Laser scanning methods and a phase comparison, modulated laser range finder for terrain sensing on a Mars roving vehicle. M.S. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Herb, G. T.

1973-01-01

Two areas of a laser range finder for a Mars roving vehicle are investigated: (1) laser scanning systems, and (2) range finder methods and implementation. Several ways of rapidly scanning a laser are studied. Two digital deflectors and a matrix of laser diodes, are found to be acceptable. A complete range finder scanning system of high accuracy is proposed. The problem of incident laser spot distortion on the terrain is discussed. The instrumentation for a phase comparison, modulated laser range finder is developed and sections of it are tested.

Development of CO2 laser dispersion interferometer with photoelastic modulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akiyama, T.; Kawahata, K.; Okajima, S.; Nakayama, K.

2010-10-01

A dispersion interferometer is one of the promising methods of the electron density measurement on large and high density fusion devices. This paper describes development of a CO2 laser dispersion interferometer with a photoelastic modulator for phase modulation. In order to make the dispersion interferometer free from variations of the detected intensity, a new phase extraction method is introduced: The phase shift is evaluated from a ratio of amplitudes of the fundamental and the second harmonics of the phase modulation frequency in the detected interference signal. The proof-of-principle experiments demonstrate the feasibility of this method.

Development of CO2 laser dispersion interferometer with photoelastic modulator.

PubMed

Akiyama, T; Kawahata, K; Okajima, S; Nakayama, K

2010-10-01

A dispersion interferometer is one of the promising methods of the electron density measurement on large and high density fusion devices. This paper describes development of a CO(2) laser dispersion interferometer with a photoelastic modulator for phase modulation. In order to make the dispersion interferometer free from variations of the detected intensity, a new phase extraction method is introduced: The phase shift is evaluated from a ratio of amplitudes of the fundamental and the second harmonics of the phase modulation frequency in the detected interference signal. The proof-of-principle experiments demonstrate the feasibility of this method.

Electrically and spatially controllable PDLC phase gratings for diffraction and modulation of laser beams

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hadjichristov, Georgi B., E-mail: georgibh@issp.bas.bg; Marinov, Yordan G.; Petrov, Alexander G.

2016-03-25

We present a study on electrically- and spatially-controllable laser beam diffraction, electrooptic (EO) phase modulation, as well as amplitude-frequency EO modulation by single-layer microscale polymer-dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) phase gratings (PDLC SLPGs) of interest for device applications. PDLC SLPGs were produced from nematic liquid crystal (LC) E7 in photo-curable NOA65 polymer. The wedge-formed PDLC SLPGs have a continuously variable thickness (2–25 µm). They contain LC droplets of diameters twice as the layer thickness, with a linear-gradient size distribution along the wedge. By applying alternating-current (AC) electric field, the PDLC SLPGs produce efficient: (i) diffraction splitting of transmitted laser beams; (ii)more » spatial redistribution of diffracted light intensity; (iii) optical phase modulation; (iv) amplitude-frequency modulation, all controllable by the driven AC field and the droplet size gradient.« less

Kilohertz binary phase modulator for pulsed laser sources using a digital micromirror device.

PubMed

Hoffmann, Maximilian; Papadopoulos, Ioannis N; Judkewitz, Benjamin

2018-01-01

The controlled modulation of an optical wavefront is required for aberration correction, digital phase conjugation, or patterned photostimulation. For most of these applications, it is desirable to control the wavefront modulation at the highest rates possible. The digital micromirror device (DMD) presents a cost-effective solution to achieve high-speed modulation and often exceeds the speed of the more conventional liquid crystal spatial light modulator but is inherently an amplitude modulator. Furthermore, spatial dispersion caused by DMD diffraction complicates its use with pulsed laser sources, such as those used in nonlinear microscopy. Here we introduce a DMD-based optical design that overcomes these limitations and achieves dispersion-free high-speed binary phase modulation. We show that this phase modulation can be used to switch through binary phase patterns at the rate of 20 kHz in two-photon excitation fluorescence applications.

Kilohertz binary phase modulator for pulsed laser sources using a digital micromirror device

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoffmann, Maximilian; Papadopoulos, Ioannis N.; Judkewitz, Benjamin

2018-01-01

The controlled modulation of an optical wavefront is required for aberration correction, digital phase conjugation or patterned photostimulation. For most of these applications it is desirable to control the wavefront modulation at the highest rates possible. The digital micromirror device (DMD) presents a cost-effective solution to achieve high-speed modulation and often exceeds the speed of the more conventional liquid crystal spatial light modulator, but is inherently an amplitude modulator. Furthermore, spatial dispersion caused by DMD diffraction complicates its use with pulsed laser sources, such as those used in nonlinear microscopy. Here we introduce a DMD-based optical design that overcomes these limitations and achieves dispersion-free high-speed binary phase modulation. We show that this phase modulation can be used to switch through binary phase patterns at the rate of 20 kHz in two-photon excitation fluorescence applications.

Demodulation techniques for the amplitude modulated laser imager

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mullen, Linda; Laux, Alan; Cochenour, Brandon; Zege, Eleonora P.; Katsev, Iosif L.; Prikhach, Alexander S.

2007-10-01

A new technique has been found that uses in-phase and quadrature phase (I/Q) demodulation to optimize the images produced with an amplitude-modulated laser imaging system. An I/Q demodulator was used to collect the I/Q components of the received modulation envelope. It was discovered that by adjusting the local oscillator phase and the modulation frequency, the backscatter and target signals can be analyzed separately via the I/Q components. This new approach enhances image contrast beyond what was achieved with a previous design that processed only the composite magnitude information.

Dynamic response of a fiber-optic ring resonator: Analysis with influences of light-source parameters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seraji, Faramarz E.

2009-03-01

In practice, dynamic behavior of fiber-optic ring resonator (FORR) appears as a detrimental factor to influence the transmission response of the FORR. This paper presents dynamic response analysis of the FORR by considering phase modulation of the FORR loop and sinewave modulation of input signal applied to the FORR from a laser diode. The analysis investigates the influences of modulation frequency and amplitude modulation index of laser diode, loop delay time of the FORR, phase angle between FM and AM response of laser diode, and laser diode line-width on dynamic response of the FORR. The analysis shows that the transient response of the FORR strongly depends on the product of modulation frequency and loop delay time, coupling and transmission coefficients of the FORR. The analyses presented here may have applications in optical systems employing an FORR with a laser diode source.

Fiber-Coupled Planar Light-Wave Circuit for Seed Laser Control in High Spectral Resolution Lidar Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cook, Anthony; McNeil, Shirley; Switzer, Gregg; Battle, Philip

2010-01-01

Precise laser remote sensing of aerosol extinction and backscatter in the atmosphere requires a high-power, pulsed, frequency doubled Nd:YAG laser that is wavelength- stabilized to a narrow absorption line such as found in iodine vapor. One method for precise wavelength control is to injection seed the Nd:YAG laser with a low-power CW laser that is stabilized by frequency converting a fraction of the beam to 532 nm, and to actively frequency-lock it to an iodine vapor absorption line. While the feasibility of this approach has been demonstrated using bulk optics in NASA Langley s Airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) program, an ideal, lower cost solution is to develop an all-waveguide, frequency-locked seed laser in a compact, robust package that will withstand the temperature, shock, and vibration levels associated with airborne and space-based remote sensing platforms. A key technology leading to this miniaturization is the integration of an efficient waveguide frequency doubling element, and a low-voltage phase modulation element into a single, monolithic, planar light-wave circuit (PLC). The PLC concept advances NASA's future lidar systems due to its compact, efficient and reliable design, thus enabling use on small aircraft and satellites. The immediate application for this technology is targeted for NASA Langley's HSRL system for aerosol and cloud characterization. This Phase I effort proposes the development of a potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) waveguide phase modulator for future integration into a PLC. For this innovation, the proposed device is the integration of a waveguide-based frequency doubler and phase modulator in a single, fiber pigtail device that will be capable of efficient second harmonic generation of 1,064-nm light and subsequent phase modulation of the 532 nm light at 250 MHz, providing a properly spectrally formatted beam for HSRL s seed laser locking system. Fabrication of the integrated PLC chip for NASA Langley, planned for the Phase II effort, will require full integration and optimization of the waveguide components (SHG waveguide, splitters, and phase modulator) onto a single, monolithic device. The PLC will greatly reduce the size and weight, improve electrical- to-optical efficiency, and significantly reduce the cost of NASA Langley s current stabilized HSRL seed laser system built around a commercial off-the-shelf seed laser that is free-space coupled to a bulk doubler and bulk phase modulator.

Refractive index modulation of Sb70Te30 phase-change thin films by multiple femtosecond laser pulses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lei, Kai; Wang, Yang; Jiang, Minghui; Wu, Yiqun

2016-05-01

In this study, the controllable effective refractive index modulation of Sb70Te30 phase-change thin films between amorphous and crystalline states was achieved experimentally by multiple femtosecond laser pulses. The modulation mechanism was analyzed comprehensively by a spectral ellipsometer measurement, surface morphology observation, and two-temperature model calculations. We numerically demonstrate the application of the optically modulated refractive index of the phase-change thin films in a precisely adjustable color display. These results may provide further insights into ultrafast phase-transition mechanics and are useful in the design of programmable photonic and opto-electrical devices based on phase-change memory materials.

Refractive index modulation of Sb{sub 70}Te{sub 30} phase-change thin films by multiple femtosecond laser pulses

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lei, Kai; Wang, Yang, E-mail: ywang@siom.ac.cn; Jiang, Minghui

2016-05-07

In this study, the controllable effective refractive index modulation of Sb{sub 70}Te{sub 30} phase-change thin films between amorphous and crystalline states was achieved experimentally by multiple femtosecond laser pulses. The modulation mechanism was analyzed comprehensively by a spectral ellipsometer measurement, surface morphology observation, and two-temperature model calculations. We numerically demonstrate the application of the optically modulated refractive index of the phase-change thin films in a precisely adjustable color display. These results may provide further insights into ultrafast phase-transition mechanics and are useful in the design of programmable photonic and opto-electrical devices based on phase-change memory materials.

Relaxation dynamics of femtosecond-laser-induced temperature modulation on the surfaces of metals and semiconductors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Levy, Yoann; Derrien, Thibault J.-Y.; Bulgakova, Nadezhda M.; Gurevich, Evgeny L.; Mocek, Tomáš

2016-06-01

Formation of laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) is a complicated phenomenon which involves periodic spatial modulation of laser energy absorption on the irradiated surface, transient changes in optical response, surface layer melting and/or ablation. The listed processes strongly depend on laser fluence and pulse duration as well as on material properties. This paper is aimed at studying the spatiotemporal evolution of a periodic modulation of the deposited laser energy, once formed upon irradiation of metal (Ti) and semiconductor (Si) surfaces. Assuming that the incoming laser pulse interferes with a surface electromagnetic wave, the resulting sinusoidal modulation of the absorbed laser energy is introduced into a two-dimensional two-temperature model developed for titanium and silicon. Simulations reveal that the lattice temperature modulation on the surfaces of both materials following from the modulated absorption remains significant for longer than 50 ps after the laser pulse. In the cases considered here, the partially molten phase exists 10 ps in Ti and more than 50 ps in Si, suggesting that molten matter can be subjected to temperature-driven relocation toward LIPSS formation, due to the modulated temperature profile on the material surfaces. Molten phase at nanometric distances (nano-melting) is also revealed.

Extension of wavelength-modulation spectroscopy to large modulation depth for diode laser absorption measurements in high-pressure gases

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Hejie; Rieker, Gregory B.; Liu, Xiang; Jeffries, Jay B.; Hanson, Ronald K.

2006-02-01

Tunable diode laser absorption measurements at high pressures by use of wavelength-modulation spectroscopy (WMS) require large modulation depths for optimum detection of molecular absorption spectra blended by collisional broadening or dense spacing of the rovibrational transitions. Diode lasers have a large and nonlinear intensity modulation when the wavelength is modulated over a large range by injection-current tuning. In addition to this intensity modulation, other laser performance parameters are measured, including the phase shift between the frequency modulation and the intensity modulation. Following published theory, these parameters are incorporated into an improved model of the WMS signal. The influence of these nonideal laser effects is investigated by means of wavelength-scanned WMS measurements as a function of bath gas pressure on rovibrational transitions of water vapor near 1388 nm. Lock-in detection of the magnitude of the 2f signal is performed to remove the dependence on detection phase. We find good agreement between measurements and the improved model developed for the 2f component of the WMS signal. The effects of the nonideal performance parameters of commercial diode lasers are especially important away from the line center of discrete spectra, and these contributions become more pronounced for 2f signals with the large modulation depths needed for WMS at elevated pressures.

Frequency chirped light at large detuning with an injection-locked diode laser

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Teng, K.; Disla, M.; Dellatto, J.

2015-04-15

We have developed a laser system to generate frequency-chirped light at rapid modulation speeds (∼100 MHz) with a large frequency offset. Light from an external cavity diode laser with its frequency locked to an atomic resonance is passed through a lithium niobate electro-optical phase modulator. The phase modulator is driven by a ∼6 GHz signal whose frequency is itself modulated with a RF MHz signal (<200 MHz). A second injection locked diode laser is used to filter out all of the light except the frequency-chirped ±1 order by more than 30 dB. Using this system, it is possible to generatemore » a 1 GHz frequency chirp in 5 ns.« less

Electrooptic modulation methods for high sensitivity tunable diode laser spectroscopy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Glenar, David A.; Jennings, Donald E.; Nadler, Shacher

1990-01-01

A CdTe phase modulator and low power RF sources have been used with Pb-salt tunable diode lasers operating near 8 microns to generate optical sidebands for high sensitivity absorption spectroscopy. Sweep averaged, first-derivative sample spectra of CH4 were acquired by wideband phase sensitive detection of the electrooptically (EO) generated carrier-sideband beat signal. EO generated beat signals were also used to frequency lock the TDL to spectral lines. This eliminates low frequency diode jitter, and avoids the excess laser linewidth broadening that accompanies TDL current modulation frequency locking methods.

Study on the generation of a vortex laser beam by using phase-only liquid crystal spatial light modulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Haotong; Hu, Haojun; Xie, Wenke; Xu, Xiaojun

2013-09-01

The generation of vortex laser beam by using phase-only liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LC-SLM) combined with the spiral phase screen is experimentally and theoretically studied. Results show that Gaussian and dark hollow vortex laser beams can be generated by using this method successfully. Differing with the Gaussian and dark hollow beams, far field intensities of the generated vortex laser beams still exhibit dark hollow distributions. The comparisons between the ideal generation and experimental generation of vortex laser beams with different optical topological charges by using phase only LC-SLM is investigated in detail. Compared with the ideal generated vortex laser beam, phase distribution of the experimental generated vortex laser beam contains many phase singularities, the number of which is the same as that of the optical topological charges. The corresponding near field and far field dark hollow intensity distributions of the generated vortex laser beams exhibit discontinuous in rotational direction. Detailed theoretical analysis show that the main reason for the physical phenomenon mentioned above is the response error of phase only LC-SLM. These studies can provide effective guide for the generation of vortex laser beam by using phase only LC-SLM for optical tweezers and free space optical communication.

Optical Phase Recovery and Locking in a PPM Laser Communication Link

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aveline, David C.; Yu, Nan; Farr, William H.

2012-01-01

Free-space optical communication holds great promise for future space missions requiring high data rates. For data communication in deep space, the current architecture employs pulse position modulation (PPM). In this scheme, the light is transmitted and detected as pulses within an array of time slots. While the PPM method is efficient for data transmission, the phase of the laser light is not utilized. The phase coherence of a PPM optical signal has been investigated with the goal of developing a new laser communication and ranging scheme that utilizes optical coherence within the established PPM architecture and photon-counting detection (PCD). Experimental measurements of a PPM modulated optical signal were conducted, and modeling code was developed to generate random PPM signals and simulate spectra via FFT (Fast Fourier Transform) analysis. The experimental results show very good agreement with the simulations and confirm that coherence is preserved despite modulation with high extinction ratios and very low duty cycles. A real-time technique has been developed to recover the phase information through the mixing of a PPM signal with a frequency-shifted local oscillator (LO). This mixed signal is amplified, filtered, and integrated to generate a voltage proportional to the phase of the modulated signal. By choosing an appropriate time constant for integration, one can maintain a phase lock despite long dark times between consecutive pulses with low duty cycle. A proof-of-principle demonstration was first achieved with an RF-based PPM signal and test setup. With the same principle method, an optical carrier within a PPM modulated laser beam could also be tracked and recovered. A reference laser was phase-locked to an independent pulsed laser signal with low-duty-cycle pseudo-random PPM codes. In this way, the drifting carrier frequency in the primary laser source is tracked via its phase change in the mixed beat note, while the corresponding voltage feedback maintains the phase lock between the two laser sources. The novelty and key significance of this work is that the carrier phase information can be harnessed within an optical communication link based on PPM-PCD architecture. This technology development could lead to quantum-limited efficient performance within the communication link itself, as well as enable high-resolution optical tracking capabilities for planetary science and spacecraft navigation.

Laser System for Precise, Unambiguous Range Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dubovitsky, Serge; Lay, Oliver

2005-01-01

The Modulation Sideband Technology for Absolute Range (MSTAR) architecture is the basis of design of a proposed laser-based heterodyne interferometer that could measure a range (distance) as great as 100 km with a precision and resolution of the order of 1 nm. Simple optical interferometers can measure changes in range with nanometer resolution, but cannot measure range itself because interference is subject to the well-known integer-multiple-of-2 -radians phase ambiguity, which amounts to a range ambiguity of the order of 1 m at typical laser wavelengths. Existing rangefinders have a resolution of the order of 10 m and are therefore unable to resolve the ambiguity. The proposed MSTAR architecture bridges the gap, enabling nanometer resolution with an ambiguity range that can be extended to arbitrarily large distances. The MSTAR architecture combines the principle of the heterodyne interferometer with the principle of extending the ambiguity range of an interferometer by using light of two wavelengths. The use of two wavelengths for this purpose is well established in optical metrology, radar, and sonar. However, unlike in traditional two-color laser interferometry, light of two wavelengths would not be generated by two lasers. Instead, multiple wavelengths would be generated as sidebands of phase modulation of the light from a single frequency- stabilized laser. The phase modulation would be effected by applying sinusoidal signals of suitable frequencies (typically tens of gigahertz) to high-speed electro-optical phase modulators. Intensity modulation can also be used

Differential carrier phase recovery for QPSK optical coherent systems with integrated tunable lasers.

PubMed

Fatadin, Irshaad; Ives, David; Savory, Seb J

2013-04-22

The performance of a differential carrier phase recovery algorithm is investigated for the quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) modulation format with an integrated tunable laser. The phase noise of the widely-tunable laser measured using a digital coherent receiver is shown to exhibit significant drift compared to a standard distributed feedback (DFB) laser due to enhanced low frequency noise component. The simulated performance of the differential algorithm is compared to the Viterbi-Viterbi phase estimation at different baud rates using the measured phase noise for the integrated tunable laser.

Single-tone and two-tone AM-FM spectral calculations for tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chou, Nee-Yin; Sachse, Glen W.

1987-01-01

A generalized theory for optical heterodyne spectroscopy with phase modulated laser radiation is used which allows the calculation of signal line shapes for frequency modulation spectroscopy of Lorentzian gas absorption lines. In particular, synthetic spectral line shapes for both single-tone and two-tone modulation of lead-salt diode lasers are presented in which the contributions from both amplitude and frequency modulations are included.

Wideband laser locking to an atomic reference with modulation transfer spectroscopy.

PubMed

Negnevitsky, V; Turner, L D

2013-02-11

We demonstrate that conventional modulated spectroscopy apparatus, used for laser frequency stabilization in many atomic physics laboratories, can be enhanced to provide a wideband lock delivering deep suppression of frequency noise across the acoustic range. Using an acousto-optic modulator driven with an agile oscillator, we show that wideband frequency modulation of the pump laser in modulation transfer spectroscopy produces the unique single lock-point spectrum previously demonstrated with electro-optic phase modulation. We achieve a laser lock with 100 kHz feedback bandwidth, limited by our laser control electronics. This bandwidth is sufficient to reduce frequency noise by 30 dB across the acoustic range and narrows the imputed linewidth by a factor of five.

Nonlinear Spectroscopy.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-03-20

Finally, the (linear) .response of a Fabry - Perot cavity to a phase modulated light wave is considered because of its relevance to phase locking a laser...prepared and therefore doesn’t contribute. This effect provides the remaining factor of two. IV. FABRY - PEROT We now calculate the response of a plane...mirror Fabry - Perot cavity to a phase-modulated laser beam. This linear problem, which contrasts with the nonlinear atomic case, is the basis of an

Conversion from non-orthogonally to orthogonally polarized optical single-sideband modulation using optically injected semiconductor lasers.

PubMed

Hung, Yu-Han; Tseng, Chin-Hao; Hwang, Sheng-Kwang

2018-06-01

This Letter investigates an optically injected semiconductor laser for conversion from non-orthogonally to orthogonally polarized optical single-sideband modulation. The underlying mechanism relies solely on nonlinear laser characteristics and, thus, only a typical semiconductor laser is required as the key conversion unit. This conversion can be achieved for a broadly tunable frequency range up to at least 65 GHz. After conversion, the microwave phase quality, including linewidth and phase noise, is mostly preserved, and simultaneous microwave amplification up to 23 dB is feasible.

Tuning the frequency of ultrashort laser pulses by a cross-phase-modulation-induced shift in a photonic crystal fiber.

PubMed

Konorov, S O; Akimov, D A; Zheltikov, A M; Ivanov, A A; Alfimov, M V; Scalora, M

2005-06-15

Femtosecond pulses of fundamental Cr:forsterite laser radiation are used as a pump field to tune the frequency of copropagating second-harmonic pulses of the same laser through cross-phase modulation in a photonic crystal fiber. Sub-100-kW femtosecond pump pulses coupled into a photonic crystal fiber with an appropriate dispersion profile can shift the central frequency of the probe field by more than 100 nm, suggesting a convenient way to control propagation and spectral transformations of ultrashort laser pulses.

Two-wavelength laser-diode heterodyne interferometry with one phasemeter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Onodera, Ribun; Ishii, Yukihiro

1995-12-01

A two-wavelength laser-diode interferometer that is based on heterodyne detection with one phasemeter has been constructed. Two laser diodes are frequency modulated by mutually inverted sawtooth currents on an unbalanced interferometer. One can measure the tested phase at a synthetic wavelength from the sum of the interference beat signals by synchronizing them with the modulation frequency. The experimental result presented shows a phase-measurement range with a 4.7- mu m synthetic wavelength.

Phasing of two amplifier channels for the coherent combining of laser beams with a total power of 60 W

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trikshev, A. I.; Pyrkov, Yu. N.; Tsvetkov, V. B.

2017-12-01

We have demonstrated stable operation of a system for maintaining a constant phase difference between two laser channels with a total output power of 60 W. The system is based on a two-channel fibre amplifier with phase modulators based on piezoceramic spools. At a main piezo element modulation frequency of 11 kHz, the phasing time after thermal and mechanical influences on the active medium is 100 ms.

Creation of diffraction-limited non-Airy multifocal arrays using a spatially shifted vortex beam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Han; Gu, Min

2013-02-01

Diffraction-limited non-Airy multifocal arrays are created by focusing a phase-modulated vortex beam through a high numerical-aperture objective. The modulated phase at the back aperture of the objective resulting from the superposition of two concentric phase-modulated vortex beams allows for the generation of a multifocal array of cylindrically polarized non-Airy patterns. Furthermore, we shift the spatial positions of the phase vortices to manipulate the intensity distribution at each focal spot, leading to the creation of a multifocal array of split-ring patterns. Our method is experimentally validated by generating the predicted phase modulation through a spatial light modulator. Consequently, the spatially shifted circularly polarized vortex beam adopted in a dynamic laser direct writing system facilitates the fabrication of a split-ring microstructure array in a polymer material by a single exposure of a femtosecond laser beam.

Demonstration of Cascaded Modulator-Chicane Microbunching of a Relativistic Electron Beam

DOE PAGES

Sudar, N.; Musumeci, P.; Gadjev, I.; ...

2018-03-15

Here, we present results of an experiment showing the first successful demonstration of a cascaded microbunching scheme. Two modulator-chicane prebunchers arranged in series and a high power mid-IR laser seed are used to modulate a 52 MeV electron beam into a train of sharp microbunches phase locked to the external drive laser. This configuration is shown to greatly improve matching of the beam into the small longitudinal phase space acceptance of short-wavelength accelerators. We demonstrate trapping of nearly all (96%) of the electrons in a strongly tapered inverse free-electron laser accelerator, with an order-of-magnitude reduction in injection losses compared tomore » the classical single-buncher scheme. These results represent a critical advance in laser-based longitudinal phase space manipulations and find application in high gradient advanced acceleration as well as in high peak and average power coherent radiation sources.« less

Microwave generation with low residual phase noise from a femtosecond fiber laser with an intracavity electro-optic modulator.

PubMed

Swann, William C; Baumann, Esther; Giorgetta, Fabrizio R; Newbury, Nathan R

2011-11-21

Low phase-noise microwave generation has previously been demonstrated using self-referenced frequency combs to divide down a low noise optical reference. We demonstrate an approach based on a fs Er-fiber laser that avoids the complexity of self-referenced stabilization of the offset frequency. Instead, the repetition rate of the femtosecond Er-fiber laser is phase locked to two cavity-stabilized cw fiber lasers that span 3.74 THz by use of an intracavity electro-optic modulator with over 2 MHz feedback bandwidth. The fs fiber laser effectively divides the 3.74 THz difference signal to produce microwave signals at harmonics of the repetition rate. Through comparison of two identical dividers, we measure a residual phase noise on a 1.5 GHz carrier of -120 dBc/Hz at 1 Hz offset. © 2011 Optical Society of America

Theory of Self-Phase Modulation and Spectral Broadening

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Y. R.; Yang, Guo-Zhen

Self-phase modulation refers to the phenomenon in which a laser beam propagating in a medium interacts with the medium and imposes a phase modulation on itself. It is one of those very fascinating effects discovered in the early days of nonlinear optics (Bloembergen and Lallemand, 1966; Brewer, 1967; Cheung et al., 1968; Lallemand, 1966; Jones and Stoicheff, 1964; Shimizu, 1967; Stoicheff, 1963). The physical origin of the phenomenon lies in the fact that the strong field of a laser beam is capable of inducing an appreciable intensity-dependent refractive index change in the medium. The medium then reacts back and inflicts a phase change on the incoming wave, resulting in self-phase modulation (SPM). Since a laser beam has a finite cross section, and hence a transverse intensity profile, SPM on the beam should have a transverse spatial dependence, equivalent to a distortion of the wave front. Consequently, the beam will appear to have self-diffracted. Such a self-diffraction action, resulting from SPM in space, is responsible for the well-known nonlinear optical phenomena of self-focusing and self-defocusing (Marburger, 1975; Shen, 1975). It can give rise to a multiple ring structure in the diffracted beam if the SPM is sufficiently strong (Durbin et al., 1981; Santamato and Shen, 1984). In the case of a pulsed laser input, the temporal variation of the laser intensity leads to an SPM in time. Since the time derivative of the phase of a wave is simply the angular frequency of the wave, SPM also appears as a frequency modulation. Thus, the output beam appears with a self-induced spectral broadening (Cheung et al., 1968; Gustafson et al., 1969; Shimizu, 1967).

