RESUMEN

We realize a two-stage, hexagonal pyramid magneto-optical trap (MOT) with strontium, and demonstrate loading of cold atoms into cavity-enhanced 1D and 2D optical lattice traps, all within a single compact assembly of in-vacuum optics. We show that the device is suitable for high-performance quantum technologies, focusing especially on its intended application as a strontium optical lattice clock. We prepare 2 × 104 spin-polarized atoms of 87Sr in the optical lattice within 500 ms; we observe a vacuum-limited lifetime of atoms in the lattice of 27 s; and we measure a background DC electric field of 12 V m-1 from stray charges, corresponding to a fractional frequency shift of (-1.2 ± 0.8) × 10-18 to the strontium clock transition. When used in combination with careful management of the blackbody radiation environment, the device shows potential as a platform for realizing a compact, robust, transportable optical lattice clock with systematic uncertainty at the 10-18 level.

RESUMEN

We demonstrate an amplitude-to-phase (AM-PM) conversion coefficient for a balanced optical-microwave phase detector (BOM-PD) of 0.001 rad, corresponding to AM-PM induced phase noise 60 dB below the single-sideband relative intensity noise of the laser. This enables us to generate 8 GHz microwave signals from a commercial Er-fibre comb with a single-sideband residual phase noise of -131 dBc Hz(-1) at 1 Hz offset frequency and -148 dBc Hz(-1) at 1 kHz offset frequency.

RESUMEN

Over the past twelve years, notable advances have occurred in a diverse range of scientific areas following the development of femtosecond optical frequency combs. Compared to a conventional laser source, the distinguishing feature of a femtosecond comb is that it provides a broadband source with well-defined phase coherence across the optical spectrum. This makes it a unique tool for spectroscopic applications, simultaneously providing high spectral resolution and broad spectral coverage. This tutorial review provides an introduction to femtosecond optical frequency combs, covering their principles of operation and examples of how they can be applied to spectroscopy. In this way it aims to demonstrate their potential as a versatile spectroscopic tool that could play a very significant role in future advances in the chemical sciences.

RESUMEN

We demonstrate that the structure of an optical frequency comb transferred over several km of fiber can be preserved at a level compatible with the best optical frequency references currently available. Using an optical phase detection technique we measure the noise introduced by the fiber link and suppress it by stabilizing the optical path length. The measured fractional frequency stability of the transferred optical modes is 2 × 10(-18) at a few thousand seconds and the mode spacing stability after optical-microwave conversion is better than 4 × 10(-17) over the same time scale.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

We demonstrate the transfer of an ultrastable microwave frequency by transmitting a 30-nm-wide optical frequency comb from a mode-locked laser over 86 km of installed optical fiber. The pulse train is returned to the transmitter via the same fiber for compensation of environmentally induced optical path length changes. The fractional transfer stability measured at the remote end reaches 4×10(-17) after 1600 s, corresponding to a timing jitter of 64 fs.

RESUMEN

A nonlinear interferometer design for stabilizing the carrier-envelope offset frequency of a Ti:sapphire frequency comb with superior immunity to air currents and acoustic noise is presented. The scheme uses a pair of Wollaston prisms for group-delay dispersion compensation, providing an all-common-path optical configuration. Out-of-loop phase noise measurements for an unshielded interferometer setup showed up to 15 dB improvement compared to a Michelson interferometer based system. Further simplification of the self-referencing scheme providing a compact single-Wollaston-prism design has been demonstrated.

RESUMEN

A high-stability microwave frequency reference is transferred over 50 km of spooled optical fiber by propagation of a 90-nm-wide optical frequency comb centered at 1.56 microm. Environmentally induced fiber phase noise is actively suppressed by returning the optical frequency comb via a separate fiber. The stability of the microwave frequency delivered is measured at the "user" end, eliminating the need for the assumption of correlation between the noise in the forward and return paths. The measured transfer stability is 4.6 x 10(-15)tau(-1), rendering this technique suitable for the transfer of state-of-the-art frequency references.

RESUMEN

We have developed and characterized a pair of Doppler-free acetylene-stabilized diode laser frequency standards as optical communications references. The Allan deviation sigma/f of an individual system reaches a minimum of 4 x 10(-14) at a sampling time of 5000 s, and the long-term lock-point repeatability is found to be 0.4 kHz (one standard uncertainty), corresponding to a fractional uncertainty of 2 x 10(-12). Using a combination of a frequency chain and a self-referenced femtosecond comb, we have measured the frequency of line P(16) of the v1 + v3 overtone band of 13C2H2 to be 194,369,569,385.9 (3.0) kHz. The uncertainty of this number is limited solely by the reproducibility of the standards.