AG FIRST-TF 2024

The FIRST-TF research federation (Laboratory of Escellence) and the REFIMEVE French Research Infrastucure, are joining together this year for organizing 3 events important for the french Time and Frequency community: their respective General Assemblies, and a workshop on precision synchronization and networks.

These events will be the opportunity for a vast community to network, have scientific exchanges and get the latest informations about FIRST-TF and REFIMEVE.

All the events will take place at Institut Galilée, on the Université Sorbone Paris Nord campus in Villetaneuse.

The dates are the following:

  • September 30, 2024, afternoon: lab visits at the Laboratoire de Physique des Lasers,
  • October 1, 2024: General Assembly of FIRST-TF
  • October 2,  2024: Workshop on “Precision Synchronization and networks”
  • 0ctobre 3, 2024: General Assembly of REFIMEVE

Lunches for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd of October are included in the organization. Dinners for the 1st and 2nd of October evening will be organized as joint social events.

Registration is free, but mandatory, for members of structures affiliated to FIRST-TF, REFIMEVE, as well as for invited guests, on this link: https://firsttfrefimeve.sciencesconf.org/

Postdoctoral researcher position in Gravitational Wave Data Analysis, Royal Observatory of Belgium

The gravitational-wave (GW) group of the University of Louvain (UCLouvain, Belgium), hosted at the Centre for Cosmology, Particle Physics and Phenomenology (CP3) of the Research Institute in Mathematics and Physics (IRMP), and the ‘‘Time and Ionosphere” group of the Royal Observatory of Belgium (ROB) are welcoming applications for a postdoctoral researcher position in gravitational-wave data analysis of the LIGO-Virgo-Kagra detectors and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). Applications must include a curriculum vitae, a personal motivation letter, and at least three recommendation letters from senior scientists. Applications must be submitted on-line, by 23 June 2024, at: https://cp3.irmp.ucl.ac.be/jobs/102. Applicants should hold, by the time of the start of the appointment, a PhD in physics and they should demonstrate a strong interest and motivation in fundamental physics research. Additionally, they should not have lived or carried out their main activity (work, study, etc.) in Belgium for more than 24 months in the three years prior to the appointment start date. The position will remain open after the first deadline indicated above until a suitable candidate is found.

Applications before June 23, 2024

=> More details

Postdoc or engineer position for LISA data preprocessing at SYRTE, Paris

The LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna) space mission will allow the detection of low frequency gravitational waves. In this project, we will develop new methods to reduce various noises in the LISA data efficiently in order to detect gravitational waves and to extract scientific results for various types of sources. This position is devoted either to a researcher or to a software engineer. Strong skills in software development, data analysis, and numerical calculations are required. In addition, knowledge of the LISA mission and of its instruments will be favoured. This project will be conducted within the “Theory and metrology” group at SYRTE.

Starting date: November 1, 2024

Duration: 1 year (can be extended to 2 years or more)

=> More details

CCTF capacity building activity on resource sharing

We are happy to inform you that the CCTF capacity building activity on resource sharing to improve national and international timekeeping has started!

Following the CCTF recommendations, with the support of the IEEE UFFC society and together with a secondee at the BIPM, Dr Bharath Vattikonda from NPL India, the first courses in Time and Frequency are available on the BIPM e-learning platform. https://e-learning.bipm.org/

1) Course on TIME TRANSFER THROUGH GNSS PSEUDORANGE MEASUREMENTS

The course aims to provide knowledge and processing capacity on time transfer through GNSS pseudorange measurements.

It includes a tutorial and interactive open-source software with a dedicated user manual and video demonstration.

Please enroll and start testing the processing of your CGGTTSS file

https://e-learning.bipm.org/course/view.php?id=74

This will help your evaluation of time transfer links and also the validation of your CGGTTS data before sending to the BIPM.

Please send us any feedback and if you have questions or suggestions, you can contact Bharath at tf.cbkt@bipm.org

2) Course that summarizes the CCTF Technical Exchanges organized by the CCTF WG TAI and WG Algorithms

In collaboration with the WG TAI and WG Algorithms we are organizing online technical exchange meetings allowing UTC laboratories to exchange their experience and to support the capacity building and the possibility of collaboration.