Fast spatial beam shaping by acousto-optic diffraction for 3D non-linear microscopy.

PubMed

Akemann, Walther; Léger, Jean-François; Ventalon, Cathie; Mathieu, Benjamin; Dieudonné, Stéphane; Bourdieu, Laurent

2015-11-02

Acousto-optic deflection (AOD) devices offer unprecedented fast control of the entire spatial structure of light beams, most notably their phase. AOD light modulation of ultra-short laser pulses, however, is not straightforward to implement because of intrinsic chromatic dispersion and non-stationarity of acousto-optic diffraction. While schemes exist to compensate chromatic dispersion, non-stationarity remains an obstacle. In this work we demonstrate an efficient AOD light modulator for stable phase modulation using time-locked generation of frequency-modulated acoustic waves at the full repetition rate of a high power laser pulse amplifier of 80 kHz. We establish the non-local relationship between the optical phase and the generating acoustic frequency function and verify the system for temporal stability, phase accuracy and generation of non-linear two-dimensional phase functions.

Physics of frequency-modulated comb generation in quantum-well diode lasers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Mark; Cundiff, Steven T.; Winful, Herbert G.

2018-05-01

We investigate the physical origin of frequency-modulated combs generated from single-section semiconductor diode lasers based on quantum wells, isolating the essential physics necessary for comb generation. We find that the two effects necessary for comb generation—spatial hole burning (leading to multimode operation) and four-wave mixing (leading to phase locking)—are indeed present in some quantum-well systems. The physics of comb generation in quantum wells is similar to that in quantum dot and quantum cascade lasers. We discuss the nature of the spectral phase and some important material parameters of these diode lasers.

Space-inhomogeneous phase modulation of laser radiation in an electro-optical ferroelectric liquid crystal cell for suppressing speckle noise.

PubMed

Andreev, Alexander L; Andreeva, Tatiana B; Kompanets, Igor N; Zalyapin, Nikolay V

2018-02-20

Spatially inhomogeneous modulation of a phase delay with the depth of the order π or more makes it possible to destroy phase relations in a laser beam passing through an electro-optical cell with the ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) and, as a consequence, to suppress speckle noise in images formed by this beam. Such a modulation is a consequence of chaotic changes in the position of the scattering indicatrix of helix-free FLC, when an electro-optical cell is simultaneously supplied with a low-frequency and high-frequency bipolar control voltage. In this work, the phase modulation and effective suppressing of the speckles are realized using a new type of helix-free FLC material with periodic deformations of smectic layers.

Free-space laser communication technologies IV; Proceedings of the 4th Conference, Los Angeles, CA, Jan. 23, 24, 1992

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Begley, David L. (Editor); Seery, Bernard D. (Editor)

1992-01-01

Papers included in this volume are grouped under topics of receivers; laser transmitters; components; system analysis, performance, and applications; and beam control (pointing, acquisition, and tracking). Papers are presented on an experimental determination of power penalty contributions in an optical Costas-type phase-locked loop receiver, a resonant laser receiver for free-space laser communications, a simple low-loss technique for frequency-locking lasers, direct phase modulation of laser diodes, and a silex beacon. Particular attention is given to experimental results on an optical array antenna for nonmechanical beam steering, a potassium Faraday anomalous dispersion optical filter, a 100-Mbps resonant cavity phase modulator for coherent optical communications, a numerical simulation of a 325-Mbit/s QPPM optical communication system, design options for an optical multiple-access data relay terminal, CCD-based optical tracking loop design trades, and an analysis of a spatial-tracking subsystem for optical communications.

Effect of phase front modulation on the merging of multiple regularized femtosecond filaments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pushkarev, D.; Shipilo, D.; Lar'kin, A.; Mitina, E.; Panov, N.; Uryupina, D.; Ushakov, A.; Volkov, R.; Karpeev, S.; Khonina, S.; Kosareva, O.; Savel'ev, A.

2018-04-01

Comparative experimental data on filamentation of a powerful femtosecond laser beams with amplitude or phase front modulation is presented. We show that phase discontinuities and zero intensity lines prevented filament merging and superfilament formation.

Elimination of residual amplitude modulation in tunable diode laser wavelength modulation spectroscopy using an optical fiber delay line.

PubMed

Chakraborty, Arup Lal; Ruxton, Keith; Johnstone, Walter; Lengden, Michael; Duffin, Kevin

2009-06-08

A new fiber-optic technique to eliminate residual amplitude modulation in tunable diode laser wavelength modulation spectroscopy is presented. The modulated laser output is split to pass in parallel through the gas measurement cell and an optical fiber delay line, with the modulation frequency / delay chosen to introduce a relative phase shift of pi between them. The two signals are balanced using a variable attenuator and recombined through a fiber coupler. In the absence of gas, the direct laser intensity modulation cancels, thereby eliminating the high background. The presence of gas induces a concentration-dependent imbalance at the coupler's output from which the absolute absorption profile is directly recovered with high accuracy using 1f detection.

Influence of the cubic spectral phase of high-power laser pulses on their self-phase modulation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ginzburg, V N; Kochetkov, A A; Yakovlev, I V

2016-02-28

Spectral broadening of high-power transform-limited laser pulses under self-phase modulation in a medium with cubic nonlinearity is widely used to reduce pulse duration and to increase its power. It is shown that the cubic spectral phase of the initial pulse leads to a qualitatively different broadening of its spectrum: the spectrum has narrow peaks and broadening decreases. However, the use of chirped mirrors allows such pulses to be as effectively compressed as transform-limited pulses. (nonlinear optical phenomena)

Tunable compensation of GVD-induced FM-AM conversion in the front end of high-power lasers.

PubMed

Li, Rao; Fan, Wei; Jiang, Youen; Qiao, Zhi; Zhang, Peng; Lin, Zunqi

2017-02-01

Group velocity dispersion (GVD) is one of the main factors leading to frequency modulation (FM) to amplitude modulation (AM) conversion in the front end of high-power lasers. In order to compensate the FM-AM modulation, the influence of GVD, which is mainly induced by the phase filter effect, is theoretically investigated. Based on the theoretical analysis, a high-precision, high-stability, tunable GVD compensatory using gratings is designed and experimentally demonstrated. The results indicate that the compensator can be implemented in high-power laser facilities to compensate the GVD of fiber with a length between 200-500 m when the bandwidth of a phase-modulated laser is 0.34 nm or 0.58 nm and the central wavelength is in the range of 1052.3217-1053.6008 nm. Due to the linear relationship between the dispersion and the spacing distance of the gratings, the compensator can easily achieve closed-loop feedback controlling. The proposed GVD compensator promises significant applications in large laser facilities, especially in the future polarizing fiber front end of high-power lasers.

Numerical investigations of self- and cross-phase modulation effects in high-power fiber amplifiers (Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zunoubi, Mohammad R.; Anderson, Brian; Naderi, Shadi A.; Madden, Timothy J.; Dajani, Iyad

2017-03-01

The development of high-power fiber lasers is of great interest due to the advantages they offer relative to other laser technologies. Currently, the maximum power from a reportedly single-mode fiber amplifier stands at 10 kW. Though impressive, this power level was achieved at the cost of a large spectral linewidth, making the laser unsuitable for coherent or spectral beam combination techniques required to reach power levels necessary for airborne tactical applications. An effective approach in limiting the SBS effect is to insert an electro-optic phase modulator at the low-power end of a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) system. As a result, the optical power is spread among spectral sidebands; thus raising the overall SBS threshold of the amplifier. It is the purpose of this work to present a comprehensive numerical scheme that is based on the extended nonlinear Schrodinger equations that allows for accurate analysis of phase modulated fiber amplifier systems in relation to the group velocity dispersion and Kerr nonlinearities and their effect on the coherent beam combining efficiency. As such, we have simulated a high-power MOPA system modulated via filtered pseudo-random bit sequence format for different clock rates and power levels. We show that at clock rates of ≥30 GHz, the combination of GVD and self-phase modulation may lead to a drastic drop in beam combining efficiency at the multi-kW level. Furthermore, we extend our work to study the effect of cross-phase modulation where an amplifier is seeded with two laser sources.

Phase difference in modulated signals of two orthogonally polarized outputs of a Nd:YAG microchip laser with anisotropic optical feedback.

PubMed

Zhang, Peng; Tan, Yi-Dong; Liu, Ning; Wu, Yun; Zhang, Shu-Lian

2013-11-01

We present an experimental observation of the output responses of a Nd:YAG microchip laser with an anisotropic external cavity under weak optical feedback. The feedback mirror is stationary during the experiments. A pair of acousto-optic modulators is used to produce a frequency shift in the feedback light with respect to the initial light. The laser output is a beat signal with 40 kHz modulation frequency and is separated into two orthogonal directions by a Wollaston prism. Phase differences between the two intensity curves are observed as the laser works in two orthogonal modes, and vary with the external birefringence element and the pump power. Theoretical analyses are given, and the simulated results are consistent with the experimental phenomena.

Limiting of microjoule femtosecond pulses in air-guided modes of a hollow photonic-crystal fiber

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Konorov, S.O.; Serebryannikov, E.E.; Sidorov-Biryukov, D.A.

Self-phase-modulation-induced spectral broadening of laser pulses in air-guided modes of hollow photonic-crystal fibers (PCFs) is shown to allow the creation of fiber-optic limiters for high-intensity ultrashort laser pulses. The performance of PCF limiters is analyzed in terms of elementary theory of self-phase modulation. Experiments performed with 100 fs microjoule pulses of 800 nm Ti:sapphire laser radiation demonstrate the potential of hollow PCFs as limiters for 10 MW ultrashort laser pulses and show the possibility to switch the limiting level of output radiation energy by guiding femtosecond pulses in different PCF modes.

Mode-locking of a terahertz laser by direct phase synchronization.

PubMed

Maysonnave, J; Maussang, K; Freeman, J R; Jukam, N; Madéo, J; Cavalié, P; Rungsawang, R; Khanna, S P; Linfield, E H; Davies, A G; Beere, H E; Ritchie, D A; Dhillon, S S; Tignon, J

2012-09-10

A novel scheme to achieve mode-locking of a multimode laser is demonstrated. Traditional methods to produce ultrashort laser pulses are based on modulating the cavity gain or losses at the cavity roundtrip frequency, favoring the pulsed emission. Here, we rather directly act on the phases of the modes, resulting in constructive interference for the appropriated phase relationship. This was performed on a terahertz quantum cascade laser by multimode injection seeding with an external terahertz pulse, resulting in phase mode-locked terahertz laser pulses of 9 ps duration, characterized unambiguously in the time domain.

Experimental Performance of a Single-Mode Ytterbium-doped Fiber Ring Laser with Intracavity Modulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Numata, Kenji; Camp, Jordan

2012-01-01

We have developed a linearly polarized Ytterbium-doped fiber ring laser with a single longitudinal mode output at 1064 run. A fiber-coupled intracavity phase modulator ensured mode-hop free operation and allowed fast frequency tuning. The fiber laser was locked with high stability to an iodine-stabilized laser, showing a frequency noise suppression of a factor approx 10 (exp 5) at 1 mHz

Electric-optic resonant phase modulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Chien-Chung (Inventor); Robinson, Deborah L. (Inventor); Hemmati, Hamid (Inventor)

1994-01-01

An electro-optic resonant cavity is used to achieve phase modulation with lower driving voltages. Laser damage thresholds are inherently higher than with previously used integrated optics due to the utilization of bulk optics. Phase modulation is achieved at higher speeds with lower driving voltages than previously obtained with non-resonant electro-optic phase modulators. The instant scheme uses a data locking dither approach as opposed to the conventional sinusoidal locking schemes. In accordance with a disclosed embodiment, a resonant cavity modulator has been designed to operate at a data rate in excess of 100 Mbps. By carefully choosing the cavity finesse and its dimension, it is possible to control the pulse switching time to within 4 ns and to limit the required switching voltage to within 10 V. Experimentally, the resonant cavity can be maintained on resonance with respect to the input laser signal by monitoring the fluctuation of output intensity as the cavity is switched. This cavity locking scheme can be applied by using only the random data sequence, and without the need of additional dithering of the cavity. Compared to waveguide modulators, the resonant cavity has a comparable modulating voltage requirement. Because of its bulk geometry, resonant cavity modulator has the potential of accommodating higher throughput power. Furthermore, mode matching into a bulk device is easier and typically can be achieved with higher efficiency. On the other hand, unlike waveguide modulators which are essentially traveling wave devices, the resonant cavity modulator requires that the cavity be maintained in resonance with respect to the incoming laser signal. An additional control loop is incorporated into the modulator to maintain the cavity on resonance.

Dynamics of ultra-broadband terahertz quantum cascade lasers for comb operation.

PubMed

Li, Hua; Laffaille, Pierre; Gacemi, Djamal; Apfel, Marc; Sirtori, Carlo; Leonardon, Jeremie; Santarelli, Giorgio; Rösch, Markus; Scalari, Giacomo; Beck, Mattias; Faist, Jerome; Hänsel, Wolfgang; Holzwarth, Ronald; Barbieri, Stefano

2015-12-28

We present an experimental investigation of the multimode dynamics and the coherence of terahertz quantum cascade lasers emitting over a spectral bandwidth of ~1THz. The devices are studied in free-running and under direct RF modulation. Depending on the pump current we observe different regimes of operation, where RF spectra displaying single and multiple narrow beat-note signals alternate with spectra showing a single beat-note characterized by an intense phase-noise, extending over a bandwidth up to a few GHz. We investigate the relation between this phase-noise and the dynamics of the THz modes through the electro-optic sampling of the laser emission. We find that when the phase-noise is large, the laser operates in an unstable regime where the lasing modes are incoherent. Under RF modulation of the laser current such instability can be suppressed and the modes coherence recovered, while, simultaneously, generating a strong broadening of the THz emission spectrum.

Novel Designs and Coupling Schemes for Affordable High Energy Laser Modules

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-09-28

possibility of single polarization operation of phase- locked multicore fiber lasers and amplifiers. 5.5. UV...transverse direction (propagation and polarization vectors shown as solid arrows and dashed lines, respectively) having a dipole-like wave front from an...31 5.4. Phase Locking in Monolithic Multicore Fiber Laser..................................................... 38 5.5. UV

Detection of interference phase by digital computation of quadrature signals in homodyne laser interferometry.

PubMed

Rerucha, Simon; Buchta, Zdenek; Sarbort, Martin; Lazar, Josef; Cip, Ondrej

2012-10-19

We have proposed an approach to the interference phase extraction in the homodyne laser interferometry. The method employs a series of computational steps to reconstruct the signals for quadrature detection from an interference signal from a non-polarising interferometer sampled by a simple photodetector. The complexity trade-off is the use of laser beam with frequency modulation capability. It is analytically derived and its validity and performance is experimentally verified. The method has proven to be a feasible alternative for the traditional homodyne detection since it performs with comparable accuracy, especially where the optical setup complexity is principal issue and the modulation of laser beam is not a heavy burden (e.g., in multi-axis sensor or laser diode based systems).

Optical synchronization system for femtosecond X-ray sources

DOEpatents

Wilcox, Russell B [El Cerrito, CA; Holzwarth, Ronald [Munich, DE

2011-12-13

Femtosecond pump/probe experiments using short X-Ray and optical pulses require precise synchronization between 100 meter-10 km separated lasers in a various experiments. For stabilization in the hundred femtosecond range a CW laser is amplitude modulated at 1-10 GHz, the signal retroreflected from the far end, and the relative phase used to correct the transit time with various implementations. For the sub-10 fsec range the laser frequency itself is upshifted 55 MHz with an acousto-optical modulator, retroreflected, upshifted again and phase compared at the sending end to a 110 MHz reference. Initial experiments indicate less than 1 fsec timing jitter. To lock lasers in the sub-10 fs range two single-frequency lasers separated by several teraHertz will be lock to a master modelocked fiber laser, transmit the two frequencies over fiber, and lock two comb lines of a slave laser to these frequencies, thus synchronizing the two modelocked laser envelopes.

A low-cost, tunable laser lock without laser frequency modulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shea, Margaret E.; Baker, Paul M.; Gauthier, Daniel J.

2015-05-01

Many experiments in optical physics require laser frequency stabilization. This can be achieved by locking to an atomic reference using saturated absorption spectroscopy. Often, the laser frequency is modulated and phase sensitive detection used. This method, while well-proven and robust, relies on expensive components, can introduce an undesirable frequency modulation into the laser, and is not easily frequency tuned. Here, we report a simple locking scheme similar to those implemented previously. We modulate the atomic resonances in a saturated absorption setup with an AC magnetic field created by a single solenoid. The same coil applies a DC field that allows tuning of the lock point. We use an auto-balanced detector to make our scheme more robust against laser power fluctuations and stray magnetic fields. The coil, its driver, and the detector are home-built with simple, cheap components. Our technique is low-cost, simple to setup, tunable, introduces no laser frequency modulation, and only requires one laser. We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the NSF through Grant # PHY-1206040.

Programming Nanoparticles in Multiscale: Optically Modulated Assembly and Phase Switching of Silicon Nanoparticle Array.

PubMed

Wang, Letian; Rho, Yoonsoo; Shou, Wan; Hong, Sukjoon; Kato, Kimihiko; Eliceiri, Matthew; Shi, Meng; Grigoropoulos, Costas P; Pan, Heng; Carraro, Carlo; Qi, Dongfeng

2018-03-27

Manipulating and tuning nanoparticles by means of optical field interactions is of key interest for nanoscience and applications in electronics and photonics. We report scalable, direct, and optically modulated writing of nanoparticle patterns (size, number, and location) of high precision using a pulsed nanosecond laser. The complex nanoparticle arrangement is modulated by the laser pulse energy and polarization with the particle size ranging from 60 to 330 nm. Furthermore, we report fast cooling-rate induced phase switching of crystalline Si nanoparticles to the amorphous state. Such phase switching has usually been observed in compound phase change materials like GeSbTe. The ensuing modification of atomic structure leads to dielectric constant switching. Based on these effects, a multiscale laser-assisted method of fabricating Mie resonator arrays is proposed. The number of Mie resonators, as well as the resonance peaks and dielectric constants of selected resonators, can be programmed. The programmable light-matter interaction serves as a mechanism to fabricate optical metasurfaces, structural color, and multidimensional optical storage devices.

Phase modulation for reduced vibration sensitivity in laser-cooled clocks in space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Klipstein, W.; Dick, G.; Jefferts, S.; Walls, F.

2001-01-01

The standard interrogation technique in atomic beam clocks is square-wave frequency modulation (SWFM), which suffers a first order sensitivity to vibrations as changes in the transit time of the atoms translates to perceived frequency errors. Square-wave phase modulation (SWPM) interrogation eliminates sensitivity to this noise.

Self-phase modulation of submicrojoule femtosecond pulses in a hollow-core photonic-crystal fiber

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Konorov, S.O.; Sidorov-Biryukov, D.A.; Zheltikov, A.M.

Hollow-core photonic-crystal fibers (PCFs) capable of transporting sub-100-fs pulses of Ti:sapphire laser radiation in one of their transmission peaks centered around 800 nm have been designed and demonstrated. These fibers are shown to enhance self-phase modulation of submicrojoule 100-fs Ti:sapphire laser pulses, allowing a spectral bandwidth of 35 nm to be achieved with an 8-cm PCF sample.

Gradient polymer-disposed liquid crystal single layer of large nematic droplets for modulation of laser light.

PubMed

Hadjichristov, Georgi B; Marinov, Yordan G; Petrov, Alexander G

2011-06-01

The light modulating ability of gradient polymer-disposed liquid crystal (PDLC) single layer of large droplets formed by nematic E7 in UV-cured polymer NOA65 is studied. Operating at relatively low voltages, such PDLC film with a of thickness 10-25 μm and droplet size up to 50 μm exhibits a good contrast ratio and is capable of producing a large phase shift for the propagating coherent light. For a linearly polarized He-Ne laser (λ=633 nm), an electrically commanded phase shift as large as π/2 can be obtained by the large-droplet region of the film. The electrically produced phase shift and its spatial profile controlled by the thickness of the gradient PDLC single layers of large nematic droplets can be useful for tunable spatial light modulators and other devices for active control of laser light.

A Laser Stabilization System for Rydberg Atom Physics

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-09-06

offset locking method which we did. For each system, a small amount of light from a 852 nm (780 nm) diode laser is picked off from the output beam ...this way, tunable sidebands, from 1-10 GHz, that are themselves modulated at .05-5 MHz, can be generated on the input laser beam . The light from the...phase modulation signal. This signal is fed back into the fast (10 MHz bandwidth) locking electronics of the diode laser system to lock the laser to

Pattern dependence in high-speed Q-modulated distributed feedback laser.

PubMed

Zhu, Hongli; Xia, Yimin; He, Jian-Jun

2015-05-04

We investigate the pattern dependence in high speed Q-modulated distributed feedback laser based on its complete physical structure and material properties. The structure parameters of the gain section as well as the modulation and phase sections are all taken into account in the simulations based on an integrated traveling wave model. Using this model, we show that an example Q-modulated DFB laser can achieve an extinction ratio of 6.8dB with a jitter of 4.7ps and a peak intensity fluctuation of less than 15% for 40Gbps RZ modulation signal. The simulation method is proved very useful for the complex laser structure design and high speed performance optimization, as well as for providing physical insight of the operation mechanism.

Visualization of the influence of the air conditioning system to the high-power laser beam quality with the modulation coherent imaging method.

PubMed

Tao, Hua; Veetil, Suhas P; Pan, Xingchen; Liu, Cheng; Zhu, Jianqiang

2015-08-01

Air conditioning systems can lead to dynamic phase change in the laser beams of high-power laser facilities for the inertial confinement fusion, and this kind of phase change cannot be measured by most of the commonly employed Hartmann wavefront sensor or interferometry due to some uncontrollable factors, such as too large laser beam diameters and the limited space of the facility. It is demonstrated that this problem can be solved using a scheme based on modulation coherent imaging, and thus the influence of the air conditioning system on the performance of the high-power facility can be evaluated directly.

Preparation of starch stabilized silver nanoparticles with spatial self-phase modulation properties by laser ablation technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zamiri, Reza; Azmi, B. Z.; Darroudi, Majid; Sadrolhosseini, Amir R.; Husin, M. S.; Zaidan, A. W.; Mahdi, M. A.

2011-01-01

Silver nanoparticles inside the starch solution have been successfully fabricated by laser ablation of a silver plate immersed in starch solution. The ablation has been done using a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser at 10 Hz repetition rate. The starch solution allows for the formation of silver nanoparticles with uniform particle diameters and well dispersed. The ablation was performed at different time durations to study the influence of the laser ablation time on efficiency of particle formation and sizes. The Spatial Self-phase modulation phenomena which can determine the nonlinear optical property of the samples were also investigated for starch solutions containing silver nanoparticles.

Far field and wavefront characterization of a high-power semiconductor laser for free space optical communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cornwell, Donald M., Jr.; Saif, Babak N.

1991-01-01

The spatial pointing angle and far field beamwidth of a high-power semiconductor laser are characterized as a function of CW power and also as a function of temperature. The time-averaged spatial pointing angle and spatial lobe width were measured under intensity-modulated conditions. The measured pointing deviations are determined to be well within the pointing requirements of the NASA Laser Communications Transceiver (LCT) program. A computer-controlled Mach-Zehnder phase-shifter interferometer is used to characterize the wavefront quality of the laser. The rms phase error over the entire pupil was measured as a function of CW output power. Time-averaged measurements of the wavefront quality are also made under intensity-modulated conditions. The measured rms phase errors are determined to be well within the wavefront quality requirements of the LCT program.

Coherent communication link using diode-pumped lasers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kane, Thomas J.; Wallace, Richard W.

1989-01-01

Work toward developing a diffraction limited, single frequency, modulated transmitter suitable for coherent optical communication or direct detection communication is discussed. Diode pumped, monolithic Nd:YAG nonplanar ring oscillators were used as the carrier beam. An external modulation technique which can handle high optical powers, has moderate modulation voltage, and which can reach modulation rates of 1 GHz was invented. Semiconductor laser pumped solid-state lasers which have high output power (0.5 Watt) and which oscillate at a single frequency, in a diffraction limited beam, at the wavelength of 1.06 microns were built. A technique for phase modulating the laser output by 180 degrees with a 40-volt peak to peak driving voltage is demonstrated. This technique can be adapted for amplitude modulation of 100 percent with the same voltage. This technique makes use of a resonant bulk modulator, so it does not have the power handling limitations of guided wave modulators.

Photonic Applications Using Electrooptic Optical Signal Processors

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-11-16

analog-to-digital conversion using a continuous wave multiwavelength source and phase modulation Author(s): Bortnik, B.J.; Fetterman, H.R. Source... multiwavelength source and phase modulation Bartosz J. Bortnik* and Harold R. Fetterman Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California Los...utilizing a cw multiwavelength source and phase modulation instead of a mode-locked laser is presented. The output of the cw multiwave- length source

Detection of Interference Phase by Digital Computation of Quadrature Signals in Homodyne Laser Interferometry

PubMed Central

Rerucha, Simon; Buchta, Zdenek; Sarbort, Martin; Lazar, Josef; Cip, Ondrej

2012-01-01

We have proposed an approach to the interference phase extraction in the homodyne laser interferometry. The method employs a series of computational steps to reconstruct the signals for quadrature detection from an interference signal from a non-polarising interferometer sampled by a simple photodetector. The complexity trade-off is the use of laser beam with frequency modulation capability. It is analytically derived and its validity and performance is experimentally verified. The method has proven to be a feasible alternative for the traditional homodyne detection since it performs with comparable accuracy, especially where the optical setup complexity is principal issue and the modulation of laser beam is not a heavy burden (e.g., in multi-axis sensor or laser diode based systems). PMID:23202038

Efficient carrier-envelope offset frequency stabilization through gain modulation via stimulated emission.

