A compact, transportable 1550 nm ultra-stable laser system with Hertz linewidth

• Published in: Applied physics. B, Lasers and optics Vol. 129; no. 10
• Main Authors: Zhang, Linbo, Wu, Mengfan, Gao, Jing, Liu, Jun, Fan, Le, Jiao, Dongdong, Xu, Guanjun, Dong, Ruifang, Liu, Tao, Zhang, Shougang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.10.2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Applied physics; Beat frequencies; Engineering; Fineness; Frequency stability; Kinematics; Lasers; Optical components; Optical Devices; Optics; Photonics; Physical Chemistry; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Quantum Optics; Topology optimization
• ISSN: 0946-2171; 1432-0649
• DOI: 10.1007/s00340-023-08093-w

We demonstrate a compact, transportable 1550 nm ultra-stable laser system with Hertz linewidth. The laser frequency is frequency stabilized to a vertically mounted, vibration-insensitive and high-fineness ultra-low-expansion (ULE) cavity with Pound-Drever-Hall (PDH) method. Optical boards designed by topology optimization and miniaturized optical component mounts without kinematic adjustment are designed to achieve a high level of integration and stability. The self-developed electronics and automatic locking module ensure fully automatic operation of the system. The entire ultra-stable laser system is highly integrated in a 19-inch 6 U chassis with a mass of about 35 kg. The prototype performs beat frequency comparison measurement with another ultra-stable laser system in the laboratory. The fractional frequency instability of a single system is achieved 4 × 10 - 15 at 1 s averaging time preliminarily, and the linewidth is 1.3 Hz. The portable ultra-stable laser system we developed is expected to have significant implications for precision measurement and other applications.