Abstract

We report on nearly quantum-limited timing-jitter performance of two passively mode-locked Er:Yb:glass lasers with a repetition rate of $10\mathrm{GHz}$. The relative timing jitter of both lasers was measured to be $190\mathrm{fs}$ $(100\mathrm{Hz}–1.56\mathrm{MHz})$ root mean square. The remaining cavity-length fluctuations are below 7.5 pm in the $6\mathrm{Hz}–8\mathrm{kHz}$ frequency range, indicating the stability of a rugged miniature cavity setup. By actively controlling the cavity length we reduced the timing jitter to $26\mathrm{fs}$ $(6\mathrm{Hz}–1.56\mathrm{MHz})$. We also discuss the influence of cavity length on the practically achievable timing jitter.

© 2005 Optical Society of America

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