PubMed

Karlen, Lauriane; Buchs, Gilles; Portuondo-Campa, Erwin; Lecomte, Steve

2016-01-15

A novel scheme for intracavity control of the carrier-envelope offset (CEO) frequency of a 100 MHz mode-locked Er:Yb:glass diode-pumped solid-state laser (DPSSL) based on the modulation of the laser gain via stimulated emission of the excited Er(3+) ions is demonstrated. This method allows us to bypass the ytterbium system few-kHz low-pass filter in the f(CEO) stabilization loop and thus to push the phase lock bandwidth up to a limit close to the relaxation oscillations frequency of the erbium system. A phase lock bandwidth above 70 kHz has been achieved with the fully stabilized laser, leading to an integrated phase noise [1 Hz-1 MHz] of 120 mrad.

Phase locking of a seven-channel continuous wave fibre laser system by a stochastic parallel gradient algorithm

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Volkov, M V; Garanin, S G; Dolgopolov, Yu V

2014-11-30

A seven-channel fibre laser system operated by the master oscillator – multichannel power amplifier scheme is the phase locked using a stochastic parallel gradient algorithm. The phase modulators on lithium niobate crystals are controlled by a multichannel electronic unit with the microcontroller processing signals in real time. The dynamic phase locking of the laser system with the bandwidth of 14 kHz is demonstrated, the time of phasing is 3 – 4 ms. (fibre and integrated-optical structures)

Frequency modulation of high-order harmonic generation in an orthogonally polarized two-color laser field.

PubMed

Li, Guicun; Zheng, Yinghui; Ge, Xiaochun; Zeng, Zhinan; Li, Ruxin

2016-08-08

We have experimentally investigated the frequency modulation of high-order harmonics in an orthogonally polarized two-color laser field consisting of a mid-infrared 1800nm fundamental pulse and its second harmonic pulse. It is demonstrated that the high harmonic spectra can be fine-tuned as we slightly change the relative delay of the two-color laser pulses. By analyzing the relative frequency shift of each harmonic at different two-color delays, the nonadiabatic spectral shift induced by the rapid variation of the intensity-dependent intrinsic dipole phase can be distinguished from the blueshift induced by the change of the refractive index during self-phase modulation (SPM). Our comprehensive analysis shows that the frequency modulation pattern is a reflection of the average emission time of high-order harmonic generation (HHG), thus offering a simple method to fine-tune the spectra of the harmonics on a sub-cycle time scale.

Deep frequency modulation interferometry.

PubMed

Gerberding, Oliver

2015-06-01

Laser interferometry with pm/Hz precision and multi-fringe dynamic range at low frequencies is a core technology to measure the motion of various objects (test masses) in space and ground based experiments for gravitational wave detection and geodesy. Even though available interferometer schemes are well understood, their construction remains complex, often involving, for example, the need to build quasi-monolithic optical benches with dozens of components. In recent years techniques have been investigated that aim to reduce this complexity by combining phase modulation techniques with sophisticated digital readout algorithms. This article presents a new scheme that uses strong laser frequency modulations in combination with the deep phase modulation readout algorithm to construct simpler and easily scalable interferometers.

Laser dynamics: The system dynamics and network theory of optoelectronic integrated circuit design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tarng, Tom Shinming-T. K.

Laser dynamics is the system dynamics, communication and network theory for the design of opto-electronic integrated circuit (OEIC). Combining the optical network theory and optical communication theory, the system analysis and design for the OEIC fundamental building blocks is considered. These building blocks include the direct current modulation, inject light modulation, wideband filter, super-gain optical amplifier, E/O and O/O optical bistability and current-controlled optical oscillator. Based on the rate equations, the phase diagram and phase portrait analysis is applied to the theoretical studies and numerical simulation. The OEIC system design methodologies are developed for the OEIC design. Stimulating-field-dependent rate equations are used to model the line-width narrowing/broadening mechanism for the CW mode and frequency chirp of semiconductor lasers. The momentary spectra are carrier-density-dependent. Furthermore, the phase portrait analysis and the nonlinear refractive index is used to simulate the single mode frequency chirp. The average spectra of chaos, period doubling, period pulsing, multi-loops and analog modulation are generated and analyzed. The bifurcation-chirp design chart with modulation depth and modulation frequency as parameters is provided for design purpose.

Apparatus and method for increasing the bandwidth of a laser beam

DOEpatents

Wilcox, Russell B.

1992-01-01

A method and apparatus using sinusoidal cross-phase modulation, provides a laser pulse having a very broad bandwidth while substantially retaining the input laser's temporal shape. The modulator may be used in a master oscillator system for a laser having a master oscillator-power amplifier (MOPA) configration. The modulator utilizes a first laser providing an output wavelength .lambda. and a second laser providing an output wavelength shifted by a small amount to .lambda.+.DELTA..lambda.. Each beam has a single, linear polarization. Each beam is coupled into a length of polarization-preserving optical fiber. The first laser beam is coupled into the optical fiber with the beam's polarization aligned with the fiber's main axis, and the second beam is coupled into the fiber with its polarization rotated from the main axis by a predetermined angle. Within the fiber, the main axis' polarization defines an interference beam and the orthogonal axis' polarization defines a signal beam. In the interference beam, the first laser beam and the parallel polarized vector component of the other beam interfere to create areas of high and low intensity, which modulates the signal beam by cross phase modulation. Upon exit from the optical fiber, the beams are coupled out and the modulated signal beam is separated out by a polarization selector. The signal beam can be applied to coherence reducing systems to provide an output that is temporally and spatially incoherent. The U.S. Government has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. W7405-ENG-48 between the U.S. Department of Energy and the University of California for the operation of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Non-invasive Glucose Measurements Using Wavelength Modulated Differential Photothermal Radiometry (WM-DPTR)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, X.; Mandelis, A.; Zinman, B.

2012-11-01

Wavelength-modulated differential laser photothermal radiometry (WM-DPTR) is introduced for potential development of clinically viable non-invasive glucose biosensors. WM-DPTR features unprecedented glucose-specificity and sensitivity by combining laser excitation by two out-of-phase modulated beams at wavelengths near the peak and the baseline of a prominent and isolated mid-IR glucose absorption band. Measurements on water-glucose phantoms (0 to 300 mg/dl glucose concentration) demonstrate high sensitivity to meet wide clinical detection requirements ranging from hypoglycemia to hyperglycemia. The measurement results have been validated by simulations based on fully developed WM-DPTR theory. For sensitive and accurate glucose measurements, the key is the selection and tight control of the intensity ratio and the phase shift of the two laser beams.

Femtosecond fibre laser stabilisation to an optical frequency standard using a KTP electro-optic crystal

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nyushkov, B N; Pivtsov, V S; Koliada, N A

2015-05-31

A miniature intracavity KTP-based electro-optic phase modulator has been developed which can be used for effective stabilisation of an optical frequency comb of a femtosecond erbiumdoped fibre laser to an optical frequency standard. The use of such an electro-optic modulator (EOM) has made it possible to extend the working frequency band of a phase-locked loop system for laser stabilisation to several hundred kilohertz. We demonstrate that the KTP-based EOM is sufficiently sensitive even at a small optical length, which allows it to be readily integrated into cavities of femtosecond fibre lasers with high mode frequency spacings (over 100 MHz). (extrememore » light fields and their applications)« less

Single laser beam of spatial coherence from an array of GaAs lasers - Free-running mode

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Philipp-Rutz, E. M.

1975-01-01

Spatially coherent radiation from a monolithic array of three GaAs lasers in a free-running mode is reported. The lasers, with their mirror faces antireflection coated, are operated in an external optical cavity built of spherical lenses and plane mirrors. The spatially coherent-beam formation makes use of the Fourier-transformation property of the internal lenses. Transverse mode control is accomplished by a spatial filter. The optical cavity is similar to that used for the phase-controlled mode of spatially coherent-beam formation; only the spatial filters are different. In the far field (when restored by an external lens), the intensities of the lasers in the array are concentrated in a single laser beam of spatial coherence, without any grating lobes. The far-field distribution of the laser array in the free-running mode differs significantly from the interference pattern of the phase-controlled mode. The modulation characteristics of the optical waveforms of the two modes are also quite different because modulation is related to the interaction of the spatial filter with the longitudinal modes of the laser array within the optical cavity. The modulation of the optical waveform of the free-running mode is nonperiodic, confirming that the fluctuations of the optical fields of the lasers are random.

Cross-phase-modulation-induced instability in photonic-crystal fibers.

PubMed

Serebryannikov, E E; Konorov, S O; Ivanov, A A; Alfimov, M V; Scalora, M; Zheltikov, A M

2005-08-01

Cross-phase-modulation-induced instability is identified as a significant mechanism for efficient parametric four-wave-mixing frequency conversion in photonic-crystal fibers. Fundamental-wavelength femtosecond pulses of a Cr, forsterite laser are used in our experiments to transform the spectrum of copropagating second-harmonic pulses of the same laser in a photonic-crystal fiber. Efficient generation of sidebands shifted by more than 80 THz with respect to the central frequency of the second harmonic is observed in the output spectrum of the probe field.

Single-shot measurement of ultrafast time-varying phase modulation induced by femtosecond laser pulses with arbitrary polarization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartinger, Klaus; Bartels, Randy A.

2008-01-01

We demonstrate a single-shot measurement of the transient phase modulation due to field free molecular alignment at the revival times of a rotational wave packet. The wave packet is excited by an arbitrarily polarized ultrashort laser pulse in CO2 at room temperature. With this technique the time dependence along the eigenpolarization directions of the linear susceptibility tensor, i.e., the time dependence of its principle components, can be directly observed with high sensitivity.

Space qualified Nd:YAG laser (phase 1 - design)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Foster, J. D.; Kirk, R. F.

1971-01-01

Results of a design study and preliminary design of a space qualified Nd:YAG laser are presented. A theoretical model of the laser was developed to allow the evaluation of the effects of various parameters on its performance. Various pump lamps were evaluated and sum pumping was considered. Cooling requirements were examined and cooling methods such as radiation, cryogenic and conductive were analysed. Power outputs and efficiences of various configurations and the pump and laser lifetime are discussed. Also considered were modulation and modulating methods.

DFB laser - External modulator fiber optic delay line for radar applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Newberg, I. L.; Gee, C. M.; Thurmond, G. D.; Yen, H. W.

1989-09-01

A new application of a long fiber-optic delay line as a radar repeater in a radar test set is described. The experimental 31.6-kilometer fiber-optic link includes an external modulator operating with a distributed-feedback laser and low-loss single-mode fiber matched to the laser wavelength to obtain low dispersion for achieving large bandwidth-length performance. The successful tests, in which pulse compression peak sidelobe measurements are used to confirm the link RF phase linearity and SNR performance, show that fiber-optic links can meet the stringent phase and noise requirements of modern radars at high microwave frequencies.

Ultrahigh-speed phaselocked-loop type clock recovery circuit using a travelling-wave laser diode amplifier as a 50 GHz phase detector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawanishi, S.; Takara, H.; Saruwatari, M.; Kitoh, T.

1993-09-01

Successful operation of a phase-locked loop is demonstrated using a traveling-wave laser-diode amplifier as a 50 GHz phase detector. Optical gain modulation in the laser diode amplifier and an all-optical clock multiplication technique using a silica-based guided-wave optical circuit are used to achieve the extremely high-speed operation. Also discussed is the possibility of more than 100 GHz operation.

Quasi-regenerative mode locking in a compact all-polarisation-maintaining-fibre laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nyushkov, B. N.; Ivanenko, A. V.; Kobtsev, S. M.; Pivtsov, V. S.; Farnosov, S. A.; Pokasov, P. V.; Korel, I. I.

2017-12-01

A novel technique of mode locking in erbium-doped all-polarisation-maintaining-fibre laser has been developed and preliminary investigated. The proposed quasi-regenerative technique combines the advantages of conventional active mode locking (when an intracavity modulator is driven by an independent RF oscillator) and regenerative mode locking (when a modulator is driven by an intermode beat signal from the laser itself). This scheme is based on intracavity intensity modulation driven by an RF oscillator being phase-locked to the actual intermode frequency of the laser. It features also possibilities of operation at multiple frequencies and harmonic mode-locking operation.

Monolithic carrier-envelope phase-stabilization scheme.

PubMed

Fuji, Takao; Rauschenberger, Jens; Apolonski, Alexander; Yakovlev, Vladislav S; Tempea, Gabriel; Udem, Thomas; Gohle, Christoph; Hänsch, Theodor W; Lehnert, Walter; Scherer, Michael; Krausz, Ferenc

2005-02-01

A new scheme for stabilizing the carrier-envelope (CE) phase of a few-cycle laser pulse train is demonstrated. Self-phase modulation and difference-frequency generation in a single periodically poled lithium niobate crystal that transmits the main laser beam allows CE phase locking directly in the usable output. The monolithic scheme obviates the need for splitting off a fraction of the laser output for CE phase control, coupling into microstructured fiber, and separation and recombination of spectral components. As a consequence, the output yields 6-fs, 800-nm pulses with an unprecedented degree of short- and long-term reproducibility of the electric field waveform.

Lightweight solar array blanket tooling, laser welding and cover process technology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dillard, P. A.

1983-01-01

A two phase technology investigation was performed to demonstrate effective methods for integrating 50 micrometer thin solar cells into ultralightweight module designs. During the first phase, innovative tooling was developed which allows lightweight blankets to be fabricated in a manufacturing environment with acceptable yields. During the second phase, the tooling was improved and the feasibility of laser processing of lightweight arrays was confirmed. The development of the cell/interconnect registration tool and interconnect bonding by laser welding is described.

Note: Laser beam scanning using a ferroelectric liquid crystal spatial light modulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Das, Abhijit; Boruah, Bosanta R.

2014-04-01

In this work we describe laser beam scanning using a ferroelectric liquid crystal spatial light modulator. Commercially available ferroelectric liquid crystal spatial light modulators are capable of displaying 85 colored images in 1 s using a time dithering technique. Each colored image, in fact, comprises 24 single bit (black and white) images displayed sequentially. We have used each single bit image to write a binary phase hologram. For a collimated laser beam incident on the hologram, one of the diffracted beams can be made to travel along a user defined direction. We have constructed a beam scanner employing the above arrangement and demonstrated its use to scan a single laser beam in a laser scanning optical sectioning microscope setup.

Wide-band analog frequency modulation of optic signals using indirect techniques

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fitzmartin, D. J.; Balboni, E. J.; Gels, R. G.

1991-01-01

The wideband frequency modulation (FM) of an optical carrier by a radio frequency (RF) or microwave signal can be accomplished independent of laser type when indirect modulation is employed. Indirect modulators exploit the integral relation of phase to frequency so that phase modulators can be used to impress frequency modulation on an optical carrier. The use of integrated optics phase modulators, which are highly linear, enables the generation of optical wideband FM signals with very low intermodulation distortion. This modulator can be used as part of an optical wideband FM link for RF and microwave signals. Experimental results from the test of an indirect frequency modulator for an optical carrier are discussed.

Synchronization of pulses from mode-locked lasers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Harvey, G.T.

A study of the synchronization of mode-locked lasers is presented. In particular, we investigate the timing of the laser output pulses with respect to the radio frequency (RF) signal driving the mode-locking elements in the laser cavity. Two types of mode-locked lasers are considered: a cw loss-modulated mode-locked argon ion laser; and a q-switched active-passive mode-locked Nd:YAG laser. We develop theoretical models for the treatment of laser pulse synchronization in both types of lasers. Experimental results are presented on a combined laser system that synchronizes pulses from both an argon ion and a Nd:YAG laser by using a common RFmore » signal to drive independent mode-lockers in both laser cavities. Shot to shot jitter as low as 18 ps (RMS) was measured between the output pulses from the two lasers. The theory of pulse synchronization for the cw loss-modulated mode-locked argon ion laser is based on the relationship between the timing of the mode-locked laser pulse (with respect to the peak of the RF signal) and the length of the laser cavity. Experiments on the argon laser include the measurement of the phase shift of the mode-locked pulse as a function of cavity length and intracavity intensity. The theory of synchronization of the active-passive mode-locked Nd:YAG laser is an extension of the pulse selection model of the active-passive laser. Experiments on the active-passive Nd:YAG laser include: measurement of the early noise fluctuations; measurement of the duration of the linear build-up stage (time between laser threshold and saturation of the absorber); measurement of jitter as a function of the mode-locker modulation depth; and measurement of the output pulse phase shift as a function of cavity length.« less

Emission intensity modulation of radio-frequency helium glow-discharge emission source by laser ablation.

PubMed

Matsuta, Hideyuki; Naeem, Tariq M; Wagatsuma, Kazuaki

2003-06-01

A novel emission excitation source comprising a high repetition rate diode-pumped Q-switched Nd:YAG laser and a Grimm-style glow-discharge lamp is described. Laser-ablated atoms are introduced into the He glow discharge plasma, which then give emission signals. By using phase-sensitive detection with a lock-in amplifier, the emission signal modulated by the pulsed laser can be detected selectively. It is possible to estimate only the emission intensity of sample atoms ablated by laser irradiation with little interference from the other species in the plasma.

Linear, Low Noise Microwave Photonic Systems using Phase and Frequency Modulation

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-05-11

modulation experiments 65 5.1 Review of FM lasers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 5.1.1 Fabry - Perot lasers...asymmetrical Mach Zehnder interferometers (a-MZI) [17, 34], Fabry - Perot filters [35], fiber Bragg gratings [36] and tunable integrated filters [37, 38...transmitting subcarrier-multiplexed, analog signals for applications in cable television distribution. Experimental results for a Fabry - Perot

Injection-locking of terahertz quantum cascade lasers up to 35GHz using RF amplitude modulation.

PubMed

Gellie, Pierre; Barbieri, Stefano; Lampin, Jean-François; Filloux, Pascal; Manquest, Christophe; Sirtori, Carlo; Sagnes, Isabelle; Khanna, Suraj P; Linfield, Edmund H; Davies, A Giles; Beere, Harvey; Ritchie, David

2010-09-27

We demonstrate that the cavity resonance frequency - the round-trip frequency - of Terahertz quantum cascade lasers can be injection-locked by direct modulation of the bias current using an RF source. Metal-metal and single-plasmon waveguide devices with roundtrip frequencies up to 35GHz have been studied, and show locking ranges above 200MHz. Inside this locking range the laser round-trip frequency is phase-locked, with a phase noise determined by the RF-synthesizer. We find a square-root dependence of the locking range with RF-power in agreement with classical injection-locking theory. These results are discussed in the context of mode-locking operation.

Experimental demonstration of deep frequency modulation interferometry.

PubMed

Isleif, Katharina-Sophie; Gerberding, Oliver; Schwarze, Thomas S; Mehmet, Moritz; Heinzel, Gerhard; Cervantes, Felipe Guzmán

2016-01-25

Experiments for space and ground-based gravitational wave detectors often require a large dynamic range interferometric position readout of test masses with 1 pm/√Hz precision over long time scales. Heterodyne interferometer schemes that achieve such precisions are available, but they require complex optical set-ups, limiting their scalability for multiple channels. This article presents the first experimental results on deep frequency modulation interferometry, a new technique that combines sinusoidal laser frequency modulation in unequal arm length interferometers with a non-linear fit algorithm. We have tested the technique in a Michelson and a Mach-Zehnder Interferometer topology, respectively, demonstrated continuous phase tracking of a moving mirror and achieved a performance equivalent to a displacement sensitivity of 250 pm/Hz at 1 mHz between the phase measurements of two photodetectors monitoring the same optical signal. By performing time series fitting of the extracted interference signals, we measured that the linearity of the laser frequency modulation is on the order of 2% for the laser source used.

On the performance of joint iterative detection and decoding in coherent optical channels with laser frequency fluctuations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castrillón, Mario A.; Morero, Damián A.; Agazzi, Oscar E.; Hueda, Mario R.

2015-08-01

The joint iterative detection and decoding (JIDD) technique has been proposed by Barbieri et al. (2007) with the objective of compensating the time-varying phase noise and constant frequency offset experienced in satellite communication systems. The application of JIDD to optical coherent receivers in the presence of laser frequency fluctuations has not been reported in prior literature. Laser frequency fluctuations are caused by mechanical vibrations, power supply noise, and other mechanisms. They significantly degrade the performance of the carrier phase estimator in high-speed intradyne coherent optical receivers. This work investigates the performance of the JIDD algorithm in multi-gigabit optical coherent receivers. We present simulation results of bit error rate (BER) for non-differential polarization division multiplexing (PDM)-16QAM modulation in a 200 Gb/s coherent optical system that includes an LDPC code with 20% overhead and net coding gain of 11.3 dB at BER = 10-15. Our study shows that JIDD with a pilot rate ⩽ 5 % compensates for both laser phase noise and laser frequency fluctuation. Furthermore, since JIDD is used with non-differential modulation formats, we find that gains in excess of 1 dB can be achieved over existing solutions based on an explicit carrier phase estimator with differential modulation. The impact of the fiber nonlinearities in dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) systems is also investigated. Our results demonstrate that JIDD is an excellent candidate for application in next generation high-speed optical coherent receivers.

Photoassociation dynamics driven by a modulated two-color laser field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Wei; Zhao, Ze-Yu; Xie, Ting; Wang, Gao-Ren; Huang, Yin; Cong, Shu-Lin

2011-11-01

Photoassociation (PA) dynamics of ultracold cesium atoms steered by a modulated two-color laser field E(t)=E0f(t)cos((2π)/(Tp)-φ)cos(ωLt) is investigated theoretically by numerically solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. The PA dynamics is sensitive to the phase of envelope (POE) φ and the period of the envelope Tp, which indicates that it can be controlled by varying POE φ and period Tp. Moreover, we introduce the time- and frequency-resolved spectrum to illustrate how the POE φ and the period Tp influence the intensity distribution of the modulated laser pulse and hence change the time-dependent population distribution of photoassociated molecules. When the Gaussian envelope contains a few oscillations, the PA efficiency is also dependent on POE φ. The modulated two-color laser field is available in the current experiment based on laser mode-lock technology.

Purely wavelength- and amplitude-modulated quartz-enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy.

PubMed

Patimisco, Pietro; Sampaolo, Angelo; Bidaux, Yves; Bismuto, Alfredo; Scott, Marshall; Jiang, James; Muller, Antoine; Faist, Jerome; Tittel, Frank K; Spagnolo, Vincenzo

2016-11-14

We report here on a quartz-enhanced photoacoustic (QEPAS) sensor employing a quantum cascade laser (QCL) structure capable of operating in a pure amplitude or wavelength modulation configuration. The QCL structure is composed of three electrically independent sections: Gain, Phase (PS) and Master Oscillator (MO). Selective current pumping of these three sections allows obtaining laser wavelength tuning without changes in the optical power, and power modulation without emission wavelength shifts. A pure QEPAS amplitude modulation condition is obtained by modulating the PS current, while pure wavelength modulation is achieved by modulating simultaneously the MO and PS QCL sections and slowly scanning the DC current level injected in the PS section.

LASER APPLICATIONS AND OTHER TOPICS IN QUANTUM ELECTRONICS: Speckle suppression using a liquid-crystal cell

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andreev, A. L.; Kompanets, I. N.; Minchenko, M. V.; Pozhidaev, E. P.; Andreeva, T. B.

2008-12-01

A simple method for suppressing speckles in images produced by laser projectors is proposed. The coherence of the laser beam and, therefore, speckles can be destroyed when the beam passes through an electrooptical cell in which a special ferroelectric liquid crystal is used as a modulating medium. The effect is achieved due to the spatially inhomogeneous phase modulation of light when specially shaped bipolar electric pulses are applied to the cell.

Simple analytical model for low-frequency frequency-modulation noise of monolithic tunable lasers.

PubMed

Huynh, Tam N; Ó Dúill, Seán P; Nguyen, Lim; Rusch, Leslie A; Barry, Liam P

2014-02-10

We employ simple analytical models to construct the entire frequency-modulation (FM)-noise spectrum of tunable semiconductor lasers. Many contributions to the laser FM noise can be clearly identified from the FM-noise spectrum, such as standard Weiner FM noise incorporating laser relaxation oscillation, excess FM noise due to thermal fluctuations, and carrier-induced refractive index fluctuations from stochastic carrier generation in the passive tuning sections. The contribution of the latter effect is identified by noting a correlation between part of the FM-noise spectrum with the FM-modulation response of the passive sections. We pay particular attention to the case of widely tunable lasers with three independent tuning sections, mainly the sampled-grating distributed Bragg reflector laser, and compare with that of a distributed feedback laser. The theoretical model is confirmed with experimental measurements, with the calculations of the important phase-error variance demonstrating excellent agreement.

Generation of broadband laser by high-frequency bulk phase modulator with multipass configuration.

PubMed

Zhang, Peng; Jiang, Youen; Zhou, Shenlei; Fan, Wei; Li, Xuechun

2014-12-10

A new technique is presented for obtaining a large broadband nanosecond-laser pulse. This technique is based on multipass phase modulation of a single-frequency nanosecond-laser pulse from the integrated front-end source, and it is able to shape the temporal profile of the pulse arbitrarily, making this approach attractive for high-energy-density physical experiments in current laser fusion facilities. Two kinds of cavity configuration for multipass modulation are proposed, and the performances of both of them are discussed theoretically in detail for the first time to our knowledge. Simulation results show that the bandwidth of the generated laser pulse by this approach can achieve more than 100 nm in principle if adjustment accuracy of the time interval between contiguous passes is controlled within 0.1% of a microwave period. In our preliminary experiment, a 2 ns laser pulse with 1.35-nm bandwidth in 1053 nm is produced via this technique, which agrees well with the theoretical result. Owing to an all-solid-state structure, the energy of the pulse achieves 25 μJ. In the future, with energy compensation and spectrum filtering, this technique is expected to generate a nanosecond-laser pulse of 3 nm or above bandwidth with energy of about 100 μJ.

[Absorption spectrum of Quasi-continuous laser modulation demodulation method].

PubMed

Shao, Xin; Liu, Fu-Gui; Du, Zhen-Hui; Wang, Wei

2014-05-01

A software phase-locked amplifier demodulation method is proposed in order to demodulate the second harmonic (2f) signal of quasi-continuous laser wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS) properly, based on the analysis of its signal characteristics. By judging the effectiveness of the measurement data, filter, phase-sensitive detection, digital filtering and other processing, the method can achieve the sensitive detection of quasi-continuous signal The method was verified by using carbon dioxide detection experiments. The WMS-2f signal obtained by the software phase-locked amplifier and the high-performance phase-locked amplifier (SR844) were compared simultaneously. The results show that the Allan variance of WMS-2f signal demodulated by the software phase-locked amplifier is one order of magnitude smaller than that demodulated by SR844, corresponding two order of magnitude lower of detection limit. And it is able to solve the unlocked problem caused by the small duty cycle of quasi-continuous modulation signal, with a small signal waveform distortion.

