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Program, 2021 [Page in construction]
COVID-19 Information
The EFTS is a training course for newcomers. Besides lectures, the EFTS is a great opportunity for true hands-on labs and to discuss with people at coffee breaks, lunches and events in a friendly and passionate atmosphere. This cannot be replaced with a virtual conference.
We have two elements of optimism. First, the World is slowly getting out of the crisis. The first vaccinations campaigns already started in some Countries, and major Companies are filing paperwork to export their vaccines. Second, the EFTS is a small event, with a capped number of 36 students (always full). This makes ≈50 people including instructors and staff, not all in a room. Such size has never been a target of restrictions, except during lockdown.
We figure out two scenarios for the next EFTS.
Realistic/optimistic. A regular training course as in the tradition, but the small number of students and instructors who cannot travel will be online. Visits, lunches, astronomy session and social events may change according to health rules, and we may have obligations like wearing masks and IR body temperature check, but these are minor details we will care about later. More important, we will broadcast all lectures and pre-recorded demonstrations of the lab sessions, available to registered participants.
Worst case. Everything goes online, keeping the Lectures will be live performances or pre-recorded videos followed by a live discussion. The labs will be pre-recorded demonstrations, with several time slots for discussion allocated during the show. Price policy will follow, with very low charges for online participants.
Lectures
- Introduction to TF – Basic concepts and vocabulary (quality, certification, traceability etc.), and technical issues (oscillators, frequency standards, accuracy, stability, phase noise, jitter, physical environment, etc.).
- Measurement methods and experimental techniques – Spectra (phase noise and L(f), amplitude noise), variances, frequency measurement and comparison.
- Atomic clocks – Physics, traditional clocks (atomic beam, vapor cell and maser), cold atoms, optical clocks, small-size clocks.
- Oscillators – RF and microwave oscillators, cavity-stabilized lasers, optical frequency combs.
- Timing and applications – Time scales, navigation, frequency transfer and synchronization.
- Physics, applications, and trends.
Hands-on Laboratory Courses
Every day, the participants do real experiments and measurements
- Frequency stability and AM/PM noise,
- Data analysis
- Global Navigation Satellite System GNSS (GPS, Galileo, etc.)
- Resonators and oscillators
- Atomic clocks
Social Events and Visits
- Visit at the Observatory of Besancon
- FEMTO-ST Laboratory Tour
- Visit at the Time Museum, Besancon downtown
- Social dinner
- Astronomy session at the Observatory (depending on weather). Observe celestial bodies, and adjust your watch to stars using the original ancient instruments