Network synchronisation better than 1ns using a frequency comb

光学频率梳对于网络同步和许多其他应用来说是一项有价值的技术。只有少数几家供应商可以在商业上买到它们，这些供应商都不在英国。在这个项目中，菲亚尼克有限公司(或NKT Photonics UK)和伯明翰大学旨在开发一种新的方法来产生光学频率梳，该方法使用锁模飞秒激光器和新型光子晶体光纤。它们将结合在一起，产生一个理论上完全相干的超连续谱展宽方法，从而将锁模激光的优良噪声性能转移到一个倍频程跨度的光学频率梳中。需要进行研究来了解剩余的噪声以及如何降低它，在这里，我们将研究频率抖动减少和绝对频率稳定，以进一步将噪声降至最低，并为在电信系统中使用做好准备，保持定时，从而跟踪每天进出英国的大量数据。

Optical frequency combs are a valuable technology for network synchronisation and many other applications. They are commercially available from only a few vendors, none of whom are in the UK. In this project, In this project, Fianium Ltd (or NKT Photonics UK) and the University of Birmingham aim to make a feasibility study on developing a new method for generating optical frequency combs using a mode-locked femtosecond laser and novel photonic crystal fibre. These will be combined to generate a theoretically fully coherent method for supercontinuum broadening, thereby transferring the excellent noise performance of the mode-locked laser into an octave-spanning optical frequency comb. Research will be needed to understand the remaining noise and how it can be reduced, and here we will investigate both frequency jitter reduction and absolute frequency stabilisation to further minimise the noise and prepare it for use in a telecommunications system, holding timing, and thereby keeping track of the great swaths of data transmitted in and out of the UK daily.