All-optical phase modulation for integrated interferometric biosensors.

PubMed

Dante, Stefania; Duval, Daphné; Sepúlveda, Borja; González-Guerrero, Ana Belen; Sendra, José Ramón; Lechuga, Laura M

2012-03-26

We present the theoretical and the experimental implementation of an all-optical phase modulation system in integrated Mach-Zehnder Interferometers to solve the drawbacks related to the periodic nature of the interferometric signal. Sensor phase is tuned by modulating the emission wavelength of low-cost commercial laser diodes by changing their output power. FFT deconvolution of the signal allows for direct phase readout, immune to sensitivity variations and to light intensity fluctuations. This simple phase modulation scheme increases the signal-to-noise ratio of the measurements in one order of magnitude, rendering in a sensor with a detection limit of 1.9·10⁻⁷ RIU. The viability of the all-optical modulation approach is demonstrated with an immunoassay detection as a biosensing proof of concept.

The dressed atom as binary phase modulator: towards attojoule/edge optical phase-shift keying.

PubMed

Kerckhoff, Joseph; Armen, Michael A; Pavlichin, Dmitri S; Mabuchi, Hideo

2011-03-28

We use a single 133Cs atom strongly coupled to an optical resonator to induce random binary phase modulation of a near infra-red, ∼ 500 pW laser beam, with each modulation edge caused by the dissipation of a single photon (≈ 0.23 aJ) by the atom. While our ability to deterministically induce phase edges with an additional optical control beam is limited thus far, theoretical analysis of an analogous, solid-state system indicates that efficient external control should be achievable in demonstrated nanophotonic systems.

All-Fiber, Directly Chirped Laser Source for Chirped-Pulse-Amplification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xin, Ran

Chirped-pulse-amplification (CPA) technology is widely used to produce ultra-short optical pulses (sub picosecond to femtoseconds) with high pulse energy. A chirped pulse laser source with flexible dispersion control is highly desirable as a CPA seed. This thesis presents an all-fiber, directly chirped laser source (DCLS) that produces nanosecond, linearly-chirped laser pulses at 1053 nm for seeding high energy CPA systems. DCLS produces a frequency chirp on an optical pulse through direct temporal phase modulation. DCLS provides programmable control for the temporal phase of the pulse, high pulse energy and diffraction-limited beam performance, which are beneficial for CPA systems. The DCLS concept is first described. Its key enabling technologies are identified and their experimental demonstration is presented. These include high-precision temporal phase control using an arbitrary waveform generator, multi-pass phase modulation to achieve high modulation depth, regenerative amplification in a fiber ring cavity and a negative feedback system that controls the amplifier cavity dynamics. A few technical challenges that arise from the multi-pass architecture are described and their solutions are presented, such as polarization management and gain-spectrum engineering in the DCLS fiber cavity. A DCLS has been built and its integration into a high energy OPCPA system is demonstrated. DCLS produces a 1-ns chirped pulse with a 3-nm bandwidth. The temporal phase and group delay dispersion on the DCLS output pulse is measured using temporal interferometry. The measured temporal phase has an ˜1000 rad amplitude and is close to a quadratic shape. The chirped pulse is amplified from 0.9 nJ to 76 mJ in an OPCPA system. The amplified pulse is compressed to close to its Fourier transform limit, producing an intensity autocorrelation trace with a 1.5-ps width. Direct compressed-pulse duration control by adjusting the phase modulation drive amplitude is demonstrated. Limitation to pulse compression is investigated using numerical simulation.

Nonlinear Optics Technology. Volume 1. Solid State Laser Technology. Phase 3

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-01-12

84 Figure 5.6 Modulator diffraction efficiency as a function of peak power for several 86 RF frequencies Figure 5.7 Thermal effects in the modulator. a...far-field profile of a beam making a 87 double pass through the modulator operating with a peak power of 80 W and average power of 1.6 W. b) same...AU three shown incorporate phase conjugation to provide good beam quality. Figure 1.1a is a standard phase conjugated master oscillator power

Surface emitting ring quantum cascade lasers for chemical sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szedlak, Rolf; Hayden, Jakob; Martín-Mateos, Pedro; Holzbauer, Martin; Harrer, Andreas; Schwarz, Benedikt; Hinkov, Borislav; MacFarland, Donald; Zederbauer, Tobias; Detz, Hermann; Andrews, Aaron Maxwell; Schrenk, Werner; Acedo, Pablo; Lendl, Bernhard; Strasser, Gottfried

2018-01-01

We review recent advances in chemical sensing applications based on surface emitting ring quantum cascade lasers (QCLs). Such lasers can be implemented in monolithically integrated on-chip laser/detector devices forming compact gas sensors, which are based on direct absorption spectroscopy according to the Beer-Lambert law. Furthermore, we present experimental results on radio frequency modulation up to 150 MHz of surface emitting ring QCLs. This technique provides detailed insight into the modulation characteristics of such lasers. The gained knowledge facilitates the utilization of ring QCLs in combination with spectroscopic techniques, such as heterodyne phase-sensitive dispersion spectroscopy for gas detection and analysis.

Narrow linewidth diode laser modules for quantum optical sensor applications in the field and in space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wicht, A.; Bawamia, A.; Krüger, M.; Kürbis, Ch.; Schiemangk, M.; Smol, R.; Peters, A.; Tränkle, G.

2017-02-01

We present the status of our efforts to develop very compact and robust diode laser modules specifically suited for quantum optics experiments in the field and in space. The paper describes why hybrid micro-integration and GaAs-diode laser technology is best suited to meet the needs of such applications. The electro-optical performance achieved with hybrid micro-integrated, medium linewidth, high power distributed-feedback master-oscillator-power-amplifier modules and with medium power, narrow linewidth extended cavity diode lasers emitting at 767 nm and 780 nm are briefly described and the status of space relevant stress tests and space heritage is summarized. We also describe the performance of an ECDL operating at 1070 nm. Further, a novel and versatile technology platform is introduced that allows for integration of any type of laser system or electro-optical module that can be constructed from two GaAs chips. This facilitates, for the first time, hybrid micro-integration, e.g. of extended cavity diode laser master-oscillator-poweramplifier modules, of dual-stage optical amplifiers, or of lasers with integrated, chip-based phase modulator. As an example we describe the implementation of an ECDL-MOPA designed for experiments on ultra-cold rubidium and potassium atoms on board a sounding rocket and give basic performance parameters.

Accurate and agile digital control of optical phase, amplitude and frequency for coherent atomic manipulation of atomic systems.

PubMed

Thom, Joseph; Wilpers, Guido; Riis, Erling; Sinclair, Alastair G

2013-08-12

We demonstrate a system for fast and agile digital control of laser phase, amplitude and frequency for applications in coherent atomic systems. The full versatility of a direct digital synthesis radiofrequency source is faithfully transferred to laser radiation via acousto-optic modulation. Optical beatnotes are used to measure phase steps up to 2π, which are accurately implemented with a resolution of ≤ 10 mrad. By linearizing the optical modulation process, amplitude-shaped pulses of durations ranging from 500 ns to 500 ms, in excellent agreement with the programmed functional form, are demonstrated. Pulse durations are limited only by the 30 ns rise time of the modulation process, and a measured extinction ratio of > 5 × 10(11) is achieved. The system presented here was developed specifically for controlling the quantum state of trapped ions with sequences of multiple laser pulses, including composite and bichromatic pulses. The demonstrated techniques are widely applicable to other atomic systems ranging across quantum information processing, frequency metrology, atom interferometry, and single-photon generation.

Experiments and error analysis of laser ranging based on frequency-sweep polarization modulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Shuyuan; Ji, Rongyi; Li, Yao; Cheng, Zhi; Zhou, Weihu

2016-11-01

Frequency-sweep polarization modulation ranging uses a polarization-modulated laser beam to determine the distance to the target, the modulation frequency is swept and frequency values are measured when transmitted and received signals are in phase, thus the distance can be calculated through these values. This method gets much higher theoretical measuring accuracy than phase difference method because of the prevention of phase measurement. However, actual accuracy of the system is limited since additional phase retardation occurs in the measuring optical path when optical elements are imperfectly processed and installed. In this paper, working principle of frequency sweep polarization modulation ranging method is analyzed, transmission model of polarization state in light path is built based on the theory of Jones Matrix, additional phase retardation of λ/4 wave plate and PBS, their impact on measuring performance is analyzed. Theoretical results show that wave plate's azimuth error dominates the limitation of ranging accuracy. According to the system design index, element tolerance and error correcting method of system is proposed, ranging system is built and ranging experiment is performed. Experiential results show that with proposed tolerance, the system can satisfy the accuracy requirement. The present work has a guide value for further research about system design and error distribution.

Broader, flatter optical spectra of passively mode-locked semiconductor lasers for a wavelength-division multiplexing source

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Eliyahu, Danny; Yariv, Amnon

1997-05-01

Using the time domain master equation for a complex electric-field pulse envelope, we find analytical results for the optical spectra of passively mode-locked semiconductor lasers. The analysis includes the effect of optical nonlinearity of semiconductor lasers, which is characterized by a slow saturable amplifier and absorber. Group velocity dispersion, bandwidth limiting, and self-phase modulation were considered as well. The FWHM of the spectrum profile was found to have a strong dependence on group velocity dispersion and self-phase modulation. For large absolute values of the chirp parameter, the optical spectra result in equispaced continuous wave frequencies, a large fraction of whichmore » have equal power. {copyright} 1997 Optical Society of America« less

Cross-correlation photothermal optical coherence tomography with high effective resolution.

PubMed

Tang, Peijun; Liu, Shaojie; Chen, Junbo; Yuan, Zhiling; Xie, Bingkai; Zhou, Jianhua; Tang, Zhilie

2017-12-01

We developed a cross-correlation photothermal optical coherence tomography (CC-PTOCT) system for photothermal imaging with high lateral and axial resolution. The CC-PTOCT system consists of a phase-sensitive OCT system, a modulated pumping laser, and a digital cross-correlator. The pumping laser was used to induce the photothermal effect in the sample, causing a slight phase modulation of the OCT signals. A spatial phase differentiation method was employed to reduce phase accumulation. The noise brought by the phase differentiation method and the strong background noise were suppressed efficiently by the cross-correlator, which was utilized to extract the photothermal signals from the modulated signals. Combining the cross-correlation technique with spatial phase differentiation can improve both lateral and axial resolution of the PTOCT imaging system. Clear photothermal images of blood capillaries of a mouse ear in vivo were successfully obtained with high lateral and axial resolution. The experimental results demonstrated that this system can enhance the effective transverse resolution, effective depth resolution, and contrast of the PTOCT image effectively, aiding the ongoing development of the accurate 3D functional imaging.

Laser frequency stabilization and shifting by using modulation transfer spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Bing; Wang, Zhao-Ying; Wu, Bin; Xu, Ao-Peng; Wang, Qi-Yu; Xu, Yun-Fei; Lin, Qiang

2014-10-01

The stabilizing and shifting of laser frequency are very important for the interaction between the laser and atoms. The modulation transfer spectroscopy for the 87Rb atom with D2 line transition F = 2 → F' = 3 is used for stabilizing and shifting the frequency of the external cavity grating feedback diode laser. The resonant phase modulator with electro—optical effect is used to generate frequency sideband to lock the laser frequency. In the locking scheme, circularly polarized pump- and probe-beams are used. By optimizing the temperature of the vapor, the pump- and probe-beam intensity, the laser linewidth of 280 kHz is obtained. Furthermore, the magnetic field generated by a solenoid is added into the system. Therefore the system can achieve the frequency locking at any point in a range of hundreds of megahertz frequency shifting with very low power loss.

Gas Phase Photoacoustic Sensor at 8.41 mu m Using Quartz Tuning Forks and Amplitude Modulated Quantum Cascade Lasers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wojcik, Michael D.; Phillips, Mark C.; Cannon, Bret D.

2006-10-01

We demonstrate the performance of a novel long-wave infrared photoacoustic laser absorbance spectrometer for gas-phase species using an amplitude modulated (AM) quantum cascade (QC) laser and a quartz tuning fork microphone. Photoacoustic signal was generated by focusing the output of a Fabry-Perot QC laser operating at 8.41 ?m between the legs of a quartz tuning fork which served as a transducer for the transient acoustic pressure wave. The QC laser was modulated at the resonant frequency of the tuning fork (32.8 kHz) and delivered a modest 5.3 mW at the tuning fork. This spectrometer was calibrated using the infrared absorbermore » Freon-134a by performing a simultaneous absorption measurement using a 35 cm absorption cell. The NEAS of this instrument was determined to be 2 x 10{sup -8} W cm-1 Hz{sup -1/2}. A corresponding theoretical analysis of the instrument sensitivity is presented and is capable of quantitatively reproducing the experimental NEAS, indicating that the fundamental sensitivity of this technique is limited by the noise floor of the tuning fork itself.« less

Iodine-frequency-stabilized laser diode and displacement-measuring interferometer based on sinusoidal phase modulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duong, Quang Anh; Vu, Thanh Tung; Higuchi, Masato; Wei, Dong; Aketagawa, Masato

2018-06-01

We propose a sinusoidal phase modulation method to achieve both the frequency stabilization of an external-cavity laser diode (ECLD) to an 127I2 saturated absorption transition near 633 nm and displacement measurement using a Mach–Zehnder interferometer. First, the frequency of the ECLD is stabilized to the b 21 hyperfine component of the P(33) 6-3 transition of 127I2 by combining sinusoidal phase modulation by an electro-optic modulator and frequency modulation spectroscopy by chopping the pump beam using an acousto-optic modulator. Even though a small modulation index of m  =  3.768 rad is utilized, a relative frequency stability of 10‑11 order is obtained over a sampling time of 400 s. Secondly, the frequency-stabilized ECLD is applied as a light source to a Mach–Zehnder interferometer. From the two consecutive modulation harmonics (second and third orders) involved in the interferometer signal, the displacement of the moving mirror is determined for four optical path differences (L 0  =  100, 200, 500, and 1000 mm). The measured modulation indexes for the four optical path differences coincide with the designated value (3.768 rad) within 0.5%. Compared with the sinusoidal frequency modulation Michelson interferometer (Vu et al 2016 Meas. Sci. Technol. 27 105201) which was demonstrated by some of the same authors of this paper, the phase modulation Mach–Zhender interferometer could fix the modulation index to a constant value for the four optical path differences. In this report, we discuss the measurement principle, experimental system, and results.

Pulsed laser-based optical frequency comb generator for high capacity wavelength division multiplexed passive optical network supporting 1.2 Tbps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ullah, Rahat; Liu, Bo; Zhang, Qi; Saad Khan, Muhammad; Ahmad, Ibrar; Ali, Amjad; Khan, Razaullah; Tian, Qinghua; Yan, Cheng; Xin, Xiangjun

2016-09-01

An architecture for flattened and broad spectrum multicarriers is presented by generating 60 comb lines from pulsed laser driven by user-defined bit stream in cascade with three modulators. The proposed scheme is a cost-effective architecture for optical line terminal (OLT) in wavelength division multiplexed passive optical network (WDM-PON) system. The optical frequency comb generator consists of a pulsed laser in cascade with a phase modulator and two Mach-Zehnder modulators driven by an RF source incorporating no phase shifter, filter, or electrical amplifier. Optical frequency comb generation is deployed in the simulation environment at OLT in WDM-PON system supports 1.2-Tbps data rate. With 10-GHz frequency spacing, each frequency tone carries data signal of 20 Gbps-based differential quadrature phase shift keying (DQPSK) in downlink transmission. We adopt DQPSK-based modulation technique in the downlink transmission because it supports 2 bits per symbol, which increases the data rate in WDM-PON system. Furthermore, DQPSK format is tolerant to different types of dispersions and has a high spectral efficiency with less complex configurations. Part of the downlink power is utilized in the uplink transmission; the uplink transmission is based on intensity modulated on-off keying. Minimum power penalties have been observed with excellent eye diagrams and other transmission performances at specified bit error rates.

Photo-generated metamaterials induce modulation of CW terahertz quantum cascade lasers

PubMed Central

Mezzapesa, Francesco P.; Columbo, Lorenzo L.; Rizza, Carlo; Brambilla, Massimo; Ciattoni, Alessardro; Dabbicco, Maurizio; Vitiello, Miriam S.; Scamarcio, Gaetano

2015-01-01

Periodic patterns of photo-excited carriers on a semiconductor surface profoundly modifies its effective permittivity, creating a stationary all-optical quasi-metallic metamaterial. Intriguingly, one can tailor its artificial birefringence to modulate with unprecedented degrees of freedom both the amplitude and phase of a quantum cascade laser (QCL) subject to optical feedback from such an anisotropic reflector. Here, we conceive and devise a reconfigurable photo-designed Terahertz (THz) modulator and exploit it in a proof-of-concept experiment to control the emission properties of THz QCLs. Photo-exciting sub-wavelength metastructures on silicon, we induce polarization-dependent changes in the intra-cavity THz field, that can be probed by monitoring the voltage across the QCL terminals. This inherently flexible approach promises groundbreaking impact on THz photonics applications, including THz phase modulators, fast switches, and active hyperbolic media. PMID:26549166

Integrated resonant micro-optical gyroscope and method of fabrication

DOEpatents

Vawter, G Allen [Albuquerque, NM; Zubrzycki, Walter J [Sandia Park, NM; Guo, Junpeng [Albuquerque, NM; Sullivan, Charles T [Albuquerque, NM

2006-09-12

An integrated optic gyroscope is disclosed which is based on a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) having a bidirectional laser source, a pair of optical waveguide phase modulators and a pair of waveguide photodetectors. The PIC can be connected to a passive ring resonator formed either as a coil of optical fiber or as a coiled optical waveguide. The lasing output from each end of the bidirectional laser source is phase modulated and directed around the passive ring resonator in two counterpropagating directions, with a portion of the lasing output then being detected to determine a rotation rate for the integrated optical gyroscope. The coiled optical waveguide can be formed on a silicon, glass or quartz substrate with a silicon nitride core and a silica cladding, while the PIC includes a plurality of III V compound semiconductor layers including one or more quantum well layers which are disordered in the phase modulators and to form passive optical waveguides.

Laser interferometer used for nanometer vibration measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Jiaxing; Yang, Jun; Liu, Zhihai; Yuan, Libo

2007-01-01

A novel laser interferometer which adopts alternating modulation phase tracking homodyne technique is proposed. The vibration of nanometer-accuracy is measured with the improved Michelson interferometer by adding cat's eye moving mirror and PZT phase modulation tracking structure. The working principle and the structure of the interferometer are analyzed and the demodulation scheme of alternating phase modulation and tracking is designed. The signal detection is changed from direct current detecting to alternating current detecting. The signal's frequency spectrum transform is achieved, the low-frequency noise jamming is abated, the Signal-to-Noise of the system is improved and the measured resolution is enhanced. Phase tracking technique effectively suppresses the low-frequency noise which is caused by outside environment factors such as temperature and vibration, and the stability of the system is enhanced. The experimental results indicate that for the signal with the frequency of 100Hz and the amplitude of 25nm, the output Signal-to-Noise is 30dB and the measured resolution is 1nm.

Carrier-Envelope Phase Effects in Plasma-Based Electron Acceleration with Few-Cycle Laser Pulses

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nerush, E. N.; Kostyukov, I. Yu.

2009-07-17

Carrier-envelope phase effects during the interaction of relativistically intense few-cycle laser pulses with a plasma are studied in the 'bubble' regime when an electron cavity (bubble) is formed behind the pulse. We show that for few-cycle laser pulses the cavity shape becomes asymmetric and depends strongly on the carrier-envelope phase. The carrier-envelope phase varies when the laser pulse propagates in plasma, which causes transverse oscillations of the cavity. Furthermore, the beam of electrons trapped by the cavity becomes modulated in the polarization plane. To describe these effects we derive an analytical model extended beyond the ponderomotive approximation. The degree ofmore » plasma cavity asymmetry as a function of the laser-plasma parameters is calculated. The obtained results are verified by particle-in-cell simulations.« less

The issue of FM to AM conversion on the National Ignition Facility

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Browning, D F; Rothenberg, J E; Wilcox, R B

1998-08-13

The National Ignition Facility (NIF) baseline configuration for inertial confinement fusion requires phase modulation for two purposes. First, ~ 1Å of frequency modulation (FM) bandwidth at low modulation frequency is required to suppress buildup of Stimulated Brioullin Scattering (SBS) in the large aperture laser optics. Also ~ 3 Å or more bandwidth at high modulation frequency is required for smoothing of the speckle pattern illuminating the target by the smoothing by spectral dispersion method (SSD). Ideally, imposition of bandwidth by pure phase modulation does not affect the beam intensity. However, as a result of a large number of effects, themore » FM converts to amplitude modulation (AM). In general this adversely affects the laser performance, e.g. by reducing the margin against damage to the optics. In particular, very large conversion of FM to AM has been observed in the NIF all-fiber master oscillator and distribution systems. The various mechanisms leading to AM are analyzed and approaches to minimizing their effects are discussed.« less

Temperature feedback control for long-term carrier-envelope phase locking.

PubMed

Yun, Chenxia; Chen, Shouyuan; Wang, He; Chini, Michael; Chang, Zenghu

2009-09-20

We report a double feedback loop for the improvement of the carrier-envelope phase stabilization of a chirped mirror based femtosecond laser oscillator. By combining the control of the Ti:sapphire crystal temperature and the modulation of the pump power, the carrier envelope offset frequency, fCEO, was locked for close to 20 h, which is much longer than the typical phase stabilization time with only pump power modulation.

Photoassociation dynamics driven by a modulated two-color laser field

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhang Wei; Zhao Zeyu; Xie Ting

2011-11-15

Photoassociation (PA) dynamics of ultracold cesium atoms steered by a modulated two-color laser field E(t)=E{sub 0}f(t)cos((2{pi}/T{sub p})-{phi})cos({omega}{sub L}t) is investigated theoretically by numerically solving the time-dependent Schroedinger equation. The PA dynamics is sensitive to the phase of envelope (POE) {phi} and the period of the envelope T{sub p}, which indicates that it can be controlled by varying POE {phi} and period T{sub p}. Moreover, we introduce the time- and frequency-resolved spectrum to illustrate how the POE {phi} and the period T{sub p} influence the intensity distribution of the modulated laser pulse and hence change the time-dependent population distribution of photoassociatedmore » molecules. When the Gaussian envelope contains a few oscillations, the PA efficiency is also dependent on POE {phi}. The modulated two-color laser field is available in the current experiment based on laser mode-lock technology.« less

The study of frequency-scan photothermal reflectance technique for thermal diffusivity measurement

DOE PAGES

Hua, Zilong; Ban, Heng; Hurley, David H.

2015-05-05

A frequency scan photothermal reflectance technique to measure thermal diffusivity of bulk samples is studied in this manuscript. Similar to general photothermal reflectance methods, an intensity-modulated heating laser and a constant intensity probe laser are used to determine the surface temperature response under sinusoidal heating. The approach involves fixing the distance between the heating and probe laser spots, recording the phase lag of reflected probe laser intensity with respect to the heating laser frequency modulation, and extracting thermal diffusivity using the phase lag – (frequency) 1/2 relation. The experimental validation is performed on three samples (SiO 2, CaF 2 andmore » Ge), which have a wide range of thermal diffusivities. The measured thermal diffusivity values agree closely with literature values. Lastly, compared to the commonly used spatial scan method, the experimental setup and operation of the frequency scan method are simplified, and the uncertainty level is equal to or smaller than that of the spatial scan method.« less

The study of frequency-scan photothermal reflectance technique for thermal diffusivity measurement

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hua, Zilong; Ban, Heng; Hurley, David H.

A frequency scan photothermal reflectance technique to measure thermal diffusivity of bulk samples is studied in this manuscript. Similar to general photothermal reflectance methods, an intensity-modulated heating laser and a constant intensity probe laser are used to determine the surface temperature response under sinusoidal heating. The approach involves fixing the distance between the heating and probe laser spots, recording the phase lag of reflected probe laser intensity with respect to the heating laser frequency modulation, and extracting thermal diffusivity using the phase lag – (frequency) 1/2 relation. The experimental validation is performed on three samples (SiO 2, CaF 2 andmore » Ge), which have a wide range of thermal diffusivities. The measured thermal diffusivity values agree closely with literature values. Lastly, compared to the commonly used spatial scan method, the experimental setup and operation of the frequency scan method are simplified, and the uncertainty level is equal to or smaller than that of the spatial scan method.« less

Dynamic analysis of a fibre-optic ring resonator excited by a sinewave-modulated laser diode

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pandian, G. Soundra; Seraji, Faramarz

1990-10-01

The present theoretical dynamic analysis of a fiber-optic ring resonator upon excitation by a sinusoidally-modulated laser diode (LD) yields results for such resonator conditions as modulating frequency, amplitude-modulation index, coupler power-coupling coefficient, loop-delay time (tau), and the phase angle between the LD's AM and FM responses. It is found that when the modulation frequency f(m) exceeds a threshold value such that f(m)tau exceeds 0.0002, the output response diverges from steady state and engages in an oscillatory behavior characterized by overshoots. When f(m)tau exceeds 1.0, the output approximates the intensity modulation of the LD.

Frequency Stabilization of DFB Laser Diodes at 1572 nm for Spaceborne Lidar Measurements of CO2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Numata, Kenji; Chen, Jeffrey R.; Wu, Stewart T.; Abshire, James B.; Krainak, Michael A.

2010-01-01

We report a fiber-based, pulsed laser seeder system that rapidly switches among 6 wavelengths across atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) absorption line near 1572.3 nm for measurements of global CO2 mixing ratios to 1-ppmv precision. One master DFB laser diode has been frequency-locked to the CO2 line center using a frequency modulation technique, suppressing its peak-to-peak frequency drifts to 0.3 MHz at 0.8 sec averaging time over 72 hours. Four online DFB laser diodes have been offset-locked to the master laser using phase locked loops, with virtually the same sub-MHz absolute accuracy. The 6 lasers were externally modulated and then combined to produce the measurement pulse train.

