Shift evaluation of the atomic gravimeter NIM-AGRb-1 and its comparison with FG5X

• Published in: Metrologia 2018-06, Vol.55 (3), p.360-365
• Main Authors: Wang, Shao-Kai, Zhao, Yang, Zhuang, Wei, Li, Tian-Chu, Wu, Shu-Qing, Feng, Jin-Yang, Li, Chun-Jian
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: absolute gravimeter; atom interferometer; cold atom; Environmental effects; Field study; Gravimeters; Gravimetry; Gravity; Interferometry; Measurement; Stability
• ISSN: 0026-1394; 1681-7575
• DOI: 10.1088/1681-7575/aab637

A mobile atomic absolute gravimeter NIM-AGRb-1 based on light-pulse atom interferometer has been built, evaluated by the National Institute of Metrology (NIM) China, and participated in the pilot study of the International Comparison of Absolute Gravimeters (CCM.G-K2.2017) held at NIM Changping Beijing in October 2017. The sensitivity of the gravimeter is 44 µGal Hz−1/2 (1 µGal  =  10−8 m s−2     10−9 g) and its instability reaches as small as 0.2 µGal when averaged over 30 000 s. The instrumental and environmental effects were evaluated and corrected with a total uncertainty of 5.2 µGal. The absolute g measured by NIM-AGRb-1 was compared to that of a commercial FG5X-249 optical gravimeter with the two devices operating side by side in the same laboratory and their results agree within  −0.2(6.3) µGal. NIM-AGRb-1 also demonstrated continuous operation over a period of more than 500 h.