Analysis of collision shift assessments in ion-based clocks

We consider back-ground gas collision shifts in ion-based clocks.

We give both a classical and quantum description of a collision between an ion and a polarizable particle with a simple hard-sphere repulsion.

Both descriptions give consistent results, which shows that a collision shift bound is determined by the classical Langevin collision rate reduced by a readily calculated factor describing the decoupling of the clock laser from the ion due to the recoil motion.

We also show that the result holds when using a more general Lennard-Jones potential to describe the interaction between the ion and its collision partner.

This leads to a simple bound for the collision shift applicable to any single ion clock without resorting to large-scale Monte-Carlo simulations or determination of molecular potential energy curves describing the collision.

It also provides a relatively straightforward means to measure the relevant collision rate.