Measuring Cyclic Error in Laser Heterodyne Interferometers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ryan, Daniel; Abramovici, Alexander; Zhao, Feng; Dekens, Frank; An, Xin; Azizi, Alireza; Chapsky, Jacob; Halverson, Peter

2010-01-01

An improved method and apparatus have been devised for measuring cyclic errors in the readouts of laser heterodyne interferometers that are configured and operated as displacement gauges. The cyclic errors arise as a consequence of mixing of spurious optical and electrical signals in beam launchers that are subsystems of such interferometers. The conventional approach to measurement of cyclic error involves phase measurements and yields values precise to within about 10 pm over air optical paths at laser wavelengths in the visible and near infrared. The present approach, which involves amplitude measurements instead of phase measurements, yields values precise to about .0.1 microns . about 100 times the precision of the conventional approach. In a displacement gauge of the type of interest here, the laser heterodyne interferometer is used to measure any change in distance along an optical axis between two corner-cube retroreflectors. One of the corner-cube retroreflectors is mounted on a piezoelectric transducer (see figure), which is used to introduce a low-frequency periodic displacement that can be measured by the gauges. The transducer is excited at a frequency of 9 Hz by a triangular waveform to generate a 9-Hz triangular-wave displacement having an amplitude of 25 microns. The displacement gives rise to both amplitude and phase modulation of the heterodyne signals in the gauges. The modulation includes cyclic error components, and the magnitude of the cyclic-error component of the phase modulation is what one needs to measure in order to determine the magnitude of the cyclic displacement error. The precision attainable in the conventional (phase measurement) approach to measuring cyclic error is limited because the phase measurements are af-

Wave packet interferometry and quantum state reconstruction by acousto-optic phase modulation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tekavec, Patrick F.; Dyke, Thomas R.; Marcus, Andrew H.

2006-11-21

Studies of wave packet dynamics often involve phase-selective measurements of coherent optical signals generated from sequences of ultrashort laser pulses. In wave packet interferometry (WPI), the separation between the temporal envelopes of the pulses must be precisely monitored or maintained. Here we introduce a new (and easy to implement) experimental scheme for phase-selective measurements that combines acousto-optic phase modulation with ultrashort laser excitation to produce an intensity-modulated fluorescence signal. Synchronous detection, with respect to an appropriately constructed reference, allows the signal to be simultaneously measured at two phases differing by 90 deg. Our method effectively decouples the relative temporal phasemore » from the pulse envelopes of a collinear train of optical pulse pairs. We thus achieve a robust and high signal-to-noise scheme for WPI applications, such as quantum state reconstruction and electronic spectroscopy. The validity of the method is demonstrated, and state reconstruction is performed, on a model quantum system - atomic Rb vapor. Moreover, we show that our measurements recover the correct separation between the absorptive and dispersive contributions to the system susceptibility.« less

Coherently coupled high-power fiber arrays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderegg, Jesse; Brosnan, Stephen; Cheung, Eric; Epp, Paul; Hammons, Dennis; Komine, Hiroshi; Weber, Mark; Wickham, Michael

2006-02-01

A four-element fiber array has demonstrated 470 watts of coherently phased, linearly polarized light energy in a single far-field spot. Each element consists of a single-mode fiber-amplifier chain. Phase control of each element is achieved with a Lithium-Niobate phase modulator. A master laser provides a linearly polarized, narrow linewidth signal that is split into five channels. Four channels are individually amplified using polarization maintaining fiber power amplifiers. The fifth channel is used as a reference arm. It is frequency shifted and then combined interferometrically with a portion of each channel's signal. Detectors sense the heterodyne modulation signal, and an electronics circuit measures the relative phase for each channel. Compensating adjustments are then made to each channel's phase modulator. This effort represents the results of a multi-year effort to achieve high power from a single element fiber amplifier and to understand the important issues involved in coherently combining many individual elements to obtain sufficient optical power for directed energy weapons. Northrop Grumman Corporation and the High Energy Laser Joint Technology Office jointly sponsored this work.

Dynamic phasing of multichannel cw laser radiation by means of a stochastic gradient algorithm

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Volkov, V A; Volkov, M V; Garanin, S G

2013-09-30

The phasing of a multichannel laser beam by means of an iterative stochastic parallel gradient (SPG) algorithm has been numerically and experimentally investigated. The operation of the SPG algorithm is simulated, the acceptable range of amplitudes of probe phase shifts is found, and the algorithm parameters at which the desired Strehl number can be obtained with a minimum number of iterations are determined. An experimental bench with phase modulators based on lithium niobate, which are controlled by a multichannel electronic unit with a real-time microcontroller, has been designed. Phasing of 16 cw laser beams at a system response bandwidth ofmore » 3.7 kHz and phase thermal distortions in a frequency band of about 10 Hz is experimentally demonstrated. The experimental data are in complete agreement with the calculation results. (control of laser radiation parameters)« less

Range imaging laser radar

DOEpatents

Scott, Marion W.

1990-01-01

A laser source is operated continuously and modulated periodically (typicy sinusoidally). A receiver imposes another periodic modulation on the received optical signal, the modulated signal being detected by an array of detectors of the integrating type. Range to the target determined by measuring the phase shift of the intensity modulation on the received optical beam relative to a reference. The receiver comprises a photoemitter for converting the reflected, periodically modulated, return beam to an accordingly modulated electron stream. The electron stream is modulated by a local demodulation signal source and subsequently converted back to a photon stream by a detector. A charge coupled device (CCD) array then averages and samples the photon stream to provide an electrical signal in accordance with the photon stream.

Range imaging laser radar

DOEpatents

Scott, M.W.

1990-06-19

A laser source is operated continuously and modulated periodically (typically sinusoidally). A receiver imposes another periodic modulation on the received optical signal, the modulated signal being detected by an array of detectors of the integrating type. Range to the target determined by measuring the phase shift of the intensity modulation on the received optical beam relative to a reference. The receiver comprises a photoemitter for converting the reflected, periodically modulated, return beam to an accordingly modulated electron stream. The electron stream is modulated by a local demodulation signal source and subsequently converted back to a photon stream by a detector. A charge coupled device (CCD) array then averages and samples the photon stream to provide an electrical signal in accordance with the photon stream. 2 figs.

Methods and devices based on brillouin selective sideband amplification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yao, X. Steve (Inventor)

2003-01-01

Opto-electronic devices and techniques using Brillouin scattering to select a sideband in a modulated optical carrier signal for amplification. Two lasers respectively provide a carrier signal beam and a Brillouin pump beam which are fed into an Brillouin optical medium in opposite directions. The relative frequency separation between the lasers is adjusted to align the frequency of the backscattered Brillouin signal with a desired sideband in the carrier signal to effect a Brillouin gain on the sideband. This effect can be used to implement photonic RF signal mixing and conversion with gain, conversion from phase modulation to amplitude modulation, photonic RF frequency multiplication, optical and RF pulse generation and manipulation, and frequency-locking of lasers.

Development of modulated optical transmission system to determinate the cloud and freezing points in biofuels.

PubMed

Jaramillo-Ochoa, Liliana; Ramirez-Gutierrez, Cristian F; Sánchez-Moguel, Alonso; Acosta-Osorio, Andrés; Rodriguez-Garcia, Mario E

2015-01-01

This work is focused in the development of a modulated optical transmission system with temperature control to determine the thermal properties of biodiesels such as the cloud and freezing points. This system is able to determine these properties in real time without relying on the operator skills as indicated in the American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) norms. Thanks to the modulation of the incident laser, the noise of the signal is reduced and two information channels are generated: amplitude and phase. Lasers with different wavelengths can be used in this system but the sample under study must have optical absorption at the wavelength of the laser.

Microbunching-instability-induced sidebands in a seeded free-electron laser

DOE PAGES

Zhang, Zhen; Lindberg, Ryan; Fawley, William M.; ...

2016-05-02

Measurements of the multishot-averaged, soft x-ray, self-seeding spectrum at the LCLS free-electron laser often have a pedestal-like distribution around the seeded wavelength, which limits the spectral purity and can negatively affect some user applications not employing a post-undulator monochromator. In this paper, we study the origins of such pedestals, focusing on longitudinal phase space modulations produced by the microbunching instability upstream of the free-electron laser (FEL) undulator. Furthermore, we show from theory and numerical simulation that both energy and density modulations can induce sidebands in a high-gain, seeded FEL whose fractional strength typically grows as the square of the undulatormore » length. The results place a tight constraint on the longitudinal phase space uniformity of the electron beam for a seeded FEL, possibly requiring the amplitude of long-wavelength modulations to be much smaller than the typical incoherent energy spread if the output sideband power is to remain only a couple percent or less of the amplified seed power.« less

Method to generate a pulse train of few-cycle coherent radiation

DOE PAGES

Garcia, Bryant; Hemsing, Erik; Raubenheimer, Tor; ...

2016-09-06

We develop a method to generate a long pulse train of few-cycle coherent radiation by modulating an electron beam with a high power laser. The large energy modulation disperses the beam in a radiating undulator and leads to the production of phase-locked few-cycle coherent radiation pulses. These pulses are produced at a high harmonic of the modulating laser, and are longitudinally separated by the modulating laser wavelength. Here, we discuss an analytical model for this scheme and investigate the temporal and spectral properties of this radiation. This model is compared with numerical simulation results using the unaveraged code Puffin. Wemore » examine various harmful effects and how they might be avoided, as well as a possible experimental realization of this scheme.« less

Cavity Self-Stabilization and Enhancement of Laser Gyroscopes by (Coupled) Optical Resonators

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, David D.

2006-01-01

We analyze the effect of a highly dispersive element placed inside a modulated optical cavity on the frequency and amplitude of the modulation to determine the conditions for cavity self-stabilization and enhanced gyroscopic sensitivity. Hence, we model cavity rotation or instability by an arbitrary AM/FM modulation, and the dispersive element as a phase and amplitude filter. We find that anomalous dispersion may be used to self-stabilize a laser cavity, provided the magnitude of the group index of refraction is smaller than the phase index of refraction in the cavity. The optimal stabilization is found to occur when the group index is zero. Group indices with magnitudes larger than the phase index (both normal and anomalous dispersion) are found to enhance the sensitivity of a laser gyroscope to rotation. Furthermore, our results indicate that atomic media, even coherent superpositions in multilevel atoms, are not useful for these applications, because the amplitude and phase filters work against one another, i.e., decreasing the modulation frequency increases its amplitude and vice versa, with one exception: negative group indices whose magnitudes are larger than the phase index result in negative, but enhanced, beat frequencies. On the other hand, for optical resonators the dispersion reversal associated with critical coupling enables the amplitude and phase filters to work together under a greater variety of circumstances than for atomic media. We find that for single over-coupled resonators, or in the case of under-coupled coupled-resonator-induced absorption, the absorption and normal dispersion on-resonance increase the contrast and frequency of the beat-note, respectively, resulting in a substantial enhancement of the gyroscopic response. Moreover, for cavity self-stabilization, we propose the use of a variety of coupled-resonator induced transparency that is accompanied by anomalous dispersion.

Single-frequency diode-pumped lasers for free-space optical communication

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kane, Thomas J.; Cheng, Emily A. P.; Gerstenberger, David C.; Wallace, Richard W.

1990-01-01

Recent advances in laser technology for intersatellite optical communication systems are reviewed and illustrated with graphs and diagrams. Topics addressed include (1) single-frequency diode-pumped Nd:YAG lasers of monolithic ring configuration (yielding 368-384 mW output power with 1-W pumping), (2) injection chaining of up to 10 monolithic resonators to achieve redundancy and/or higher output power, (3) 2-kHz-linewidth 5-mW versions of (1) which are tunable over a 30-MHz range for use as local oscillators in coherent communication, (4) resonant external modulation and doubling or resonant phase modulation of diode-pumped lasers, and (5) wavelength multiplexing.

Maximum likelihood sequence estimation for optical complex direct modulation.

PubMed

Che, Di; Yuan, Feng; Shieh, William

2017-04-17

Semiconductor lasers are versatile optical transmitters in nature. Through the direct modulation (DM), the intensity modulation is realized by the linear mapping between the injection current and the light power, while various angle modulations are enabled by the frequency chirp. Limited by the direct detection, DM lasers used to be exploited only as 1-D (intensity or angle) transmitters by suppressing or simply ignoring the other modulation. Nevertheless, through the digital coherent detection, simultaneous intensity and angle modulations (namely, 2-D complex DM, CDM) can be realized by a single laser diode. The crucial technique of CDM is the joint demodulation of intensity and differential phase with the maximum likelihood sequence estimation (MLSE), supported by a closed-form discrete signal approximation of frequency chirp to characterize the MLSE transition probability. This paper proposes a statistical method for the transition probability to significantly enhance the accuracy of the chirp model. Using the statistical estimation, we demonstrate the first single-channel 100-Gb/s PAM-4 transmission over 1600-km fiber with only 10G-class DM lasers.

Current status of Kumgang laser system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kong, Hong Jin; Park, Sangwoo; Ahn, HeeKyung; Lee, Hwihyeong; Oh, Jungsuk; Kim, Jom Sool

2015-02-01

In KAIST, Kumgang laser is being developed for demonstration of the kW level coherent beam combination using stimulated Brillouin scattering phase conjugation mirrors. It will combine 4 modules of DPSSL rod amplifier which produces 1 kW output power. It is composed of the single frequency front-end, pre-amplifier module, and main amplifier. The output powers of the pre-amp and main amplifier module are 200 W (20 mJ @ 10 kHz / 10 ns) and 1.07kW (107 mJ @ 10 kHz / 10 ns), respectively.

JPRS report: Science and technology. Central Eurasia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1995-02-01

Translated articles cover the following topics: laser-controlled rotary microwave waveguide junction; optical pulse-phase modulation of semiconductor laser; amplitude-phase distortions of light beam obliquely propagating through ground layer of troposphere; antenna arrays with ultrafast beam scanning; materials for a walk on moon; textile-wood-coal briquette path to capitalism; and development of automated system for scientific research and design of heat and mass transfer processes.

Phase noise reduction by optical phase-locked loop for a coherent bichromatic laser based on the injection-locking technique.

PubMed

Wu, C F; Yan, X S; Huang, J Q; Zhang, J W; Wang, L J

2018-01-01

We present a coherent bichromatic laser system with low phase noise. An optical injection process is used to generate coherent laser beams with a frequency difference of 9.192 631 77 GHz using an electro-optical modulator. An optical phase-locked loop is then applied to reduce the phase noise. The phase noise of the beat note is -41, -81, -98, -83, and -95 dBrad 2 /Hz at the offset frequencies of 1 Hz, 100 Hz, 1 kHz, 10 kHz, and 1 MHz, respectively. Compared to a system that uses optical injection alone, the phase noise is reduced by up to 20-30 dB in the low-frequency range, and the intermodulation effect on the continuous atomic clock is reduced by an order of magnitude. This configuration can adjust the intensities and polarizations of the laser beams independently and reduce the phase noise caused by environmental disturbances and optical injection, which may be useful for application to atomic coherence experiments.

Phase noise reduction by optical phase-locked loop for a coherent bichromatic laser based on the injection-locking technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, C. F.; Yan, X. S.; Huang, J. Q.; Zhang, J. W.; Wang, L. J.

2018-01-01

We present a coherent bichromatic laser system with low phase noise. An optical injection process is used to generate coherent laser beams with a frequency difference of 9.192 631 77 GHz using an electro-optical modulator. An optical phase-locked loop is then applied to reduce the phase noise. The phase noise of the beat note is -41, -81, -98, -83, and -95 dBrad2/Hz at the offset frequencies of 1 Hz, 100 Hz, 1 kHz, 10 kHz, and 1 MHz, respectively. Compared to a system that uses optical injection alone, the phase noise is reduced by up to 20-30 dB in the low-frequency range, and the intermodulation effect on the continuous atomic clock is reduced by an order of magnitude. This configuration can adjust the intensities and polarizations of the laser beams independently and reduce the phase noise caused by environmental disturbances and optical injection, which may be useful for application to atomic coherence experiments.

Real Time Metrology Using Heterodyne Interferometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Evans, Joseph T..., Jr.

1983-11-01

The Air Force Weapons Laboratory (AFWL) located at Albuquerque, NM has developed a digital heterodyne interferometer capable of real-time, closed loop analysis and control of adaptive optics. The device uses independent phase modulation of two orthogonal polarizations of an argon ion laser to produce a temporally phase modulated interferogram of the test object in a Twyman-Green interferometer. Differential phase detection under the control of a Data General minicomputer helps reconstruct the phase front without noise effects from amplitude modulation in the optical train. The system consists of the interferometer optics, phase detection circuitry, and the minicomputer, allowing for complete software control of the process. The software has been unified into a powerful package that performs automatic data acquisition, OPD reconstruction, and Zernike analysis of the resulting wavefront. The minicomputer has the capability to control external devices so that closed loop analysis and control is possible. New software under development will provide a framework of data acquisition, display, and storage packages which can be integrated with analysis and control packages customized to the user's needs. Preliminary measurements with the system show that it is noise limited by laser beam phase quality and vibration of the optics. Active measures are necessary to reduce the impact of these noise sources.

A reconfigurable microwave photonic filter with flexible tunability using a multi-wavelength laser and a multi-channel phase-shifted fiber Bragg grating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Nuannuan; Hao, Tengfei; Li, Wei; Zhu, Ninghua; Li, Ming

2018-01-01

We propose a photonic scheme to realize a reconfigurable microwave photonic filter (MPF) with flexible tunability using a multi-wavelength laser (MWL) and a multi-channel phase-shifted fiber Bragg grating (PS-FBG). The proposed MPF is capable of performing reconfigurability including single bandpass filter, two independently bandpass filter and a flat-top bandpass filter. The performance such as the central frequency and the bandwidth of passband is tuned by controlling the wavelengths of the MWL. In the MPF, The light waves from a MWL are sent to a phase modulator (PM) to generate the phase-modulated optical signals. By applying a multi-channel PS-FBG, which has a series of narrow notches in the reflection spectrum with the free spectral range (FSR) of 0.8 nm, the +1st sidebands are removed in the notches and the phased-modulated signals are converted to the intensity-modulated signals without beating signals generation between each two optical carriers. The proposed MPF is also experimentally verified. The 3-dB bandwidth of the MPF is broadened from 35 MHz to 135 MHz and the magnitude deviation of the top from the MPF is less than 0.2 dB within the frequency tunable range from 1 GHz to 5 GHz.

High-resolution photoluminescence electro-modulation microscopy by scanning lock-in

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koopman, W.; Muccini, M.; Toffanin, S.

2018-04-01

Morphological inhomogeneities and structural defects in organic semiconductors crucially determine the charge accumulation and lateral transport in organic thin-film transistors. Photoluminescence Electro-Modulation (PLEM) microscopy is a laser-scanning microscopy technique that relies on the modulation of the thin-film fluorescence in the presence of charge-carriers to image the spatial distribution of charges within the active organic semiconductor. Here, we present a lock-in scheme based on a scanning beam approach for increasing the PLEM microscopy resolution and contrast. The charge density in the device is modulated by a sinusoidal electrical signal, phase-locked to the scanning beam of the excitation laser. The lock-in detection scheme is achieved by acquiring a series of images with different phases between the beam scan and the electrical modulation. Application of high resolution PLEM to an organic transistor in accumulation mode demonstrates its potential to image local variations in the charge accumulation. A diffraction-limited precision of sub-300 nm and a signal to noise ratio of 21.4 dB could be achieved.

Periodically modulated dark states

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Yingying; Zhang, Jun; Zhang, Wenxian

2018-04-01

Phenomena of electromagnetically induced transparency (PEIT) may be interpreted by the Autler-Townes Splitting (ATS), where the coupled states are split by the coupling laser field, or by the quantum destructive interference (QDI), where the atomic phases caused by the coupling laser and the probe laser field cancel. We propose modulated experiments to explore the PEIT in an alternative way by periodically modulating the coupling and the probe fields in a Λ-type three-level system initially in a dark state. Our analytical and numerical results rule out the ATS interpretation and show that the QDI interpretation is more appropriate for the modulated experiments. Interestingly, dark state persists in the double-modulation situation where control and probe fields never occur simultaneously, which is significant difference from the traditional dark state condition. The proposed experiments are readily implemented in atomic gases, artificial atoms in superconducting quantum devices, or three-level meta-atoms in meta-materials.

An AWG-based 10 Gbit/s colorless WDM-PON system using a chirp-managed directly modulated laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Latif, Abdul; Yu, Chong-xiu; Xin, Xiang-jun; Husain, Aftab; Hussain, Ashiq; Munir, Abid; Khan, Yousaf

2012-09-01

We propose an arrayed waveguide grating (AWG)-based 10 Gbit/s per channel full duplex wavelength division multiplexing passive optical network (WDM-PON). A chirp managed directly modulated laser with return-to-zero (RZ) differential phase shift keying (DPSK) modulation technique is utilized for downlink (DL) direction, and then the downlink signal is re-modulated for the uplink (UL) direction using intensity modulation technique with the data rate of 10 Gbit/s per channel. A successful WDM-PON transmission operation with the data rate of 10 Gbit/s per channel over a distance of 25 km without any optical amplification or dispersion compensation is demonstrated with low power penalty.

A 12 GHz wavelength spacing multi-wavelength laser source for wireless communication systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, P. C.; Shiu, R. K.; Bitew, M. A.; Chang, T. L.; Lai, C. H.; Junior, J. I.

2017-08-01

This paper presents a multi-wavelength laser source with 12 GHz wavelength spacing based on a single distributed feedback laser. A light wave generated from the distributed feedback laser is fed into a frequency shifter loop consisting of 50:50 coupler, dual-parallel Mach-Zehnder modulator, optical amplifier, optical filter, and polarization controller. The frequency of the input wavelength is shifted and then re-injected into the frequency shifter loop. By re-injecting the shifted wavelengths multiple times, we have generated 84 optical carriers with 12 GHz wavelength spacing and stable output power. For each channel, two wavelengths are modulated by a wireless data using the phase modulator and transmitted through a 25 km single mode fiber. In contrast to previously developed schemes, the proposed laser source does not incur DC bias drift problem. Moreover, it is a good candidate for radio-over-fiber systems to support multiple users using a single distributed feedback laser.

MQW Optical Feedback Modulators And Phase Shifters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jackson, Deborah J.

1995-01-01

Laser diodes equipped with proposed multiple-quantum-well (MQW) optical feedback modulators prove useful in variety of analog and digital optical-communication applications, including fiber-optic signal-distribution networks and high-speed, low-crosstalk interconnections among super computers or very-high-speed integrated circuits. Development exploits accompanying electro-optical aspect of QCSE - variation in index of refraction with applied electric field. Also exploits sensitivity of laser diodes to optical feedback. Approach is reverse of prior approach.

Electronic sideband locking of a broadly tunable 318.6 nm ultraviolet laser to an ultra-stable optical cavity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bai, Jiandong; Wang, Jieying; He, Jun; Wang, Junmin

2017-04-01

We demonstrate frequency stabilization of a tunable 318.6 nm ultraviolet (UV) laser system using electronic sideband locking. By indirectly changing the frequency of a broadband electro-optic phase modulator, the laser can be continuously tuned over 4 GHz, while a 637.2 nm laser is directly stabilized to a high-finesse ultra-stable optical cavity. The doubling cavity also remains locked to the 637.2 nm light. We show that the tuning range depends mainly on the gain-flattening region of the modulator and the piezo-tunable range of the seed laser. The frequency-stabilized tunable UV laser system is able to compensate for the offset between reference and target frequencies, and has potential applications in precision spectroscopy of cold atoms.

Mid infrared quantum cascade laser operating in pure amplitude modulation for background-free trace gas spectroscopy.

PubMed

Bidaux, Yves; Bismuto, Alfredo; Patimisco, Pietro; Sampaolo, Angelo; Gresch, Tobias; Strubi, Gregory; Blaser, Stéphane; Tittel, Frank K; Spagnolo, Vincenzo; Muller, Antoine; Faist, Jérôme

2016-11-14

We present a single mode multi-section quantum cascade laser source composed of three different sections: master oscillator, gain and phase section. Non-uniform pumping of the QCL's gain reveals that the various laser sections are strongly coupled. Simulations of the electronic and optical properties of the laser (based on the density matrix and scattering matrix formalisms, respectively) were performed and a good agreement with measurements is obtained. In particular, a pure modulation of the laser output power can be achieved. This capability of the device is applied in tunable-laser spectroscopy of N₂O where background-free quartz enhanced photo acoustic spectral scans with nearly perfect Voigt line shapes for the selected absorption line are obtained.

Bibliography of Soviet Laser Developments, Number 26, October - December 1976.

DTIC Science & Technology

1977-07-25

Arevyan, N.N. Petrov, and L.V. Sukhanov (0). Photodissociative short-pulse laser with gain modulation of the medium by a magnetic field. KE, no. 11...L________________________________________________ 120. Sukhanov , I.I. and Yu.V. Troitskiy (75). Mode-locking control in a gas laser by a phase interferometer. KE, no. 12, 1976 a 2596-2605. 121

Research Laboratory of Electronic Progress Report Number 135.

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-06-01

78 @ 1.12 Ultrashort Pulse Generation in Solid State Lasers ...generation the use of intracavity self-phase-modulation and of ultrashort laser pulses is essential for studies of negative group velocity dispersion... pulses . Our studies focus on exploiting mode locked solid state lasers . While the dominant the short pulse durations and high peak intensity of effect of

Study of the field-sequential modulation of Nd:YVO4/MgO:PPLN based intra-cavity frequency doubling green laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Bin; Gan, Yi; Xu, Chang-Qing

2018-06-01

The field sequential modulation of a Nd:YVO4/MgO:PPLN intra-cavity, frequency doubling green laser was studied. The modulation frequency was set at 1 kHz and the duty cycle was changed from 20% to CW operation. It was shown that the quasi-phase matched (QPM) temperature decreases with an increase of the modulation duty cycle, and in turn causing the peak efficiency to rise. It was found that the temperature change in MgO:PPLN and the thermal lens effect in Nd:YVO4 crystal were the respective origins of these observed experimental phenomena.

Narrow linewidth comb realized with a mode-locked fiber laser using an intra-cavity waveguide electro-optic modulator for high-speed control.

PubMed

Iwakuni, Kana; Inaba, Hajime; Nakajima, Yoshiaki; Kobayashi, Takumi; Hosaka, Kazumoto; Onae, Atsushi; Hong, Feng-Lei

2012-06-18

We have developed an optical frequency comb using a mode-locked fiber ring laser with an intra-cavity waveguide electro-optic modulator controlling the optical length in the laser cavity. The mode-locking is achieved with a simple ring configuration and a nonlinear polarization rotation mechanism. The beat note between the laser and a reference laser and the carrier envelope offset frequency of the comb were simultaneously phase locked with servo bandwidths of 1.3 MHz and 900 kHz, respectively. We observed an out-of-loop beat between two identical combs, and obtained a coherent δ-function peak with a signal to noise ratio of 70 dB/Hz.

