OSA's Digital Library

Optics Express

Optics Express

  • Editor: C. Martijn de Sterke
  • Vol. 17, Iss. 6 — Mar. 16, 2009
  • pp: 4890–4896

Optics InfoBase > Optics Express > Volume 17 > Issue 6 > Page 4890

Single-frequency synthesis at telecommunication wavelengths

V. Ahtee, M. Merimaa, and K. Nyholm  »View Author Affiliations


Optics Express, Vol. 17, Issue 6, pp. 4890-4896 (2009)
http://dx.doi.org/10.1364/OE.17.004890


View Full Text Article

Enhanced HTML    Acrobat PDF (404 KB)


Advanced Search

Browse Journals / Lookup Meetings

Browse by Journal and Year


   


Lookup Conference Papers

Close Browse Journals / Lookup Meetings

Article Tools

Share
Citations

Abstract

We report an optical single-frequency synthesizer at the 1.55 μm telecommunications band. Output from a continuous-wave external cavity diode laser is frequency doubled and phase locked to a predetermined component of a Ti:S laser frequency comb. The synthesizer is capable of generating a single user-specified frequency from an atomic time base within the 192–196 THz gain bandwidth of an erbium-doped fiber amplifier. By tuning the repetition rate of the femtosecond laser the synthesized optical frequency can be swept with sub-kilohertz step size. Frequency sweeps of several GHz are realized by automatically re-locking the diode laser to adjacent comb components during frequency sweep. We demonstrate the operation of the device by presenting results of Doppler-free spectroscopy on acetylene using synthesized frequencies.

© 2009 Optical Society of America

OCIS Codes
(120.3930) Instrumentation, measurement, and metrology : Metrological instrumentation
(120.6200) Instrumentation, measurement, and metrology : Spectrometers and spectroscopic instrumentation
(140.3600) Lasers and laser optics : Lasers, tunable
(300.6320) Spectroscopy : Spectroscopy, high-resolution

ToC Category:
Instrumentation, Measurement, and Metrology

History
Original Manuscript: January 5, 2009
Revised Manuscript: February 26, 2009
Manuscript Accepted: March 6, 2009
Published: March 13, 2009

Citation
V. Ahtee, M. Merimaa, and K. Nyholm, "Single-frequency synthesis at telecommunication wavelengths," Opt. Express 17, 4890-4896 (2009)
http://www.opticsinfobase.org/oe/abstract.cfm?URI=oe-17-6-4890


Sort:  Author  |  Year  |  Journal  |  Reset  

References

  1. D. J. Jones, S. A. Diddams, J. K. Ranka, A. Stentz, R. S. Windeler, J. L. Hall, and S. T. Cundiff, "Carrier-envelope phase control of femtosecond mode-locked lasers and direct optical frequency synthesis," Science 288, 635-639 (2000). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  2. R. Holzwarth, Th. Udem, T. W. Hänsch, J. C. Knight, W. J. Wadsworth, and P. St. J. Russell, "Optical frequency synthesizer for precision spectroscopy," Phys. Rev. Lett. 85, 2264-2267 (2000). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  3. J. D. Jost, J. L. Hall, and J. Ye, "Continuously tunable, precise, single frequency optical signal generator," Opt. Express 10, 515-520 (2002). [PubMed]
  4. T. R. Schibli, K. Minoshima, F.-L. Hong, H. Inaba, Y. Bitou, A. Onae, and H. Matsumoto, "Phase-locked widely tunable optical single-frequency generator based on a femtosecond comb," Opt. Lett. 30, 2323-2325 (2005). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  5. H. Inaba, T. Ikegami, F.-L. Hong, Y. Bitou, A. Onae, T. R. Schibli, K. Minoshima, and H. Matsumoto, "Doppler-free spectroscopy using a continuous-wave optical frequency synthesizer," Appl. Opt. 45, 4910-4915 (2006). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  6. H. S. Moon, E. B. Kim, S. E. Park, and C. Y. Park, "Selection and amplification of modes of an optical frequency comb using a femtosecond laser injection-locking technique," Appl. Phys. Lett. 89, 181110 (2006). [CrossRef]
  7. S. E. Park, E. B. Kim, Y.-H. Park, D. S. Yee, T. Y. Kwon, C. Y. Park, H. S. Moon, and T. H. Yoon, "Sweep optical frequency synthesizer with a distributed-Bragg-reflector laser injection locked by a single component of an optical frequency comb," Opt. Lett. 31, 3594-3596 (2006). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  8. T. M. Fortier, Y. Le Coq, J. E. Stalnaker, D. Ortega, S. A. Diddams, C. W. Oates, and L. Hollberg, "Kilohertz-resolution spectroscopy of cold atoms with an optical frequency comb," Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 163905 (2006). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  9. Y.-J. Kim, J. Jin, Y. Kim, S. Hyun, and S.-W. Kim, "A wide-range optical frequency generator based on the frequency comb of a femtosecond laser," Opt. Express 16, 258-264 (2008). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  10. H. Y. Ryu, S. H. Lee, W. K. Lee, H. S. Moon, and H. S. Suh, "Absolute frequency measurement of an acetylene stabilized laser using a selected single mode from a femtosecond fiber laser comb," Opt. Express 16, 2867-2873 (2008). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  11. M. Merimaa, K. Nyholm, M. Vainio, and A. Lassila, "Traceability of laser frequency calibrations at MIKES," IEEE Trans. Instrum. Meas. 56, 500-504 (2007). [CrossRef]
  12. B. R. Washburn, R. W. Fox, N. R. Newbury, J. W. Nicholson, K. Feder, P. S. Westbrook, and C. G.  Jørgensen, "Fiber-laser-based frequency comb with a tunable repetition rate," Opt. Express 12, 4999-5004 (2004). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
  13. R. Felder, "Practical realization of the definition of the metre, including recommended radiations of other optical frequency standards (2003)," Metrologia 42, 323-325 (2005). With revision by the Working Group on the Mise en Pratique (MEP2005). [CrossRef]
  14. V. Ahtee, M. Merimaa, and K. Nyholm, "Fiber-based acetylene-stabilized laser," IEEE Trans. Instrum. Meas.(In press, doi: 10.1109/TIM.2008.2008476)
  15. C. J. Bordé, J. L. Hall, C. V. Kunasz, and D. G. Hummer, "Saturated absorption line shape: Calculation of the transit-time broadening by a perturbation approach," Phys. Rev. A 14, 236-263 (1976). [CrossRef]

Cited By

 Alert me when this paper is cited

OSA is able to provide readers links to articles that cite this paper by participating in CrossRef's Cited-By Linking service. CrossRef includes content from more than 3000 publishers and societies. In addition to listing OSA journal articles that cite this paper, citing articles from other participating publishers will also be listed.

Figures

Fig. 1. Fig. 2. Fig. 3.
 
Fig. 4.
 

« Previous Article  |  Next Article »

OSA is a member of CrossRef.

CrossCheck Deposited