Use of wall coated cells in atomic frequency standards

An analysis of the effect of the microwave field distribution on the application of a wall coated, bufferless absorption cell in an atomic frequency standard has been performed. While certain advantages of using such a cell in an atomic frequency standard employing a TE011 microwave cavity have been previously demonstrated, we show that a simple incorporation of this type of cell in a frequency standard using a TE111 microwave cavity would not be advantageous. The role of the microwave field distribution, particularly its phase variation within the cavity, is analyzed and suggestions concerning the use of a wall coated cell in a TE111 microwave cavity as applied to an atomic frequency standard are made.