A sub-40-mHz-linewidth laser based on a silicon single-crystal optical cavity
A sub-40-mHz-linewidth laser based on a silicon single-crystal optical cavity
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DOI：
10.1038/nphoton.2012.217
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发表时间：
2012-10-01
期刊：
影响因子：
35
通讯作者：
Ye, J.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Kessler, T.;Hagemann, C.;Ye, J.
高铁光腔的最先进的激光频率稳定在根本上受到热噪声引起的空腔长度波动的限制。我们提出了一种新颖的设计，以减少这种热噪声限制的数量级以及对新腔体系的实验实现，这证明了迄今为止以0.1-10 s的平均时间，任何类型的最稳定振荡器。腔间隔物和镜基板均由单晶硅构建，并在124 K下运行，其中硅热膨胀系数为零，机械损耗很小。腔体在振动不敏感的构型中受支持，该构型与硅晶体的出色刚度相结合，降低了与振动相关的噪声。通过对三个独立稳定激光器中的杂化击中信号进行严格的分析，硅系统在短时间内表明了1 x 10（-16）的分数频率不稳定性，并支持激光线的激光线宽。
State-of-the-art laser frequency stabilization by high-finesse optical cavities is limited fundamentally by thermal noise-induced cavity length fluctuations. We present a novel design to reduce this thermal noise limit by an order of magnitude as well as an experimental realization of this new cavity system, demonstrating the most stable oscillator of any kind to date for averaging times of 0.1-10 s. The cavity spacer and the mirror substrates are both constructed from single-crystal silicon and are operated at 124 K, where the silicon thermal expansion coefficient is zero and the mechanical loss is small. The cavity is supported in a vibration-insensitive configuration, which, together with the superior stiffness of the silicon crystal, reduces the vibration-related noise. With rigorous analysis of heterodyne beat signals among three independent stable lasers, the silicon system demonstrates a fractional frequency instability of 1 x 10(-16) at short timescales and supports a laser linewidth of