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Quantum cascade laser frequency stabilization at the sub-Hz level

Nature Photonics volume 9, pages 456–460 (2015)Cite this article

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Abstract

High-precision measurements with molecules may refine our knowledge of various fields of physics, from atmospheric and interstellar physics to the standard model or physics beyond it. Most of them can be cast as absorption frequency measurements, particularly in the mid-infrared ‘molecular fingerprint’ region, creating the need for narrow-linewidth lasers of well-controlled frequency. Quantum cascade lasers provide a wide spectral coverage anywhere in the mid-infrared, but show substantial free-running frequency fluctuations. Here, we demonstrate that the excellent stability and accuracy of an ultra-stable near-infrared laser, transferred from a metrological institute through a fibre link, can be copied to a quantum cascade laser using an optical frequency comb. The obtained relative stability and accuracy of 2 × 10−15 and 10−14 exceed those demonstrated so far with quantum cascade lasers by almost two orders of magnitude. This set-up enables us to measure molecular absorption frequencies with state-of-the-art uncertainties, confirming its potential for ultra-high-precision spectroscopy.

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Figure 1:  Experimental set-up.
Figure 2: Assessment of the QCL frequency stability.
Figure 3: Characterization of frequency noises.
Figure 4:  QCL line shape and beat note with the MIR reference.
Figure 5:  OsO4 spectrum, in the vicinity of the R(14) emission line of CO2.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank P.-E. Pottie, G. Santarelli, R. Le Targat and W.-K. Lee for discussions as well as helping with the ultra-stable NIR lasers or the active compensated optical link. The authors also thank S. Tokunaga for reading the manuscript and for helping with linewidth calculations. The authors acknowledge financial support from the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR BLANC LIOM 2011 BS04 009 01, ANR QUIGARDE 2012 ANR-12-ASTR-0028-03, ANR NCPCHEM 2010 BLAN 724 3, Labex First-TF ANR 10 LABX 48 01), Action Spécifique Gravitation, Références, Astronomie, Métrologie (GRAM) and Université Paris 13.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire de Physique des Lasers, Université Paris 13, Sorbonne Paris Cité, CNRS, 99 Avenue Jean-Baptiste Clément, Villetaneuse, 93430, France

    Bérengère Argence, Bruno Chanteau, Olivier Lopez, Christian Chardonnet, Christophe Daussy, Benoît Darquié & Anne Amy-Klein

  2. LNE-SYRTE, Observatoire de Paris, PSL Research University, CNRS, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ. Paris 06, 61 Avenue de l'Observatoire, Paris, 75014, France

    Daniele Nicolodi, Michel Abgrall & Yann Le Coq

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  1. Bérengère Argence
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Contributions

B.A., B.C., O.L., Y.L.C. and A.A.K. conceived and designed the experiment. B.A., B.C., D.N., B.D. and A.A.K. performed the experiment. B.A., O.L., D.N., M.A., C.D., B.D., Y.L.C. and A.A.K. analysed the data. B.A., M.A., B.D., Y.L.C. and A.A.K. contributed materials/analysis tools. All authors discussed the results. B.A., O.L., D.N., M.A., C.C., C.D., B.D., Y.L.C. and A.A.K. wrote the paper.

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Correspondence to Bérengère Argence or Anne Amy-Klein.

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Argence, B., Chanteau, B., Lopez, O. et al. Quantum cascade laser frequency stabilization at the sub-Hz level. Nature Photon 9, 456–460 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2015.93

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