Phase lag deduced information in photo-thermal actuation for nano-mechanical systems characterization

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bijster, R. J. F., E-mail: roy.bijster@tno.nl; Vreugd, J. de; Sadeghian, H.

2014-08-18

In photo-thermal actuation, heat is added locally to a micro-cantilever by means of a laser. A fraction of the irradiation is absorbed, yielding thermal stresses and deformations in the structure. Harmonic modulation of the laser power causes the cantilever to oscillate. Moreover, a phase lag is introduced which is very sensitive to the spot location and the cantilever properties. This phase lag is theoretically predicted and experimentally verified. Combined with thermo-mechanical properties of the cantilever and its geometry, the location of the laser spot, the thermal diffusivity, and the layer thicknesses of the cantilever can be extracted.

Research and Development of a High Power-Laser Driven Electron-Accelerator Suitable for Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-06-12

autocorrelator to measure the temporal duration, an optical imaging system to correct for phase front tilt and a FROG device to measure and optimize the... Phase II Task Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 D.1 Module I: High-Energy Electron Accelerator . . . . . . 4 D.2 Module II: High-Energy...During Phase I of the HRS program, the team from the University of Ne- braska, Lincoln (UNL) made use of the unique capabilities of their high-power

Stable optical frequency comb generation and applications in arbitrary waveform generation, signal processing and optical data mining

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ozharar, Sarper

This thesis focuses on the generation and applications of stable optical frequency combs. Optical frequency combs are defined as equally spaced optical frequencies with a fixed phase relation among themselves. The conventional source of optical frequency combs is the optical spectrum of the modelocked lasers. In this work, we investigated alternative methods for optical comb generation, such as dual sine wave phase modulation, which is more practical and cost effective compared to modelocked lasers stabilized to a reference. Incorporating these comblines, we have generated tunable RF tones using the serrodyne technique. The tuning range was +/-1 MHz, limited by the electronic waveform generator, and the RF carrier frequency is limited by the bandwidth of the photodetector. Similarly, using parabolic phase modulation together with time division multiplexing, RF chirp extension has been realized. Another application of the optical frequency combs studied in this thesis is real time data mining in a bit stream. A novel optoelectronic logic gate has been developed for this application and used to detect an 8 bit long target pattern. Also another approach based on orthogonal Hadamard codes have been proposed and explained in detail. Also novel intracavity modulation schemes have been investigated and applied for various applications such as (a) improving rational harmonic modelocking for repetition rate multiplication and pulse to pulse amplitude equalization, (b) frequency skewed pulse generation for ranging and (c) intracavity active phase modulation in amplitude modulated modelocked lasers for supermode noise spur suppression and integrated jitter reduction. The thesis concludes with comments on the future work and next steps to improve some of the results presented in this work.

Target-in-the-loop phasing of a fiber laser array fed by a linewidth-broadened master oscillator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hyde, Milo W.; Tyler, Glenn A.; Rosado Garcia, Carlos

2017-05-01

In a recent paper [J. Opt. Soc. Am. A 33, 1931-1937 (2016)], the target-in-the-loop (TIL) phasing of an RF-modulated or multi-phase-dithered fiber laser array, fed by a linewidth-broadened master oscillator (MO) source, was investigated. It was found that TIL phasing was possible even on a target with scattering features separated by more than the MO's coherence length as long as the received, backscattered irradiance changed with the array's modulation or phase dither. To simplify the problem and gain insight into how temporal coherence affects TIL phasing, speckle and atmospheric turbulence were omitted from the analysis. Here, the scenario analyzed in the prior work is generalized by including speckle and turbulence. First, the key analytical result from the prior paper is reviewed. Simulations, including speckle and turbulence, are then performed to test whether the conclusions derived from that result hold under more realistic conditions.

Optical Measurement of Mass Flow of a Two-Phase Fluid

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wiley, John; Pedersen, Kevin; Koman, Valentin; Gregory, Don

2008-01-01

An optoelectronic system utilizes wavelength-dependent scattering of light for measuring the density and mass flow of a two-phase fluid in a pipe. The apparatus was invented for original use in measuring the mass flow of a two-phase cryogenic fluid (e.g., liquid hydrogen containing bubbles of hydrogen gas), but underlying principles of operation can readily be adapted to non-cryogenic two-phase fluids. The system (see figure) includes a laser module, which contains two or more laser diodes, each operating at a different wavelength. The laser module also contains beam splitters that combine the beams at the various wavelengths so as to produce two output beams, each containing all of the wavelengths. One of the multiwavelength output beams is sent, via a multimode fiberoptic cable, to a transmitting optical coupler. The other multiwavelength output beam is sent, via another multimode fiber-optic cable, to a reference detector module, wherein fiber-optic splitters split the light into several multiwavelength beams, each going to a photodiode having a spectral response that is known and that differs from the spectral responses of the other photodiodes. The outputs of these photodiodes are digitized and fed to a processor, which executes an algorithm that utilizes the known spectral responses to convert the photodiode outputs to obtain reference laser-power levels for the various wavelengths. The transmitting optical coupler is mounted in (and sealed to) a hole in the pipe and is oriented at a slant with respect to the axis of the pipe. The transmitting optical coupler contains a collimating lens and a cylindrical lens that form the light emerging from the end of the fiber-optic cable into a fan-shaped beam in a meridional plane of the pipe. Receiving optical couplers similar to the transmitting optical couplers are mounted in the same meridional plane at various longitudinal positions on the opposite side of the pipe, approximately facing the transmitting optical coupler along the same slant. Light collected by each receiving optical coupler is sent, via a multimode fiber-optic cable, to a detector module similar to the reference detector module. The outputs of the photodiodes in each detector module are digitized and processed, similarly to those of the reference detector module, to obtain indications of the amounts of light of each wavelength scattered to the corresponding receiving position. The value for each wavelength at each position is also normalized to the reference laser-power level for that wavelength. From these normalized values, the density and the mass flow rate of the fluid are estimated.

Carrier envelope offset frequency detection and stabilization of a diode-pumped mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser.

PubMed

Gürel, Kutan; Wittwer, Valentin J; Hakobyan, Sargis; Schilt, Stéphane; Südmeyer, Thomas

2017-03-15

We demonstrate the first diode-pumped Ti:sapphire laser frequency comb. It is pumped by two green laser diodes with a total pump power of 3 W. The Ti:sapphire laser generates 250 mW of average output power in 61-fs pulses at a repetition rate of 216 MHz. We generated an octave-spanning supercontinuum spectrum in a photonic-crystal fiber and detected the carrier envelope offset (CEO) frequency in a standard f-to-2f interferometer setup. We stabilized the CEO-frequency through direct current modulation of one of the green pump diodes with a feedback bandwidth of 55 kHz limited by the pump diode driver used in this experiment. We achieved a reduction of the CEO phase noise power spectral density by 140 dB at 1 Hz offset frequency. An advantage of diode pumping is the ability for high-bandwidth modulation of the pump power via direct current modulation. After this experiment, we studied the modulation capabilities and noise properties of green pump laser diodes with improved driver electronics. The current-to-output-power modulation transfer function shows a bandwidth larger than 1 MHz, which should be sufficient to fully exploit the modulation bandwidth of the Ti:sapphire gain for CEO stabilization in future experiments.

Acousto-optic replication of ultrashort laser pulses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yushkov, Konstantin B.; Molchanov, Vladimir Ya.; Ovchinnikov, Andrey V.; Chefonov, Oleg V.

2017-10-01

Precisely controlled sequences of ultrashort laser pulses are required in various scientific and engineering applications. We developed a phase-only acousto-optic pulse shaping method for replication of ultrashort laser pulses in a TW laser system. A sequence of several Fourier-transform-limited pulses is generated from a single femtosecond laser pulse by means of applying a piecewise linear phase modulation over the whole emission spectrum. Analysis demonstrates that the main factor which limits maximum delay between the pulse replicas is spectral resolution of the acousto-optic dispersive delay line used for pulse shaping. In experiments with a Cr:forsterite laser system, we obtained delays from 0.3 to 3.5 ps between two replicas of 190 fs transform-limited pulses at the central wavelength of laser emission, 1230 nm.

Evidence of photo-induced dynamic competition of metallic and insulating phase in a layered manganite

DOE PAGES

Li, Yuelin; Walko, Daonld A.; Li, Qing'an; ...

2015-11-17

We show evidence that the competition between the antiferromagetic metallic phase and the charge- and orbital-ordered insulating phase at the reentrant phase boundary of a layered manganite, LaSr 2Mn 2O 7, can be manipulated using ultrafast optical excitation. The time-dependent evolution of the Jahn-Teller superlattice reflection, which indicates the formation of the charge and orbital order, was measured at different laser fluences. The laser-induced enhancement and reduction the Jahn-Teller reflection intensity shows a reversal of sign between earlier (~10 ns) and later (~150 ns) time delays during the relaxation after photo excitation. This effect is consistent with a scenario wherebymore » the laser excitation modulates the local competition between the metallic and the insulating phases.« less

Reduction of B-integral accumulation in lasers

DOEpatents

Meyerhofer, David D.; Konoplev, Oleg A.

2000-01-01

A pulsed laser is provided wherein the B-integral accumulated in the laser pulse is reduced using a semiconductor wafer. A laser pulse is generated by a laser pulse source. The laser pulse passes through a semiconductor wafer that has a negative nonlinear index of refraction. Thus, the laser pulse accumulates a negative B-integral. The laser pulse is then fed into a laser amplification medium, which has a positive nonlinear index of refraction. The laser pulse may make a plurality of passes through the laser amplification medium and accumulate a positive B-integral during a positive non-linear phase change. The semiconductor and laser pulse wavelength are chosen such that the negative B-integral accumulated in the semiconductor wafer substantially cancels the positive B-integral accumulated in the laser amplification medium. There may be additional accumulation of positive B-integral if the laser pulse passes through additional optical mediums such as a lens or glass plates. Thus, the effects of self-phase modulation in the laser pulse are substantially reduced.

An extraordinary tabletop speed of light apparatus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pegna, Guido

2017-09-01

A compact, low-cost, pre-aligned apparatus of the modulation type is described. The apparatus allows accurate determination of the speed of light in free propagation with an accuracy on the order of one part in 104. Due to the 433.92 MHz radio frequency (rf) modulation of its laser diode, determination of the speed of light is possible within a sub-meter measuring base and in small volumes (some cm3) of transparent solids or liquids. No oscilloscope is necessary, while the required function generators, power supplies, and optical components are incorporated into the design of the apparatus and its receiver can slide along the optical bench while maintaining alignment with the laser beam. Measurement of the velocity factor of coaxial cables is also easily performed. The apparatus detects the phase difference between the rf modulation of the laser diode by further modulating the rf signal with an audio frequency signal; the phase difference between these signals is then observed as the loudness of the audio signal. In this way, the positions at which the minima of the audio signal are found determine where the rf signals are completely out of phase. This phase detection method yields a much increased sensitivity with respect to the display of coincidence of two signals of questionable arrival time and somewhat distorted shape on an oscilloscope. The displaying technique is also particularly suitable for large audiences as well as in unattended exhibits in museums and science centers. In addition, the apparatus can be set up in less than one minute.

Diode amplifier of modulated optical beam power

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

D'yachkov, N V; Bogatov, A P; Gushchik, T I

2014-11-30

Analytical relations are obtained between characteristics of modulated light at the output and input of an optical diode power amplifier operating in the highly saturated gain regime. It is shown that a diode amplifier may act as an amplitude-to-phase modulation converter with a rather large bandwidth (∼10 GHz). The low sensitivity of the output power of the amplifier to the input beam power and its high energy efficiency allow it to be used as a building block of a high-power multielement laser system with coherent summation of a large number of optical beams. (lasers)

Ultrashort polarization-tailored bichromatic fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kerbstadt, Stefanie; Englert, Lars; Bayer, Tim; Wollenhaupt, Matthias

2017-06-01

We present a novel concept for the generation of ultrashort polarization-shaped bichromatic laser fields. The scheme utilizes a 4f polarization pulse shaper based on a liquid crystal spatial light modulator for independent amplitude and phase modulation of femtosecond laser pulses. By choice of either a conventional (p) or a composite (p-s) polarizer in the Fourier plane, the shaper setup enables the generation of parallel linearly and orthogonal linearly polarized bichromatic fields. Additional use of a ? wave plate behind the setup yields co-rotating and counter-rotating circularly polarized bichromatic fields. The scheme allows to independently control the spectral amplitude, phase and polarization profile of the output fields, offering an enormous versatility of bichromatic waveforms.

High Birefringence Liquid Crystals for Laser Hardening and IR Countermeasure

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-09-24

A fast-switching and scattering-free phase modulator using polymer network liquid crystal ( PNLC ) is demonstrated at **=l.55 um for laser beam...steering application. The strong polymer network anchoring greatly reduces the visco-elastic coefficient of the liquid crystal. As a result, the PNLC

Active mode-locking of mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers with short gain recovery time.

PubMed

Wang, Yongrui; Belyanin, Alexey

2015-02-23

We investigate the dynamics of actively modulated mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) using space- and time-domain simulations of coupled density matrix and Maxwell equations with resonant tunneling current taken into account. We show that it is possible to achieve active mode locking and stable generation of picosecond pulses in high performance QCLs with a vertical laser transition and a short gain recovery time by bias modulation of a short section of a monolithic Fabry-Perot cavity. In fact, active mode locking in QCLs with a short gain recovery time turns out to be more robust to the variation of parameters as compared to previously studied lasers with a long gain recovery time. We investigate the effects of spatial hole burning and phase locking on the laser output.

Modification of modulated plasma plumes for the quasi-phase-matching of high-order harmonics in different spectral ranges

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ganeev, R. A., E-mail: rashid-ganeev@mail.ru; Ophthalmology and Advanced Laser Medical Center, Saitama Medical University, Saitama 350-0495; Boltaev, G. S.

We demonstrate the technique allowing the fine tuning of the distance between the laser-produced plasma plumes on the surfaces of different materials, as well as the variation of the sizes of these plumes. The modification of plasma formations is based on the tilting of the multi-slit mask placed between the heating laser beam and target surface, as well as the positioning of this mask in the telescope placed on the path of heating radiation. The modulated plasma plumes with the sizes of single plume ranging between 0.1 and 1 mm were produced on the manganese and silver targets. Modification of themore » geometrical parameters of plasma plumes proved to be useful for the fine tuning of the quasi-phase-matched high-order harmonics generated in such structures during propagation of the ultrashort laser pulses. We show the enhancement of some groups of harmonics along the plateau range and the tuning of maximally enhanced harmonic by variable modulation of the plasma.« less

Constructive polarization modulation for coherent population trapping clock

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yun, Peter, E-mail: enxue.yun@obspm.fr; Danet, Jean-Marie; Holleville, David

2014-12-08

We propose a constructive polarization modulation scheme for atomic clocks based on coherent population trapping (CPT). In this scheme, the polarization of a bichromatic laser beam is modulated between two opposite circular polarizations to avoid trapping the atomic populations in the extreme Zeeman sublevels. We show that if an appropriate phase modulation between the two optical components of the bichromatic laser is applied synchronously, the two CPT dark states which are produced successively by the alternate polarizations add constructively. Measured CPT resonance contrasts up to 20% in one-pulse CPT and 12% in two-pulse Ramsey-CPT experiments are reported, demonstrating the potentialmore » of this scheme for applications to high performance atomic clocks.« less

Study of phase development and thermal stability in as synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles by laser pyrolysis: ethylene uptake and oxygen enrichment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ilie, Alina Georgiana; Scarisoreanu, Monica; Dutu, Elena; Dumitrache, Florian; Banici, Ana-Maria; Fleaca, Claudiu Teodor; Vasile, Eugenia; Mihailescu, Ion

2018-01-01

Laser pyrolysis has proven a viable and trustworthy method of TiO2 nanoparticles fabrication, ensuring good quality and wide variety of nanoparticle morphologies and sizes. This work is aimed to phase control, experimentally studied, by parameter modulation, during one step laser pyrolysis synthesis or in combination with thermal annealing. High phase purity anatase and rutile TiO2 nanoparticles, oxygen abundant, are synthesized from TiCl4 and C2H4 gas mixtures, in the presence of air as oxygen donor, under CO2 laser radiation. The nano-titania samples are analyzed by X-ray Diffraction, EDAX, TEM and Raman spectroscopy and reveal good phase stability and distinct morphology. This study extends the method applicability onto rutile majoritarian TiO2 synthesis and generation of thermally stable anatase titania, a well-known catalyst.

Tunable effective nonlinear refractive index of graphene dispersions during the distortion of spatial self-phase modulation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Gaozhong; Zhang, Saifeng, E-mail: sfzhang@siom.ac.cn, E-mail: jwang@siom.ac.cn; Cheng, Xin

2014-04-07

Spatial self-phase modulation (SSPM) was observed directly when a focused He-Ne laser beam at 633 nm went through liquid-phase-exfoliated graphene dispersions. The diffraction pattern of SSPM was found to be distorted rapidly right after the incident beam horizontally passing through the dispersions, while no distortion for the vertically incident geometry. We show that the distortion is originated mainly from the non-axis-symmetrical thermal convections of the graphene nanosheets induced by laser heating, and the relative change of nonlinear refractive index can be determined by the ratio of the distortion angle to the half-cone angle. Therefore, the effective nonlinear refractive index of graphenemore » dispersions can be tuned by changing the incident intensity and the temperature of the dispersions.« less

Photonic ultrawideband impulse radio generation and modulation over a fiber link using a phase modulator and a delay interferometer.

PubMed

Shao, Jing; Sun, Junqiang

2012-08-15

We propose and experimentally demonstrate a simple and flexible photonic scheme for generation and modulation of ultrawideband (UWB) using a phase modulator and a fiber delay interferometer (DI)-based multichannel frequency discrimination. By introducing a Gaussian signal to the phase modulator, the UWB polarity-switchable doublet pulses can be achieved by combining the pair of UWB monocycle pulses with inverted polarities at the DI outputs under proper time delay. Furthermore, the pulse shape modulation, pulse position modulation, and on-off keying can be performed by coding the electrical data patterns and adjusting the time delay between the two monocycle pulses. Only a laser source introduced in the architecture guarantees the excellent dispersion tolerance over 75 km optical fiber link for UWB pulse sequence, which has potential application in future high-speed UWB impulse radio over optical fiber access networks.

Maximum-Likelihood Estimation for Frequency-Modulated Continuous-Wave Laser Ranging Using Photon-Counting Detectors

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-01-01

are calculated from coherently -detected fields, e.g., coherent Doppler lidar . Our CRB results reveal that the best-case mean-square error scales as 1...1088 (2001). 7. K. Asaka, Y. Hirano, K. Tatsumi, K. Kasahara, and T. Tajime, “A pseudo-random frequency modulation continuous wave coherent lidar using...multiple returns,” IEEE Trans. Pattern Anal. Mach. Intell. 29, 2170–2180 (2007). 11. T. J. Karr, “Atmospheric phase error in coherent laser radar

Phase-noise limitations in continuous-variable quantum key distribution with homodyne detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corvaja, Roberto

2017-02-01

In continuous-variables quantum key distribution with coherent states, the advantage of performing the detection by using standard telecoms components is counterbalanced by the lack of a stable phase reference in homodyne detection due to the complexity of optical phase-locking circuits and to the unavoidable phase noise of lasers, which introduces a degradation on the achievable secure key rate. Pilot-assisted phase-noise estimation and postdetection compensation techniques are used to implement a protocol with coherent states where a local laser is employed and it is not locked to the received signal, but a postdetection phase correction is applied. Here the reduction of the secure key rate determined by the laser phase noise, for both individual and collective attacks, is analytically evaluated and a scheme of pilot-assisted phase estimation proposed, outlining the tradeoff in the system design between phase noise and spectral efficiency. The optimal modulation variance as a function of the phase-noise amount is derived.

Non-intrusive beam power monitor for high power pulsed or continuous wave lasers

DOEpatents

Hawsey, Robert A.; Scudiere, Matthew B.

1993-01-01

A system and method for monitoring the output of a laser is provided in which the output of a photodiode disposed in the cavity of the laser is used to provide a correlated indication of the laser power. The photodiode is disposed out of the laser beam to view the extraneous light generated in the laser cavity whose intensity has been found to be a direct correlation of the laser beam output power level. Further, the system provides means for monitoring the phase of the laser output beam relative to a modulated control signal through the photodiode monitor.

Electro-optic modulation of a laser at microwave frequencies for interferometric purposes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Specht, Paul E.; Jilek, Brook A.

2017-02-01

A multi-point microwave interferometer (MPMI) concept was previously proposed by the authors for spatially-resolved, non-invasive tracking of a shock, reaction, or detonation front in energetic media [P. Specht et al., AIP Conf. Proc. 1793, 160010 (2017).]. The advantage of the MPMI concept over current microwave interferometry techniques is its detection of Doppler shifted microwave signals through electro-optic (EO) modulation of a laser. Since EO modulation preserves spatial variations in the Doppler shift, collecting the EO modulated laser light into a fiber array for recording with an optical heterodyne interferometer yields spatially-resolved velocity information. This work demonstrates the underlying physical principle of the MPMI diagnostic: the monitoring of a microwave signal with nanosecond temporal resolution using an optical heterodyne interferometer. For this purpose, the MPMI concept was simplified to a single-point construction using two tunable 1550 nm lasers and a 35.2 GHz microwave source. A (110) ZnTe crystal imparted the microwave frequency onto a laser, which was combined with a reference laser for determination of the microwave frequency in an optical heterodyne interferometer. A single, characteristic frequency associated with the microwave source was identified in all experiments, providing a means to monitor a microwave signal on nanosecond time scales. Lastly, areas for improving the frequency resolution of this technique are discussed, focusing on increasing the phase-modulated signal strength.

Electro-optic modulation of a laser at microwave frequencies for interferometric purposes.

PubMed

Specht, Paul E; Jilek, Brook A

2017-02-01

A multi-point microwave interferometer (MPMI) concept was previously proposed by the authors for spatially-resolved, non-invasive tracking of a shock, reaction, or detonation front in energetic media [P. Specht et al., AIP Conf. Proc. 1793, 160010 (2017).]. The advantage of the MPMI concept over current microwave interferometry techniques is its detection of Doppler shifted microwave signals through electro-optic (EO) modulation of a laser. Since EO modulation preserves spatial variations in the Doppler shift, collecting the EO modulated laser light into a fiber array for recording with an optical heterodyne interferometer yields spatially-resolved velocity information. This work demonstrates the underlying physical principle of the MPMI diagnostic: the monitoring of a microwave signal with nanosecond temporal resolution using an optical heterodyne interferometer. For this purpose, the MPMI concept was simplified to a single-point construction using two tunable 1550 nm lasers and a 35.2 GHz microwave source. A (110) ZnTe crystal imparted the microwave frequency onto a laser, which was combined with a reference laser for determination of the microwave frequency in an optical heterodyne interferometer. A single, characteristic frequency associated with the microwave source was identified in all experiments, providing a means to monitor a microwave signal on nanosecond time scales. Lastly, areas for improving the frequency resolution of this technique are discussed, focusing on increasing the phase-modulated signal strength.

Generation of high-power, tunable terahertz radiation from laser interaction with a relativistic electron beam

DOE PAGES

Zhang, Zhen; Yan, Lixin; Du, Yingchao; ...

2017-05-01

We propose a method based on the slice energy spread modulation to generate strong subpicosecond density bunching in high-intensity relativistic electron beams. A laser pulse with periodic intensity envelope is used to modulate the slice energy spread of the electron beam, which can then be converted into density modulation after a dispersive section. It is found that the double-horn slice energy distribution of the electron beam induced by the laser modulation is very effective to increase the density bunching. Since the modulation is performed on a relativistic electron beam, the process does not suffer from strong space charge force ormore » coupling between phase spaces, so that it is straightforward to preserve the beam quality for terahertz (THz) radiation and other applications. We show in both theory and simulations that the tunable radiation from the beam can cover the frequency range of 1 - 10 THz with high power and narrow-band spectra.« less

Thin-film amorphous silicon alloy research partnership. Phase 2, Annual technical progress report, 2 February 1996--1 February 1997

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Guha, S

This is Phase II of a 3-phase, 3-year program. It is intended to expand, enhance, and accelerate knowledge and capabilities for developing high-performance, two-terminal multijunction amorphous Si alloy modules. We discuss investigations on back reflectors to improve cell performance and investigate uniformity in performance over a 1-sq.-ft. area. We present results on component cell performance, both in the initial and in the light-degraded states, deposited over a 1-sq.-ft. area. The uniformity in deposited is investigated by studying the performance of subcells deposited over the entire area. We also present results on the performance of triple- junction cells and modules. Themore » modules use grid-lines and encapsulants compatible with our production technology. We discuss the novel laser-processing technique that has bee developed at United Solar to improve energy-conversion efficiency and reduce manufacturing costs. We discuss in detail the optimization of the processing steps, and the performance of a laser-processed, triple- junction device of 12.6 cm{sup 2} area is presented. We also present experimental results on investigations of module reliability.« less

Multi-aperture all-fiber active coherent beam combining for free-space optical communication receivers.

PubMed

Yang, Yan; Geng, Chao; Li, Feng; Huang, Guan; Li, Xinyang

2017-10-30

Multi-aperture receiver with optical combining architecture is an effective approach to overcome the turbulent atmosphere effect on the performance of the free-space optical (FSO) communications, in which how to combine the multiple laser beams received by the sub-apertures efficiently is one of the key technologies. In this paper, we focus on the combining module based on fiber couplers, and propose the all-fiber coherent beam combining (CBC) with two architectures by using active phase locking. To validate the feasibility of the proposed combining module, corresponding experiments and simulations on the CBC of four laser beams are carried out. The experimental results show that the phase differences among the input beams can be compensated and the combining efficiency can be stably promoted by active phase locking in CBC with both of the two architectures. The simulation results show that the combining efficiency fluctuates when turbulent atmosphere is considered, and the effectiveness of the combining module decreases as the turbulence increases. We believe that the combining module proposed in this paper has great potential, and the results can provide significant advices for researchers when building such a multi-aperture receiver with optical combining architecture for FSO commutation systems.

Phase retrieval by coherent modulation imaging.

PubMed

Zhang, Fucai; Chen, Bo; Morrison, Graeme R; Vila-Comamala, Joan; Guizar-Sicairos, Manuel; Robinson, Ian K

2016-11-18

Phase retrieval is a long-standing problem in imaging when only the intensity of the wavefield can be recorded. Coherent diffraction imaging is a lensless technique that uses iterative algorithms to recover amplitude and phase contrast images from diffraction intensity data. For general samples, phase retrieval from a single-diffraction pattern has been an algorithmic and experimental challenge. Here we report a method of phase retrieval that uses a known modulation of the sample exit wave. This coherent modulation imaging method removes inherent ambiguities of coherent diffraction imaging and uses a reliable, rapidly converging iterative algorithm involving three planes. It works for extended samples, does not require tight support for convergence and relaxes dynamic range requirements on the detector. Coherent modulation imaging provides a robust method for imaging in materials and biological science, while its single-shot capability will benefit the investigation of dynamical processes with pulsed sources, such as X-ray free-electron lasers.

