High Resolution Loss Spectroscopy of Quartz

Abstract
Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) scientists have developed an instrument that has extreme sensitivity to energy dissipation in mechanical resonators. While previous instruments measured loss to one part in ten, the new instrument measures mechanical loss to one part in 10⁴ or better. Low defect levels, that result in small residuals of loss above background, are detectable because of the instrument's high resolution. We have used the resonator to examine loss spectroscopy of quartz resonators vibrating in flexure. The resonators have a largebackground loss that peaks up at low temperature. Although the peak very closely fits a Debye-like equation, the derived parameters, such as the decay time prefactor, are unphysical.