The Technical Exchange meetings are recorded, and the videos are publicly available on the BIPM eLearning page

https://e-learning.bipm.org/course/view.php?id=82

(The presentations are available on the WG TAI dedicated web page for the people that attended the meetings).

3) Course on  TIME & FREQUENCY CAPACITY BUILDING by RESOURCE SHARING

As you may remember, the CCTF capacity building programme is based on shared resources, and we would like to start the collection of possible training resources that you may want to make available.

The course aims to offer a large variety of tools, from reference papers, to presentations, tutorials, e-learning course, and open-source software modules to help the education in the field of time and frequency metrology with particular attention to the realization of a time scale UTC(k).

The topics are subdivided in 15 categories, and you will find a presenting page on the BIPM eLearning page

https://e-learning.bipm.org/course/view.php?id=76

The list of the topics is as follows:

  1. Time and Frequency Overview
  2. Requirements for setting up a UTC(k) Time Scale Lab
  3. Statistical tools for Clock Characterization
  4. Measurement Techniques of Time and Frequency
  5. Time scale Generation and Operation
  6. Timescale Algorithms
  7. GNSS Time Transfer Link
  8. Two Way Satellite Time and Frequency Transfer Link (TWSTFT)
  9. Time and Frequency Transfer Over Optical Fiber
  10. Data Exchange (Interface Document) with BIPM
  11. BIPM products
  12. Dissemination of UTC(k)
  13. Redundant Laboratory for the back-up generation of UTC(k)
  14. Primary and Secondary Frequency Standards in UTC and UTC(k)
  15. Current Topics Under Discussion at CCTF

 

Could you please start thinking if you have availability of any material that could be suggested in this list? Would you be available to develop a new tool? Please contact us at tf.cbkt@bipm.org to propose your material.

All the other UTC labs will be able to take advantage of what you have developed for your lab!

We would be grateful to have your feedback, at least as a draft, by the end of May 2024

We sincerely hope that the CCTF Capacity building activity based on shared resources may be attractive and useful to all.

Thanks for any feedback to tf.cbkt@bipm.org

Marina, Liz, Bharath, Patrizia and Giulio

POST-DOC OFFER at FEMTO-ST– Besançon, France

Development of a stabilized laser on a sub-Kelvin Fabry-Perot cavity

Laboratory: FEMTO-ST– Besançon, France

Summary: Ultra-stable lasers have a central role in numerous scientific experiments for high precision measurements: atomic spectroscopy, diffusion of time & frequency signals by optical fiber, detection of gravitational waves and dark matter research. The performances are currently reaching fractional frequency stabilities below 10-16 at 1 second of integration. However, it is still insufficient for many applications including fundamental physics tests and optical atomic clocks. To overcome the current limits, the proposed offer consists in studying as finely as possible the behavior of a Fabry-Pérot cavity at 1 K, which will be used to stabilize a laser in frequency.

Offer details:

  • Prerequisites : PhD in Physics
  • Desired skills: Optical frequency metrology, Gaussian optics in free-space, Analog, digital and radio-frequency electronics, Control theory and locking/feedback techniques, Instrumentation, Cryogenic and ultra-high vacuum, Analysis and interpretation of noise and sources of noises
  • Contract duration : 1 year
  • Salary : approximately €2300 net
  • Procedure : Send CV, cover letter and at least 1 reference letter to jonathan.gillot@femto-st.fr.

=> More details

Application Deadlin : March 18, 2024 – FIRST-TF Call for projects 2024

The 2024 FIRST-TF call for project is now open. DUe to the end of the current LabEx funding note the unusual terms of the call:
This year, the funding from FIRST-TF will be exclusively for projects already funded previously by FIRST-TF and involving:
– extending contract of post-doc / young researcher, currently employed by CNRS and previously funded by FIRST-TF, for a maximum of 30k€. A full cost simulation is required, and the extension cannot lead to an end of contract later thanJune 30th 2025.
– equipment or small material for Research/Service/Teaching for an existing project previously funded by FIRST-TF (repair, extension, upgrade,…). New operation of teaching/outreach are, however, accepted. The maximum per project is 15k€ and a quote is required. Billing will need to occur before June 30th 2025.

=> Text of the call

=> Reply form

for requests, contact: ao@first-tf.com