Manipulation of electronic phases in Au-nanodots-decorated manganite films by laser illumination

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Hui; Zhang, Kaixuan; Wang, Dongli; Xu, Han; Zhou, Haibiao; Fan, Xiaodong; Cheng, Guanghui; Cheng, Long; Lu, Qingyou; Li, Lin; Zeng, Changgan

2018-06-01

Precise manipulation of the electronic phases in strongly correlated oxides offers an avenue to control the macroscopic functionalities, thereby sparking enormous research interests in condensed matter physics. In the present paper, phase-separated La0.33Pr0.34Ca0.33MnO3 (LPCMO) thin films with a fraction of the ferromagnetic metallic phase close to the percolation threshold are successfully prepared, in which the nonvolatile and erasable switching between different electronic states is realized through cooperative effects of Au-nanodots capping and laser illumination. The deposition of Au nanodots on LPCMO thin films leads to the occurrence of a thermally inaccessible nonpercolating state at low temperatures, manifested as the absence of insulator-metal transition as temperature decreases. Such a nonpercolating state can be substantially tuned back to a percolating state by laser illumination in a nonvolatile and erasable way, accompanied by gigantic resistance drops in a wide temperature range. The formation of local oxygen vacancies near Au nanodots and thereby the modulation of mesoscopic electronic texture should be the key factor for the realization of flexible modulation of global transport properties in LPCMO thin films. Our findings pave a way toward the manipulation of physical properties of the electronically phase-separated systems and the design of optically controlled electronic devices.

Effect of the Gouy phase on the coherent phase control of chemical reactions.

PubMed

Gordon, Robert J; Barge, Vishal J

2007-11-28

We show how the spatial phase of a focused laser beam may be used as a tool for controlling the branching ratio of a chemical reaction. Guoy discovered [Acad. Sci., Paris, C. R. 110, 1250 (1890)] that when an electromagnetic wave passes through a focus its phase increases by pi. In a coherent control scheme involving the absorption of n photons of frequency omega(m) and m photons of frequency omega(n), the overall phase shift produced by the Gouy phase is (n-m)pi. At any given point in space, this phase shift is identical for all reaction products. Nevertheless, if the yields for different reaction channels have different intensity dependencies, the Gouy phase produces a net phase lag between the products that varies with the axial coordinate of the laser focus. We obtain here analytical and numerical values of this phase as the laser focus is scanned across the diameter of the molecular beam, taking into account the Rayleigh range and astigmatism of the laser beam and saturation of the transition. We also show that the modulation depth of the interference pattern may be increased by optimizing the relative intensities of the two fields.

Application of Phase Shifted, Laser Feedback Interferometry to Fluid Physics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ovryn, Ben; Eppell, Steven J.; Andrews, James H.; Khaydarov, John

1996-01-01

We have combined the principles of phase-shifting interferometry (PSI) and laser-feedback interferometry (LFI) to produce a new instrument that can measure both optical path length (OPL) changes and discern sample reflectivity variations. In LFI, coherent feedback of the incident light either reflected directly from a surface or reflected after transmission through a region of interest will modulate the output intensity of the laser. LFI can yield a high signal-to-noise ratio even for low reflectivity samples. By combining PSI and LFI, we have produced a robust instrument, based upon a HeNe laser, with high dynamic range that can be used to measure either static (dc) or oscillatory changes along the optical path. As with other forms of interferometry, large changes in OPL require phase unwrapping. Conversely, small phase changes are limited by the fraction of a fringe that can be measured. We introduce the phase shifts with an electro-optic modulator (EOM) and use either the Carre or Hariharan algorithms to determine the phase and visibility. We have determined the accuracy and precision of our technique by measuring both the bending of a cantilevered piezoelectric bimorph and linear ramps to the EOM. Using PSI, sub-nanometer displacements can be measured. We have combined our interferometer with a commercial microscope and scanning piezoelectric stage and have measured the variation in OPL and visibility for drops of PDMS (silicone oil) on coated single crystal silicon. Our measurement of the static contact angle agrees with the value of 68 deg stated in the literature.

A method for generating double-ring-shaped vector beams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huan, Chen; Xiao-Hui, Ling; Zhi-Hong, Chen; Qian-Guang, Li; Hao, Lv; Hua-Qing, Yu; Xu-Nong, Yi

2016-07-01

We propose a method for generating double-ring-shaped vector beams. A step phase introduced by a spatial light modulator (SLM) first makes the incident laser beam have a nodal cycle. This phase is dynamic in nature because it depends on the optical length. Then a Pancharatnam-Berry phase (PBP) optical element is used to manipulate the local polarization of the optical field by modulating the geometric phase. The experimental results show that this scheme can effectively create double-ring-shaped vector beams. It provides much greater flexibility to manipulate the phase and polarization by simultaneously modulating the dynamic and the geometric phases. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 11547017), the Hubei Engineering University Research Foundation, China (Grant No. z2014001), and the Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province, China (Grant No. 2014CFB578).

Investigation of the thermal and optical performance of a spatial light modulator with high average power picosecond laser exposure for materials processing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, G.; Whitehead, D.; Perrie, W.; Allegre, O. J.; Olle, V.; Li, Q.; Tang, Y.; Dawson, K.; Jin, Y.; Edwardson, S. P.; Li, L.; Dearden, G.

2018-03-01

Spatial light modulators (SLMs) addressed with computer generated holograms (CGHs) can create structured light fields on demand when an incident laser beam is diffracted by a phase CGH. The power handling limitations of these devices based on a liquid crystal layer has always been of some concern. With careful engineering of chip thermal management, we report the detailed optical phase and temperature response of a liquid cooled SLM exposed to picosecond laser powers up to 〈P〉  =  220 W at 1064 nm. This information is critical for determining device performance at high laser powers. SLM chip temperature rose linearly with incident laser exposure, increasing by only 5 °C at 〈P〉  =  220 W incident power, measured with a thermal imaging camera. Thermal response time with continuous exposure was 1-2 s. The optical phase response with incident power approaches 2π radians with average power up to 〈P〉  =  130 W, hence the operational limit, while above this power, liquid crystal thickness variations limit phase response to just over π radians. Modelling of the thermal and phase response with exposure is also presented, supporting experimental observations well. These remarkable performance characteristics show that liquid crystal based SLM technology is highly robust when efficiently cooled. High speed, multi-beam plasmonic surface micro-structuring at a rate R  =  8 cm2 s-1 is achieved on polished metal surfaces at 〈P〉  =  25 W exposure while diffractive, multi-beam surface ablation with average power 〈P〉  =100 W on stainless steel is demonstrated with ablation rate of ~4 mm3 min-1. However, above 130 W, first order diffraction efficiency drops significantly in accord with the observed operational limit. Continuous exposure for a period of 45 min at a laser power of 〈P〉  =  160 W did not result in any detectable drop in diffraction efficiency, confirmed afterwards by the efficient parallel beam processing at 〈P〉  =  100 W. Hence, no permanent changes in SLM phase response characteristics have been detected. This research work will help to accelerate the use of liquid crystal spatial light modulators for both scientific and ultra high throughput laser-materials micro-structuring applications.

Using a fast dual-wavelength imaging ellipsometric system to measure the flow thickness profile of an oil thin film

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuo, Chih-Wei; Han, Chien-Yuan; Jhou, Jhe-Yi; Peng, Zeng-Yi

2017-11-01

Dual-wavelength light sources with stroboscopic illumination technique were applied in a process of photoelastic modulated ellipsometry to retrieve two-dimensional ellipsometric parameters of thin films on a silicon substrate. Two laser diodes were alternately switched on and modulated by a programmable pulse generator to generate four short pulses at specific temporal phase angles in a modulation cycle, and short pulses were used to freeze the intensity variation of the PEM modulated signal that allows ellipsometric images to be captured by a charge-coupled device. Although the phase retardation of a photoelastic modulator is related to the light wavelength, we employed an equivalent phase retardation technique to avoid any setting from the photoelastic modulator. As a result, the ellipsometric parameters of different wavelengths may be rapidly obtained using this dual-wavelength ellipsometric system every 4 s. Both static and dynamic experiments are demonstrated in this work.

The Measurement of Thermal Diffusivity in Conductor and Insulator by Photodeflection Technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Achathongsuk, U.; Rittidach, T.; Tipmonta, P.; Kijamnajsuk, P.; Chotikaprakhan, S.

2017-09-01

The purpose of this study is to estimate thermal diffusivities of high thermal diffusivity bulk material as well as low thermal diffusivity bulk material by using many types of fluid such as Ethyl alcohol and water. This method is studied by measuring amplitude and phase of photodeflection signal in various frequency modulations. The experimental setup consists of two laser lines: 1) a pump laser beams through a modulator, varied frequency, controlled by lock-in amplifier and focused on sample surface by lens. 2) a probe laser which parallels with the sample surface and is perpendicular to the pump laser beam. The probe laser deflection signal is obtained by a position sensor which controlled by lock-in amplifier. Thermal diffusivity is calculated by measuring the amplitude and phase of the photodeflection signal and compared with the thermal diffusivity of a standard value. The thermal diffusivity of SGG agrees well with the literature but the thermal diffusivity of Cu is less than the literature value by a factor of ten. The experiment requires further improvement to measure the thermal diffusivity of Cu. However, we succeed in using ethyl alcohol as the coupling medium instead of CCl4 which is highly toxic.

On-target diagnosing of few-cycle pulses by high-order-harmonic generation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brambila, Danilo S.; Husakou, Anton; Ivanov, Misha; Zhavoronkov, Nickolai

2017-12-01

We propose an approach to determine the residual phase distortion directly in the interaction region of few-cycle laser radiation with a gaseous target. We describe how the spectra of the generated high harmonics measured as a function of externally introduced dispersion into the driving few-cycle laser pulse can be used to decode small amounts of second- and third-order spectral phase, including the sign. The diagnosis is based on the analysis of several key features in the high-harmonic spectrum: the depth of spectral modulation, the position of the cutoff, and the symmetry of the spectrum with respect to the introduced dispersion. The approach is applicable to pulses without carrier-envelope phase (CEP) stabilization. Surprisingly, we find that for nearly-single-cycle pulses with nonstabilized CEP, deep spectral modulations in the harmonic spectra emerge for positively rather than negatively chirped pulses, in contrast to the case of CEP-stabilized pulses.

Range determination for scannerless imaging

DOEpatents

Muguira, Maritza Rosa; Sackos, John Theodore; Bradley, Bart Davis; Nellums, Robert

2000-01-01

A new method of operating a scannerless range imaging system (e.g., a scannerless laser radar) has been developed. This method is designed to compensate for nonlinear effects which appear in many real-world components. The system operates by determining the phase shift of the laser modulation, which is a physical quantity related physically to the path length between the laser source and the detector, for each pixel of an image.

Generation of a widely spaced optical frequency comb using an amplitude modulator pair

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gunning, Fatima C. G.; Ellis, Andrew D.

2005-06-01

Multi-wavelength sources are required for wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) optical communication systems, and typically a bank of DFB lasers is used. However, large costs are involved to provide wavelength selected sources and high precision wavelength lockers. Optical comb generation is attractive solution, minimizing the component count and improving wavelength stability. In addition, comb generation offers the potential for new WDM architectures, such as coherent WDM, as it preserves the phase relation between the generated channels. Complex comb generation systems have been introduced in the past, using fibre ring lasers [1] or non-linear effects within long fibres [2]. More recently, simpler set-ups were proposed, including hybrid amplitude-phase modulation schemes [3-5]. However, the narrow line spacing of these systems, typically 17 GHz, restricts their use to bit rates up to 10 Gbit/s. In this paper, we propose and demonstrate a simple method of comb generation that is suitable for bit rates up to 42.667 Gbit/s. The comb generator was composed of two Mach-Zehnder modulators (MZM) in series, each being driven with a sinusoidal wave at 42.667 GHz with a well-defined phase relationship. As a result, 7 comb lines separated by 42.667 GHz were generated from a single source, when amplitude up to 2.2 Vp was applied to the modulators, giving flatness better than 1 dB. By passively multiplexing 8 source lasers with the comb generator and minimising inter-modulator dispersion, it was possible to achieve a multi-wavelength transmitter with 56 channels, with flatness better than 1.2 dB across 20 nm (2.4 THz).

Symmetric 40-Gb/s TWDM-PON with 51-dB loss budget by using a single SOA as preamplifier, booster and format converter in ONU.

PubMed

Li, Zhengxuan; Yi, Lilin; Hu, Weisheng

2014-10-06

In this paper, we propose to use a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) in the optical network unit (ONU) to improve the loss budget in time and wavelength division multiplexed-passive optical network (TWDM-PON) systems. The SOA boosts the upstream signal to increase the output power of the electro-absorption modulated laser (EML) and simultaneously pre-amplifies the downstream signal for sensitivity improvement. The penalty caused by cross gain modulation (XGM) effect is negligible due to the low extinction ratio (ER) of upstream signal and the large wavelength difference between upstream and downstream links. In order to achieve a higher output power, the SOA is driven into its saturation region, where the self-phase modulation (SPM) effect converts the intensity into phase information and realizes on-off-keying (OOK) to phase-shifted-keying (PSK) format conversion. In this way, the pattern effect is eliminated, which releases the requirement of gain-clamping on SOA. To further improve the loss budget of upstream link, an Erbium doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) is used in the optical line terminal (OLT) to pre-amplify the received signal. For the downstream direction, directly modulated laser (DML) is used as the laser source. Taking advantage of its carrier-less characteristic, directly modulated signal shows high tolerance to fiber nonlinearity, which could support a downstream launch power as high as + 16 dBm per channel. In addition, the signal is pre-amplified by the SOA in ONU before being detected, so the sensitivity limitation for downstream link is also removed. As a result, a truly passive symmetric 40-Gb/s TWDM-PON was demonstrated, achieving a link loss budget of 51 dB.

Ring resonator-based on-chip modulation transformer for high-performance phase-modulated microwave photonic links.

PubMed

Zhuang, Leimeng; Taddei, Caterina; Hoekman, Marcel; Leinse, Arne; Heideman, René; van Dijk, Paulus; Roeloffzen, Chris

2013-11-04

In this paper, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a novel wideband on-chip photonic modulation transformer for phase-modulated microwave photonic links. The proposed device is able to transform phase-modulated optical signals into intensity-modulated versions (or vice versa) with nearly zero conversion of laser phase noise to intensity noise. It is constructed using waveguide-based ring resonators, which features simple architecture, stable operation, and easy reconfigurability. Beyond the stand-alone functionality, the proposed device can also be integrated with other functional building blocks of photonic integrated circuits (PICs) to create on-chip complex microwave photonic signal processors. As an application example, a PIC consisting of two such modulation transformers and a notch filter has been designed and realized in TriPleX(TM) waveguide technology. The realized device uses a 2 × 2 splitting circuit and 3 ring resonators with a free spectral range of 25 GHz, which are all equipped with continuous tuning elements. The device can perform phase-to-intensity modulation transform and carrier suppression simultaneously, which enables high-performance phase-modulated microwave photonics links (PM-MPLs). Associated with the bias-free and low-complexity advantages of the phase modulators, a single-fiber-span PM-MPL with a RF bandwidth of 12 GHz (3 dB-suppression band 6 to 18 GHz) has been demonstrated comprising the proposed PIC, where the achieved spurious-free dynamic range performance is comparable to that of Class-AB MPLs using low-biased Mach-Zehnder modulators.

Real-time terahertz imaging through self-mixing in a quantum-cascade laser

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wienold, M., E-mail: martin.wienold@dlr.de; Rothbart, N.; Hübers, H.-W.

2016-07-04

We report on a fast self-mixing approach for real-time, coherent terahertz imaging based on a quantum-cascade laser and a scanning mirror. Due to a fast deflection of the terahertz beam, images with frame rates up to several Hz are obtained, eventually limited by the mechanical inertia of the employed scanning mirror. A phase modulation technique allows for the separation of the amplitude and phase information without the necessity of parameter fitting routines. We further demonstrate the potential for transmission imaging.

Pressure Studies of Protein Dynamics

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-02-26

infrared flash photolysis system with the monitoring light produced by a Spectra-Physics/ Laser Analytics tunable- diode laser and detected by a liquid...refrigerator. Time range extends from about 100 ms to 100 s. The diode laser current is modulated at 10 kHz and the signal is amplified with a PAR 5101...Photolysis is obtained with a Phase-R D 121OOC dye laser using rhodamine 6G (pulse 4 width 500 ns, 0.3 J). Kinetic spectra are obtained from about 10

Field-programmable gate array-controlled sweep velocity-locked laser pulse generator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Zhen; Hefferman, Gerald; Wei, Tao

2017-05-01

A field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-controlled sweep velocity-locked laser pulse generator (SV-LLPG) design based on an all-digital phase-locked loop (ADPLL) is proposed. A distributed feedback laser with modulated injection current was used as a swept-frequency laser source. An open-loop predistortion modulation waveform was calibrated using a feedback iteration method to initially improve frequency sweep linearity. An ADPLL control system was then implemented using an FPGA to lock the output of a Mach-Zehnder interferometer that was directly proportional to laser sweep velocity to an on-board system clock. Using this system, linearly chirped laser pulses with a sweep bandwidth of 111.16 GHz were demonstrated. Further testing evaluating the sensing utility of the system was conducted. In this test, the SV-LLPG served as the swept laser source of an optical frequency-domain reflectometry system used to interrogate a subterahertz range fiber structure (sub-THz-FS) array. A static strain test was then conducted and linear sensor results were observed.

Characterizing isolated attosecond pulses with angular streaking

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Siqi; Guo, Zhaoheng; Coffee, Ryan N.

Here, we present a reconstruction algorithm for isolated attosecond pulses, which exploits the phase dependent energy modulation of a photoelectron ionized in the presence of a strong laser field. The energy modulation due to a circularly polarized laser field is manifest strongly in the angle-resolved photoelectron momentum distribution, allowing for complete reconstruction of the temporal and spectral profile of an attosecond burst. We show that this type of reconstruction algorithm is robust against counting noise and suitable for single-shot experiments. This algorithm holds potential for a variety of applications for attosecond pulse sources.

Characterizing isolated attosecond pulses with angular streaking

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Sigi; Guo, Zhaoheng; Coffee, Ryan N.

We present a reconstruction algorithm for isolated attosecond pulses, which exploits the phase dependent energy modulation of a photoelectron ionized in the presence of a strong laser field. The energy modulation due to a circularly polarized laser field is manifest strongly in the angle-resolved photoelectron momentum distribution, allowing for complete reconstruction of the temporal and spectral profile of an attosecond burst. We show that this type of reconstruction algorithm is robust against counting noise and suitable for single-shot experiments. This algorithm holds potential for a variety of applications for attosecond pulse sources.

Characterizing isolated attosecond pulses with angular streaking

DOE PAGES

Li, Siqi; Guo, Zhaoheng; Coffee, Ryan N.; ...

2018-02-12

Here, we present a reconstruction algorithm for isolated attosecond pulses, which exploits the phase dependent energy modulation of a photoelectron ionized in the presence of a strong laser field. The energy modulation due to a circularly polarized laser field is manifest strongly in the angle-resolved photoelectron momentum distribution, allowing for complete reconstruction of the temporal and spectral profile of an attosecond burst. We show that this type of reconstruction algorithm is robust against counting noise and suitable for single-shot experiments. This algorithm holds potential for a variety of applications for attosecond pulse sources.

Characterizing isolated attosecond pulses with angular streaking

DOE PAGES

Li, Sigi; Guo, Zhaoheng; Coffee, Ryan N.; ...

2018-02-13

We present a reconstruction algorithm for isolated attosecond pulses, which exploits the phase dependent energy modulation of a photoelectron ionized in the presence of a strong laser field. The energy modulation due to a circularly polarized laser field is manifest strongly in the angle-resolved photoelectron momentum distribution, allowing for complete reconstruction of the temporal and spectral profile of an attosecond burst. We show that this type of reconstruction algorithm is robust against counting noise and suitable for single-shot experiments. This algorithm holds potential for a variety of applications for attosecond pulse sources.

Femtosecond Chirp-Free Transient Absorption Method And Apparatus

DOEpatents

McBranch, Duncan W.; Klimov, Victor I.

2001-02-20

A method and apparatus for femtosecond transient absorption comprising phase-sensitive detection, spectral scanning and simultaneous controlling of a translation stage to obtain TA spectra information having at least a sensitivity two orders of magnitude higher than that for single-shot methods, with direct, simultaneous compensation for chirp as the data is acquired. The present invention includes a amplified delay translation stage which generates a splittable frequency-doubled laser signal at a predetermined frequency f, a controllable means for synchronously modulating one of the laser signals at a repetition rate of f/2, applying the laser signals to a material to be sample, and acquiring data from the excited sample while simultaneously controlling the controllable means for synchronously modulating.

Cerebral responses and role of the prefrontal cortex in conditioned pain modulation: an fMRI study in healthy subjects

PubMed Central

Bogdanov, Volodymyr B.; Viganò, Alessandro; Noirhomme, Quentin; Bogdanova, Olena V.; Guy, Nathalie; Laureys, Steven; Renshaw, Perry F.; Dallel, Radhouane; Phillips, Christophe; Schoenen, Jean

2017-01-01

The mechanisms underlying conditioned pain modulation (CPM) are multifaceted. We searched for a link between individual differences in prefrontal cortex activity during multi-trial heterotopic noxious cold conditioning and modulation of the cerebral response to phasic heat pain. In 24 healthy female subjects, we conditioned laser heat stimuli to the left hand by applying alternatively ice-cold or lukewarm compresses to the right foot. We compared pain ratings with cerebral fMRI BOLD responses. We also analyzed the relation between CPM and BOLD changes produced by the heterotopic cold conditioning itself, as well as the impact of anxiety and habituation of cold-pain ratings. Specific cerebral activation was identified in precuneus and left posterior insula/SII, respectively, during early and sustained phases of cold application. During cold conditioning, laser pain decreased (n = 7), increased (n = 10) or stayed unchanged (n = 7). At the individual level, the psychophysical effect was directly proportional to the cold-induced modulation of the laser-induced BOLD response in left posterior insula/SII. The latter correlated with the BOLD response recorded 80 s earlier during the initial 10-s phase of cold application in anterior cingulate, orbitofrontal and lateral prefrontal cortices. High anxiety and habituation of cold pain were associated with greater laser heat-induced pain during heterotopic cold stimulation. The habituation was also linked to the early cold-induced orbitofrontal responses. We conclude that individual differences in conditioned pain modulation are related to different levels of prefrontal cortical activation by the early part of the conditioning stimulus, possibly due to different levels in trait anxiety. PMID:25461267

Wideband and high-gain frequency stabilization of a 100-W injection-locked Nd:YAG laser for second-generation gravitational wave detectors.

PubMed

Ohmae, Noriaki; Moriwaki, Shigenori; Mio, Norikatsu

2010-07-01

Second-generation gravitational wave detectors require a highly stable laser with an output power greater than 100 W to attain their target sensitivity. We have developed a frequency stabilization system for a 100-W injection-locked Nd:YAG (yttrium aluminum garnet) laser. By placing an external wideband electro-optic modulator used as a fast-frequency actuator in the optical path of the slave output, we can circumvent a phase delay in the frequency control loop originating from the pole of an injection-locked slave cavity. Thus, we have developed an electro-optic modulator made of a MgO-doped stoichiometric LiNbO(3) crystal. Using this modulator, we achieve a frequency control bandwidth of 800 kHz and a control gain of 180 dB at 1 kHz. These values satisfy the requirement for a laser frequency control loop in second-generation gravitational wave detectors.

Improved multistage wide band laser frequency stabilization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawamura, Seiji; Abramovici, Alex; Zucker, Michael E.

1997-01-01

Suppression of laser frequency fluctuations is an essential technology for planned interferometric detectors for astrophysical gravitational waves. Because of the low degree of residual frequency noise which is ultimately required, control topologies comprising two or more cascaded loops are favored. One such topology, used in the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory 40 m interferometer, relied on electro-optic Pockels cell phase correction as a fast actuator for the final stage. This actuation method proved susceptible to spurious amplitude modulation effects, which provided an unintended parasitic feedback path. An alternate arrangement, which achieves comparably effective frequency stabilization without using a phase correcting Pockels cell, was introduced and successfully tested.

Studies on transmitted beam modulation effect from laser induced damage on fused silica optics.

PubMed

Zheng, Yi; Ma, Ping; Li, Haibo; Liu, Zhichao; Chen, Songlin

2013-07-15

UV laser induced damage (LID) on exit surface of fused silica could cause modulation effect to transmitted beam and further influence downstream propagation properties. This paper presents our experimental and analytical studies on this topic. In experiment, a series of measurement instruments are applied, including beam profiler, interferometer, microscope, and optical coherent tomography (OCT). Creating and characterizing of LID on fused silica sample have been implemented. Morphological features are studied based on their particular modulation effects on transmitted beam. In theoretical investigation, analytical modeling and numerical simulation are performed. Modulation effects from amplitude, phase, and size factors are analyzed respectively. Furthermore, we have novelly designed a simplified polygon model to simulate actual damage site with multiform modulation features, and the simulation results demonstrate that the modeling is usable and representative.

Active phase locking of thirty fiber channels using multilevel phase dithering method

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Huang, Zhimeng; Luo, Yongquan, E-mail: yongquan-l@sina.com; Liu, Cangli

2016-03-15

An active phase locking of a large-scale fiber array with thirty channels has been demonstrated experimentally. In the experiment, the first group of thirty phase controllers is used to compensate the phase noises between the elements and the second group of thirty phase modulators is used to impose additional phase disturbances to mimic the phase noises in the high power fiber amplifiers. A multi-level phase dithering algorithm using dual-level rectangular-wave phase modulation and time division multiplexing can achieve the same phase control as single/multi-frequency dithering technique, but without coherent demodulation circuit. The phase locking efficiency of 30 fiber channels ismore » achieved about 98.68%, 97.82%, and 96.50% with no additional phase distortion, modulated phase distortion I (±1 rad), and phase distortion II (±2 rad), corresponding to the phase error of λ/54, λ/43, and λ/34 rms. The contrast of the coherent combined beam profile is about 89%. Experimental results reveal that the multi-level phase dithering technique has great potential in scaling to a large number of laser beams.« less

FIBER AND INTEGRATED OPTICS, LASER APPLICATIONS, AND OTHER PROBLEMS IN QUANTUM ELECTRONICS: Optical components for the analysis and formation of the transverse mode composition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Golub, M. A.; Sisakyan, I. N.; Soĭfer, V. A.; Uvarov, G. V.

