We report the first experimental determination of the hyperfine quenching rate of the 6s(2) (1)S(0)(F = 1/2) - 6s6p (3)P(0)(F = 1/2) transition in (171)Yb with nuclear spin I = 1/2. This rate determines the natural linewidth and the Rabi frequency of the clock transition of a Yb optical frequency standard. Our technique involves spectrally resolved fluorescence decay measurements of the lowest lying (3)P(0,1) levels of neutral Yb atoms embedded in a solid Ne matrix. The solid Ne provides a simple way to trap a large number of atoms as well as an efficient mechanism for populating (3)P(0). The decay rates in solid Ne are modified by medium effects including the index-of-refraction dependence. We find the (3)P(0) hyperfine quenching rate to be (4.42 ± 0.35) × 10(-2) s(-1) for free (171)Yb, which agrees with recent ab initio calculations.

Side-emitting lenses are essential devices in some special lighting fields. Two types of side-emitting lenses with refractive and total reflective free-form surfaces are introduced. The principles of geometric optics and non-imaging optics are adopted to construct the free-form surfaces without complex mapping or a differential iteration process. As an example, an elevated taxiway edge light is designed for airfield lighting. A side-emitting lens with two sawtooth additions on top is designed to meet the luminous intensity distribution required by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). An analysis is carried out to determine tolerance limits during manufacture and installation. Computer simulation results show that a side-emitting efficiency of 85.4% is achieved for a Cree XP-E LED. The light distribution of this elevated taxiway edge light complies with the FAA regulations.