Anne Curtis

Anne Curtis is an experimental physicist working in the Time & Frequency Department. She received her PhD from the University of Colorado for development of a calcium optical atomic clock at NIST, Boulder, USA. After a 3-year Royal Society USA Fellowship at Imperial College London developing “atom chip” technologies for BECs and other integrated optics applications, she joined NPL to start a neutral atom optical clock programme. Her current science role focuses on ion-based optical clocks for applications requiring the highest accuracy, used for tests of fundamental physics and to support the redefinition of the SI second. Other interests include developing molecular spectroscopy-based photonic technologies for gas sensing metrology, with applications in environmental monitoring and the clean energy and medical sectors. Anne is also working to develop laser-stabilisation systems with space-based applications using gas-filled hollow-core fibre photonic technology.  

Anne presents invited talks and tutorials at international conferences, academic institutions and for the general public. She was recently seconded into the UK government Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) to work within a cross-government team to develop a UK Strategy in Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT), which culminated in the creation of a UK National PNT Office. She is also a member of the UK Institute of Physics. 

Areas of interest

• Optical clock development working towards a redefinition of the SI second and for fundamental physics research (e.g. dark matter and variation of constants) 
• Trace gas sensing using high finesse optical cavities and modulation spectroscopy techniques including NICE-OHMS 
• Compact laser stabilisation or reference system development, including utilisation of fully-sealed hollow-core fibre-based gas cells 
• UK Strategy on Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT) and Quantum Technology Sectors - research and development of quantum clocks and sensors, engagement in skills and knowledge development including secondment programme STEM-Futures, academic and industrial engagement, and in quantum standards. 
• Supporting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion work at NPL and beyond

Key publications

• 171Yb+ optical clock with 2.2 x 10-18 systematic uncertainty and absolute frequency measurements  
  A. Tofful, C. F. A. Baynham, E. A. Curtis, A. O. Parsons, B. I. Robertson, M. Schioppo, J. Tunesi, H. S. Margolis, R. J. Hendricks, J. Whale, R. C. Thompson and R. M. Godun  
  Metrologia 61, 045001 (2024) 
• Holdover Atomic Clock Landscape Review  
  M. Haji, I. Hill, E. A. Curtis and P. Gill   
  NPL Report. TQE 32 (2024) 
• Analysis of atomic-clock data to constrain variations of fundamental constants  
  N. Sherrill, A. O. Parsons, C. F. A. Baynham, W. Bowden, E. A. Curtis, R. Hendricks, I. R. Hill, R. Hobson, H. S. Margolis, B. I. Robertson, M. Schioppo, K. Szymaniec, A. Tofful, J. Tunesi, R. M. Godun and X. Calmet  
  New J. Phys. 25, 093012 (2023) 
• Frequency modulation laser spectroscopy method for methane isotopologue ratio and total concentration measurements at 1661 nm 
  E. A. Curtis, L. Nicholls, N. C. G. Black, and G. P. Barwood 
  J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 40, 1542-1549 (2023) 
• Laser frequency stabilization and spectroscopy at 2051 nm using compact CO2-filled Kagome hollow core fiber gas cells 
  E. A. Curtis, T. Bradley, G. P. Barwood, C. S. Edwards, N. V. Wheeler, R. Phelan, D. J. Richardson, M. N. Petrovich and P. Gill 
  Optics Express 26, 28621-28633 (2018) 

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