Precision Metrology Using Coherent Transient Effects and Cold Atom Interferometry Based On Homebuilt, Auto-locked Laser Systems

激光的发明改变了我们对光-物质相互作用的理解，导致了基础科学的革命性进步，并导致了深远的技术突破。申请人团队开发了一种新的低成本、自制、真空密封、自动锁定的激光系统(ALS)，该系统可以在没有人为干预的情况下，相对于原子、分子和温度可调的固态频率标记器进行频率稳定。ALS技术使高功率脉冲激光系统、光机械反馈控制系统、激光强度、频率和相位操纵技术以及高速数据采集系统的开发成为可能。ALS的部署改变了申请者的研究计划，并导致了一系列与原子物理和工业计量学相关的快速发展的精密测量。这项提案的首要主题是通过利用申请者在以下关键领域开发的独特的相干瞬变技术来实现ALS的应用：1)由于ALS的表现优于已经使用了几代人的广泛建立的商业激光系统，因此它们将被微型化，以便便携式装置可以集成到商业重力仪中，用于石油和天然气的非侵入性勘探、指定用于资源开采的环境敏感地区的地震监测和潮汐预报。2)ALS将通过锁定到外部空腔来缩窄线，以便它们适用于最先进的原子干涉测量，使用激光冷却原子来测量重力。这种超冷原子传感器将用于认证目前缺乏可靠校准手段的工业重力仪。3)将对ALS的相位噪声进行表征，以便它们能够使用一种特别适用且被忽视的相干瞬变技术来实现对原子寿命的最精确测量。这样的测量将测试对原子结构的理论计算，这些计算需要用来解释探索物理标准模型的宇称非守恒实验。4)基于ALS的脉冲激光系统将被用于开发、比较和改进能够实现最灵敏的磁场测量的时间域磁强计，并实现了解磁强计性能所需的最精确的扩散系数测量。便携式脉冲激光系统将与航空调查中用于探测金属和矿藏的磁强计相结合，并用于开发多功能激光雷达系统，该系统可以在更大的光谱范围内运行，用于大气污染物和痕量气体的环境监测。5)将开展在快速时间尺度上跟踪捕获颗粒运动学的自由空间光学镊子实验，以快速表征污染物和病原体并准确确定其质量。

The invention of the laser has transformed our understanding of light-matter interactions, leading to revolutionary advances in fundamental science, and resulting in far-reaching technological breakthroughs. The applicant's group has developed a new class of low cost, homebuilt, vacuum-sealed, auto-locking laser systems (ALS) that can be frequency stabilized with respect to atomic, molecular, and temperature tunable solid-state frequency markers without human intervention. ALS technology has enabled the development of high power pulsed laser systems, control systems for opto-mechanical feedback, techniques for manipulation of laser intensity, frequency, and phase, and high-speed data acquisition systems. The deployment of ALS has transformed the applicant's research program and led to a series of rapidly evolving precision measurements relevant to atomic physics and industrial metrology. The overriding theme of this proposal is to realize applications of ALS by utilizing distinctive coherent transient techniques developed by the applicant in the following key areas: 1) Since ALS have outperformed widely established commercial laser systems that have been used for generations, they will be miniaturized so that portable units can be integrated into commercial gravimeters that are used for the non-invasive exploration of oil and natural gas, seismic monitoring of environmentally sensitive areas designated for resource extraction, and tidal forecasting. 2) ALS will be line narrowed by locking to external cavities so that they are suitable for state of the art, atom interferometric measurements of gravity using laser-cooled atoms. Such an ultracold atom sensor will used to certify industrial gravimeters that currently lack reliable means of calibration. 3) The phase noise of ALS will be characterized so that they can realize the most accurate measurements of atomic lifetimes using a particularly suitable and overlooked coherent transient technique. Such measurements will test theoretical calculations of atomic structure required to interpret parity non-conservation experiments that probe the standard model of physics. 4) Pulsed laser systems based on ALS will be used to develop, compare, and improve time domain magnetometers that can realize the most sensitive measurements of magnetic fields, and for achieving the most accurate measurements of diffusion coefficients that are required to understand the performance of magnetometers. Portable pulsed laser systems will be integrated with magnetometers used in airborne surveys for the detection of metal and mineral deposits, and used to develop versatile lidar systems that can operate over extended spectral ranges for environmental monitoring of atmospheric pollutants and trace gases. 5) Free space optical tweezers experiments that track kinematics of trapped particles on fast time scales will be developed for the rapid characterization and accurate mass determinations of contaminants and pathogens.