New limits on coupling of fundamental constants to gravity using 87Sr optical lattice clocks.
The 1S0-3P0 clock transition frequency nuSr in neutral 87Sr has been measured relative to the Cs standard by three independent laboratories in Boulder, Paris, and Tokyo over the last three years. The agreement on the 1 x 10(-15) level makes nuSr the best agreed-upon optical atomic frequency. We combine periodic variations in the 87Sr clock frequency with 199Hg+ and H-maser data to test local position invariance by obtaining the strongest limits to date on gravitational-coupling coefficients for the fine-structure constant alpha, electron-proton mass ratio mu, and light quark mass. Furthermore, after 199Hg+, 171Yb+, and H, we add 87Sr as the fourth optical atomic clock species to enhance constraints on yearly drifts of alpha and mu.
JILA, National Institute of Standards and Technology and University of Colorado, Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, 80309-0440, USA. sebastian.blatt@colorado.edu
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