Abstract

We built an ultra-low-noise angle sensor by combining a folded optical lever and a Sagnac interferometer. The instrument has a measured noise floor of $1.3\mathrm{prad}/\sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}}$ at $2.4\mathrm{kHz}$. We achieve this record angle sensitivity using a proof-of-concept apparatus with a conservative $N=11$ bounces in the optical lever. This technique could be extended to reach $\text{subpicoradian}/\sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}}$ sensitivities with an optimized design.

© 2011 Optical Society of America

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