermometers, which may be calibrated with exceptional accuracy but are susceptible to temporal drift and shifts due to improper handling.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_20607
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Development of a Quantum Blackbody Thermometer toward Primary On-orbit Thermometry
Beierle, Peter J.
Tremblay, Denis
Schlossberger, Noah
Holloway, Christopher L.
Eckel, Stephen P.
Norrgard, Eric B.
Atomic Physics
We present a roadmap to a deployable, intrinsically calibrated thermometer with long-term accuracy of 30 mK, exceeding existing on-orbit resistance-based thermometers. Our quantum blackbody thermometer is based on measuring fluorescence ratios of optically excited rubidium atoms in microfabricated vapor cells. The key advantage of the quantum blackbody thermometer is that long-term stability of the fluorescence ratios is guaranteed by the immutable physical properties (transition strengths) of the rubidium atom. This should be compared against resistance-based thermometers, such as platinum resistance thermometers, which may be calibrated with exceptional accuracy but are susceptible to temporal drift and shifts due to improper handling.
title Development of a Quantum Blackbody Thermometer toward Primary On-orbit Thermometry
topic Atomic Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.20607