Dave wrote:
What I'm interested in achieving is the lowest posible energy
requirement for a set of quartz frequency stds. It seems to me that
using the close to iso-thermal 'hole in the ground' arrangement is a
useful step in that direction as it should minimise the power
necessary for environmental control.
Very interesting.
I think the answer is, maybe, and maybe not. Assuming that the
average ground temperature is lower than the average air temperature
wherever they would be located if they were not underground, the
ovens would have to run harder (on average) in the underground
location. On the other hand, if you were able to reduce the crystal
temperature because of much greater subterranean temperature
stability, you might make it a wash or even lower the heater power
consumption. However, crystals work best at their design
temperature, so obtaining good performance at a lower crystal
temperature might require a complete oscillator redesign with
crystals made specifically for the lower temperature. So, the
"oscillator in a box" could end up being the most efficient choice if
you aren't going to redesign the oscillators and do not want to
sacrifice the specified frequency stability of your off-the-shelf oscillator.
Decisions, decisions.
Would it be practical to install solar/wind/geothermal/etc. power
generating equipment sufficient to support the standards in an
emergency? (I'd think solar would be the least likely to be
interrupted by natural disasters, but as soon as you go that way your
next disaster would surely be a volcanic eruption that blots out the
sun for months....)
Best regards,
Charles
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