1989-04-01

Theoretical and experimental investigations are reported of new mode optical components (elements) which are analogs of sinusoidal phase diffraction gratings with a variable modulation depth. Expressions are derived for nonlinear predistortion and depth of modulation, which are essential for effective operation of amplitude and phase mode optical components in devices used for analysis and formation of the transverse mode composition of coherent radiation. An estimate is obtained of the energy efficiency of phase and amplitude mode optical components, and a comparison is made with the results of an experimental investigation of a set of phase optical components matched to Gauss-Laguerre modes. It is shown that the improvement in the energy efficiency of phase mode components, compared with amplitude components, is the same as the improvement achieved using a phase diifraction grating, compared with amplitude grating with the same depth of modulation.

Yb-doped large-mode-area laser fiber fabricated by halide-gas-phase-doping technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, Kun; Wang, Yuying; Ni, Li; Wang, Zhen; Gao, Cong; Zhan, Huan; Wang, Jianjun; Jing, Feng; Lin, Aoxiang

2015-06-01

In this manuscript, we designed a rare-earth-halide gas-phase-doping setup to fabricate a large-mode-area fiber for high power laser applications. YbCl3 and AlCl3 halides are evaporated, carried respectively and finally mixed with usual host gas material SiCl4 at the hot zone of MCVD system. Owing to the all-gas-phasing reaction process and environment, the home-made Yb-doped fiber preform has a homogeneous large core and modulated refractive index profile to keep high beam quality. The drawn fiber core has a small numerical aperture of 0.07 and high Yb concentration of 9500 ppm. By using a master oscillator power amplifier system, nearly kW-level (951 W) laser output power was obtained with a slope efficiency of 83.3% at 1063.8 nm, indicating the competition and potential of the halide-gas-phase-doping technique for high power laser fiber fabrication.

DAZZLE project: UAV to ground communication system using a laser and a modulated retro-reflector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thueux, Yoann; Avlonitis, Nicholas; Erry, Gavin

2014-10-01

The advent of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) has generated the need for reduced size, weight and power (SWaP) requirements for communications systems with a high data rate, enhanced security and quality of service. This paper presents the current results of the DAZZLE project run by Airbus Group Innovations. The specifications, integration steps and initial performance of a UAV to ground communication system using a laser and a modulated retro-reflector are detailed. The laser operates at the wavelength of 1550nm and at power levels that keep it eye safe. It is directed using a FLIR pan and tilt unit driven by an image processing-based system that tracks the UAV in flight at a range of a few kilometers. The modulated retro-reflector is capable of a data rate of 20Mbps over short distances, using 200mW of electrical power. The communication system was tested at the Pershore Laser Range in July 2014. Video data from a flying Octocopter was successfully transmitted over 1200m. During the next phase of the DAZZLE project, the team will attempt to produce a modulated retro-reflector capable of 1Gbps in partnership with the research institute Acreo1 based in Sweden. A high speed laser beam steering capability based on a Spatial Light Modulator will also be added to the system to improve beam pointing accuracy.

Low-Loss Coupler For Microwave Laser-Diode Modulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Toda, Minoru

1991-01-01

Elimination of series resistor reduces loss of radio-frequency power. Quarter-wavelength matching section connected to transmission line eliminates need for resistor near laser diode and extends frequency response of system. Concept significantly extends relatively flat frequency response of laser diode or similar component, while simplifying design of its package, increasing amplitude of output signal, and reducing dissipation of heat by eliminating resistance. Phase characteristics approximately linear and any digital information transmitted not significantly altered.

Compact silicon photonics-based multi laser module for sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ayotte, S.; Costin, F.; Babin, A.; Paré-Olivier, G.; Morin, M.; Filion, B.; Bédard, K.; Chrétien, P.; Bilodeau, G.; Girard-Deschênes, E.; Perron, L.-P.; Davidson, C.-A.; D'Amato, D.; Laplante, M.; Blanchet-Létourneau, J.

2018-02-01

A compact three-laser source for optical sensing is presented. It is based on a low-noise implementation of the Pound Drever-Hall method and comprises high-bandwidth optical phase-locked loops. The outputs from three semiconductor distributed feedback lasers, mounted on thermo-electric coolers (TEC), are coupled with micro-lenses into a silicon photonics (SiP) chip that performs beat note detection and several other functions. The chip comprises phase modulators, variable optical attenuators, multi-mode-interference couplers, variable ratio tap couplers, integrated photodiodes and optical fiber butt-couplers. Electrical connections between a metallized ceramic and the TECs, lasers and SiP chip are achieved by wirebonds. All these components stand within a 35 mm by 35 mm package which is interfaced with 90 electrical pins and two fiber pigtails. One pigtail carries the signals from a master and slave lasers, while another carries that from a second slave laser. The pins are soldered to a printed circuit board featuring a micro-processor that controls and monitors the system to ensure stable operation over fluctuating environmental conditions. This highly adaptable multi-laser source can address various sensing applications requiring the tracking of up to three narrow spectral features with a high bandwidth. It is used to sense a fiber-based ring resonator emulating a resonant fiber optics gyroscope. The master laser is locked to the resonator with a loop bandwidth greater than 1 MHz. The slave lasers are offset frequency locked to the master laser with loop bandwidths greater than 100 MHz. This high performance source is compact, automated, robust, and remains locked for days.

Electrically-driven pure amplitude and frequency modulation in a quantum cascade laser.

PubMed

Shehzad, Atif; Brochard, Pierre; Matthey, Renaud; Blaser, Stéphane; Gresch, Tobias; Maulini, Richard; Muller, Antoine; Südmeyer, Thomas; Schilt, Stéphane

2018-04-30

We present pure amplitude modulation (AM) and frequency modulation (FM) achieved electrically in a quantum cascade laser (QCL) equipped with an integrated resistive heater (IH). The QCL output power scales linearly with the current applied to the active region (AR), but decreases with the IH current, while the emission frequency decreases with both currents. Hence, a simultaneous modulation applied to the current of the AR and IH sections with a proper relative amplitude and phase can suppress the AM, resulting in a pure FM, or vice-versa. The adequate modulation parameters depend on the applied modulation frequency. Therefore, they were first determined from the individual measurements of the AM and FM transfer functions obtained for a modulation applied to the current of the AR or IH section, respectively. By optimizing the parameters of the two modulations, we demonstrate a reduction of the spurious AM or FM by almost two orders of magnitude at characteristic frequencies of 1 and 10 kHz compared to the use of the AR current only.

Triggerable electro-optic amplitude modulator bias stabilizer for integrated optical devices

DOEpatents

Conder, A.D.; Haigh, R.E.; Hugenberg, K.F.

1995-09-26

An improved Mach-Zehnder integrated optical electro-optic modulator is achieved by application and incorporation of a DC bias box containing a laser synchronized trigger circuit, a DC ramp and hold circuit, a modulator transfer function negative peak detector circuit, and an adjustable delay circuit. The DC bias box ramps the DC bias along the transfer function curve to any desired phase or point of operation at which point the RF modulation takes place. 7 figs.

Triggerable electro-optic amplitude modulator bias stabilizer for integrated optical devices

DOEpatents

Conder, Alan D.; Haigh, Ronald E.; Hugenberg, Keith F.

1995-01-01

An improved Mach-Zehnder integrated optical electro-optic modulator is achieved by application and incorporation of a DC bias box containing a laser synchronized trigger circuit, a DC ramp and hold circuit, a modulator transfer function negative peak detector circuit, and an adjustable delay circuit. The DC bias box ramps the DC bias along the transfer function curve to any desired phase or point of operation at which point the RF modulation takes place.

Method for measuring retardation of infrared wave-plate by modulated-polarized visible light

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Ying; Song, Feijun

2012-11-01

A new method for precisely measuring the optical phase retardation of wave-plates in the infrared spectral region is presented by using modulated-polarized visible light. An electro-optic modulator is used to accurately determine the zero point by the frequency-doubled signal of the Modulated-polarized light. A Babinet-Soleil compensator is employed to make the phase delay compensation. Based on this method, an instrument is set up to measure the retardations of the infrared wave-plates with visible region laser. Measurement results with high accuracy and sound repetition are obtained by simple calculation. Its measurement precision is less than and repetitive precision is within 0.3%.

Propagation of coherently combined truncated laser beam arrays with beam distortions in non-Kolmogorov turbulence.

PubMed

Tao, Rumao; Si, Lei; Ma, Yanxing; Zhou, Pu; Liu, Zejin

2012-08-10

The propagation properties of coherently combined truncated laser beam arrays with beam distortions through non-Kolmogorov turbulence are studied in detail both analytically and numerically. The analytical expressions for the average intensity and the beam width of coherently combined truncated laser beam arrays with beam distortions propagating through turbulence are derived based on the combination of statistical optics methods and the extended Huygens-Fresnel principle. The effect of beam distortions, such as amplitude modulation and phase fluctuation, is studied by numerical examples. The numerical results reveal that phase fluctuations have significant influence on the spreading of coherently combined truncated laser beam arrays in non-Kolmogorov turbulence, and the effects of the phase fluctuations can be negligible as long as the phase fluctuations are controlled under a certain level, i.e., a>0.05 for the situation considered in the paper. Furthermore, large phase fluctuations can convert the beam distribution rapidly to a Gaussian form, vary the spreading, weaken the optimum truncation effects, and suppress the dependence of spreading on the parameters of the non-Kolmogorov turbulence.

Intermixing optical and microwave signals in GaAs microstrip circuits for phase-locking applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Ming G.; Chauchard, Eve A.; Lee, Chi H.; Hung, Hing-Loi A.

1990-12-01

The microwave modulation of the interference generated by optical beams that are reflected from the top and bottom surfaces of GaAs substrate adjacent to a microstrip line is studied. The detected modulation is used to directly characterize the electrooptic effect. This optical-microwave intermixing technique is applied to phase-lock a free-running microwave oscillator with picosecond laser pulses. One potential application of this technique is for the optical on-wafer characterization of MMICs.

A polarization-independent liquid crystal phase modulation using polymer-network liquid crystals in a 90° twisted cell

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Yi-Hsin; Chen, Ming-Syuan; Lin, Wei-Chih; Tsou, Yu-Shih

2012-07-01

A polarization-independent liquid crystal phase modulation using polymer-network liquid crystals in a 90° twisted cell (T-PNLC) is demonstrated. T-PNLC consists of three layers. Liquid crystal (LC) directors in the two layers near glass substrates are orthogonal to each other and those two layers modulate two eigen-polarizations of an incident light. As a result, two eigen-polarizations of an incident light experience the same phase shift. In the middle layer, LC directors are perpendicular to the glass substrate and contribute no phase shift. The phase shift of T-PNLC is electrically tunable and polarization-independent. T-PNLC does not require any bias voltage for operation. The phase shift is 0.28 π rad for the voltage of 30 Vrms. By measuring and analyzing the optical phase shift of T-PNLC at the oblique incidence of transverse magnetic wave, the pretilt angle of LC directors and the effective thickness of three layers are obtained and discussed. The potential applications are spatial light modulators, laser beam steering, and micro-lens arrays.

Optimal and robust control of quantum state transfer by shaping the spectral phase of ultrafast laser pulses.

PubMed

Guo, Yu; Dong, Daoyi; Shu, Chuan-Cun

2018-04-04

Achieving fast and efficient quantum state transfer is a fundamental task in physics, chemistry and quantum information science. However, the successful implementation of the perfect quantum state transfer also requires robustness under practically inevitable perturbative defects. Here, we demonstrate how an optimal and robust quantum state transfer can be achieved by shaping the spectral phase of an ultrafast laser pulse in the framework of frequency domain quantum optimal control theory. Our numerical simulations of the single dibenzoterrylene molecule as well as in atomic rubidium show that optimal and robust quantum state transfer via spectral phase modulated laser pulses can be achieved by incorporating a filtering function of the frequency into the optimization algorithm, which in turn has potential applications for ultrafast robust control of photochemical reactions.

Calibration of phase contrast imaging on HL-2A Tokamak

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Y.; Gong, S. B.; Xu, M.; Xiao, C. J.; Jiang, W.; Zhong, W. L.; Shi, Z. B.; Wang, H. J.; Wu, Y. F.; Yuan, B. D.; Lan, T.; Ye, M. Y.; Duan, X. R.; HL-2A Team

2017-10-01

Phase contrast imaging (PCI) has recently been developed on HL-2A tokamak. In this article we present the calibration of this diagnostic. This system is to diagnose chord integral density fluctuations by measuring the phase shift of a CO2 laser beam with a wavelength of 10.6 μm when the laser beam passes through plasma. Sound waves are used to calibrate PCI diagnostic. The signal series in different PCI channels show a pronounced modulation of incident laser beam by the sound wave. Frequency-wavenumber spectrum is achieved. Calibrations by sound waves with different frequencies exhibit a maximal wavenumber response of 12 cm-1. The conversion relationship between the chord integral plasma density fluctuation and the signal intensity is 2.3 × 1013 m-2/mV, indicating a high sensitivity.

Components for monolithic fiber chirped pulse amplification laser systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Swan, Michael Craig

The first portion of this work develops techniques for generating femtosecond-pulses from conventional fabry-perot laser diodes using nonlinear-spectral-broadening techniques in Yb-doped positive dispersion fiber ampliers. The approach employed an injection-locked fabry-perot laser diode followed by two stages of nonlinear-spectral-broadening to generate sub-200fs pulses. This thesis demonstrated that a 60ps gain-switched fabry-perot laser-diode can be injection-locked to generate a single-longitudinal-mode pulse and compressed by nonlinear spectral broadening to 4ps. Two problems have been identified that must be resolved before moving forward with this approach. First, gain-switched pulses from a standard diode-laser have a number of characteristics not well suited for producing clean self-phase-modulation-broadened pulses, such as an asymmetric temporal shape, which has a long pulse tail. Second, though parabolic pulse formation occurs for any arbitrary temporal input pulse profile, deviation from the optimum parabolic input results in extensively spectrally modulated self-phase-modulation-broadened pulses. In conclusion, the approach of generating self-phase-modulation-broadened pulses from pulsed laser diodes has to be modified from the initial approach explored in this thesis. The first Yb-doped chirally-coupled-core ber based systems are demonstrated and characterized in the second portion of this work. Robust single-mode performance independent of excitation or any other external mode management techniques have been demonstrated in Yb-doped chirally-coupled-core fibers. Gain and power efficiency characteristics are not compromised in any way in this novel fiber structure up to the 87W maximum power achieved. Both the small signal gain at 1064nm of 30.3dB, and the wavelength dependence of the small signal gain were comparable to currently deployed large-mode-area-fiber technology. The efficiencies of the laser and amplifier were measured to be 75% and 54% respectively. With the inherent design tradeoff between the fundamental mode loss and higher order mode suppression, loss effects on system efficiency in different configurations were investigated. From these investigations it was seen that the slope-efficiency depends only on the total loss of the active fiber, and that when loss is present, the counter-propagating configuration has substantial advantages over the co-propagating case. In this thesis chirally-coupled-core fiber as the technological basis for the next generation of monolithic high power fiber laser systems has been established.

Coherent Detection of High-Rate Optical PPM Signals

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vilnrotter, Victor; Fernandez, Michela Munoz

2006-01-01

A method of coherent detection of high-rate pulse-position modulation (PPM) on a received laser beam has been conceived as a means of reducing the deleterious effects of noise and atmospheric turbulence in free-space optical communication using focal-plane detector array technologies. In comparison with a receiver based on direct detection of the intensity modulation of a PPM signal, a receiver based on the present method of coherent detection performs well at much higher background levels. In principle, the coherent-detection receiver can exhibit quantum-limited performance despite atmospheric turbulence. The key components of such a receiver include standard receiver optics, a laser that serves as a local oscillator, a focal-plane array of photodetectors, and a signal-processing and data-acquisition assembly needed to sample the focal-plane fields and reconstruct the pulsed signal prior to detection. The received PPM-modulated laser beam and the local-oscillator beam are focused onto the photodetector array, where they are mixed in the detection process. The two lasers are of the same or nearly the same frequency. If the two lasers are of different frequencies, then the coherent detection process is characterized as heterodyne and, using traditional heterodyne-detection terminology, the difference between the two laser frequencies is denoted the intermediate frequency (IF). If the two laser beams are of the same frequency and remain aligned in phase, then the coherent detection process is characterized as homodyne (essentially, heterodyne detection at zero IF). As a result of the inherent squaring operation of each photodetector, the output current includes an IF component that contains the signal modulation. The amplitude of the IF component is proportional to the product of the local-oscillator signal amplitude and the PPM signal amplitude. Hence, by using a sufficiently strong local-oscillator signal, one can make the PPM-modulated IF signal strong enough to overcome thermal noise in the receiver circuits: this is what makes it possible to achieve near-quantum-limited detection in the presence of strong background. Following quantum-limited coherent detection, the outputs of the individual photodetectors are automatically aligned in phase by use of one or more adaptive array compensation algorithms [e.g., the least-mean-square (LMS) algorithm]. Then the outputs are combined and the resulting signal is processed to extract the high-rate information, as though the PPM signal were received by a single photodetector. In a continuing series of experiments to test this method (see Fig. 1), the local oscillator has a wavelength of 1,064 nm, and another laser is used as a signal transmitter at a slightly different wavelength to establish an IF of about 6 MHz. There are 16 photodetectors in a 4 4 focal-plane array; the detector outputs are digitized at a sampling rate of 25 MHz, and the signals in digital form are combined by use of the LMS algorithm. Convergence of the adaptive combining algorithm in the presence of simulated atmospheric turbulence for optical PPM signals has already been demonstrated in the laboratory; the combined output is shown in Fig. 2(a), and Fig. 2(b) shows the behavior of the phase of the combining weights as a function of time (or samples). We observe that the phase of the weights has a sawtooth shape due to the continuously changing phase in the down-converted output, which is not exactly at zero frequency. Detailed performance analysis of this coherent free-space optical communication system in the presence of simulated atmospheric turbulence is currently under way.

Energy modulation of nonrelativistic electrons in an optical near field on a metal microslit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishikawa, R.; Bae, J.; Mizuno, K.

2001-04-01

Energy modulation of nonrelativistic electrons with a laser beam using a metal microslit as an interaction circuit has been investigated. An optical near field is induced in the proximity of the microslit by illumination of the laser beam. The electrons passing close to the slit are accelerated or decelerated by an evanescent wave contained in the near field whose phase velocity is equal to the velocity of the electrons. The electron-evanescent wave interaction in the microslit has been analyzed theoretically and experimentally. The theory has predicted that electron energy can be modulated at optical frequencies. Experiments performed in the infrared region have verified theoretical predictions. The electron-energy changes of more than ±5 eV with a 10 kW CO2 laser pulse at the wavelength of 10.6 μm has been successfully observed for an electron beam with an energy of less than 80 keV.

Research of beam smoothing technology on the technical integration line

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Rui; Su, Jingqin; Li, Ping; Zhang, Ying; Wang, Jianjun; Dong, Jun; Yang, Dong; Jing, Feng; Xu, Lixin; Ming, Hai

2013-05-01

This paper is focused on the research of SSD and CPP carried out on TIL. A bulk phase modulator with 9.2-GHz modulation frequency is adopted in SSD. The output spectrum of the phase modulator is stable and the residual amplitude modulation is small. FM-to-AM effect caused by free-space propagation after using smoothing by spectral dispersion is theoretically and experimentally studied. Results indicate inserting a dispersion grating in places with larger beam aperture alleviates the FM-to-AM effect, suggesting minimizing free-space propagation and adopting image relay. Experiments indicate when the number of color cycles (Nc) adopts 1, imposing of SSD with 4.26 times diffraction limit (TDL) did not lead to pinhole closure in the spatial filters of the preamplifier with 20 TDL and main amplifier with 26 TDL. Experimental results also indicate SSD didn't influence the load capacity of the laser facility. The contrast of the 440-μm diameter focal spot with 95% energy included using SSD and CPP drops to 0.47, comparing to 1.71 not using SSD and CPP. When the pulse width of the third harmonic wave is 1 ns and the energy is 1115 J, no damage is found in CPP and other final optics. The experiments solves some key technical problems using SSD and CPP on high-power laser facilities, and provides a flexible platform for the laser-plasma interaction experiments.

Experimental verification of clock noise transfer and components for space based gravitational wave detectors.

PubMed

Sweeney, Dylan; Mueller, Guido

2012-11-05

The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) and other space based gravitational wave detector designs require a laser communication subsystem to, among other things, transfer clock signals between spacecraft (SC) in order to cancel clock noise in post-processing. The original LISA baseline design requires frequency synthesizers to convert each SC clock into a 2 GHz signal, and electro-optic modulators (EOMs) to modulate this 2 GHz clock signal onto the laser light. Both the frequency synthesizers and the EOMs must operate with a phase fidelity of 2×10(-4)cycles/√Hz. In this paper we present measurements of the phase fidelity of frequency synthesizers and EOMs. We found that both the frequency synthesizers and the EOMs meet the requirement when tested independently and together. We also performed an electronic test of the clock noise transfer using frequency synthesizers and the University of Florida LISA Interferometry (UFLIS) phasemeter. We found that by applying a time varying fractional delay filter we could suppress the clock noise to a level below our measurement limit, which is currently determined by timing jitter and is less than an order of magnitude above the LISA requirement for phase measurements.

Low-complexity and modulation-format-independent carrier phase estimation scheme using linear approximation for elastic optical networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Tao; Chen, Xue; Shi, Sheping; Sun, Erkun; Shi, Chen

2018-03-01

We propose a low-complexity and modulation-format-independent carrier phase estimation (CPE) scheme based on two-stage modified blind phase search (MBPS) with linear approximation to compensate the phase noise of arbitrary m-ary quadrature amplitude modulation (m-QAM) signals in elastic optical networks (EONs). Comprehensive numerical simulations are carried out in the case that the highest possible modulation format in EONs is 256-QAM. The simulation results not only verify its advantages of higher estimation accuracy and modulation-format independence, i.e., universality, but also demonstrate that the implementation complexity is significantly reduced by at least one-fourth in comparison with the traditional BPS scheme. In addition, the proposed scheme shows similar laser linewidth tolerance with the traditional BPS scheme. The slightly better OSNR performance of the scheme is also experimentally validated for PM-QPSK and PM-16QAM systems, respectively. The coexistent advantages of low-complexity and modulation-format-independence could make the proposed scheme an attractive candidate for flexible receiver-side DSP unit in EONs.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Young, P.E.

We are compiling a list of anticipated target spot sizes that are specified by the NIF users groups. This data will be used to anticipate demands for phase plates. The spot size also has an impact on the laser operation. Presently the phase plates are designed to sit in the leo section of the FOA (before the conversion crystals). Intensity modulations produced by the phase plates are nonlinearly proportional to the laser spot size. For spot sizes above 3 mm diameter, the intensity modulations are large enough that the damage threshold for the remainder of the FOA is exceeded. Formore » experiments requiring spot diameters larger than 3 ram, it is suggested that the phase plates sit in the 3{omega} section of the FOA. For planning purposes, the cost of the 3{omega} phase plates is presently projected to be more than that of a le0 phase plate due to the use of inclusion-free fused silica as the substrate material, This report is a summary of a meeting that we had on February 16, 2000 in order to catalogue the possible range of requested NIF spot sizes. Copies of the viewgraphs which were presented are also included.« less

Engineering quadratic nonlinear photonic crystals for frequency conversion of lasers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Baoqin; Hong, Lihong; Hu, Chenyang; Zhang, Chao; Liu, Rongjuan; Li, Zhiyuan

2018-03-01

Nonlinear frequency conversion offers an effective way to extend the laser wavelength range. Quadratic nonlinear photonic crystals (NPCs) are artificial materials composed of domain-inversion structures whose sign of nonlinear coefficients are modulated with desire to implement quasi-phase matching (QPM) required for nonlinear frequency conversion. These structures can offer various reciprocal lattice vectors (RLVs) to compensate the phase-mismatching during the quadratic nonlinear optical processes, including second-harmonic generation (SHG), sum-frequency generation and the cascaded third-harmonic generation (THG). The modulation pattern of the nonlinear coefficients is flexible, which can be one-dimensional or two-dimensional (2D), be periodic, quasi-periodic, aperiodic, chirped, or super-periodic. As a result, these NPCs offer very flexible QPM scheme to satisfy various nonlinear optics and laser frequency conversion problems via design of the modulation patterns and RLV spectra. In particular, we introduce the electric poling technique for fabricating QPM structures, a simple effective nonlinear coefficient model for efficiently and precisely evaluating the performance of QPM structures, the concept of super-QPM and super-periodically poled lithium niobate for finely tuning nonlinear optical interactions, the design of 2D ellipse QPM NPC structures enabling continuous tunability of SHG in a broad bandwidth by simply changing the transport direction of pump light, and chirped QPM structures that exhibit broadband RLVs and allow for simultaneous radiation of broadband SHG, THG, HHG and thus coherent white laser from a single crystal. All these technical, theoretical, and physical studies on QPM NPCs can help to gain a deeper insight on the mechanisms, approaches, and routes for flexibly controlling the interaction of lasers with various QPM NPCs for high-efficiency frequency conversion and creation of novel lasers.

Ti:sapphire-pumped diamond Raman laser with sub-100-fs pulse duration.

PubMed

Murtagh, Michelle; Lin, Jipeng; Mildren, Richard P; Spence, David J

2014-05-15

We report a synchronously pumped femtosecond diamond Raman laser operating at 895 nm with a 33% slope efficiency. Pumped using a mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser at 800 nm with a duration of 170 fs, the bandwidth of the Stokes output is broadened and chirped to enable subsequent pulse compression to 95 fs using a prism pair. Modeling results indicate that self-phase modulation drives the broadening of the Stokes spectrum in this highly transient laser. Our results demonstrate the potential for Raman conversion to extend the wavelength coverage and pulse shorten Ti:sapphire lasers.

Phase retrieval by coherent modulation imaging

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhang, Fucai; Chen, Bo; Morrison, Graeme R.

Phase retrieval is a long-standing problem in imaging when only the intensity of the wavefield can be recorded. Coherent diffraction imaging (CDI) is a lensless technique that uses iterative algorithms to recover amplitude and phase contrast images from diffraction intensity data. For general samples, phase retrieval from a single diffraction pattern has been an algorithmic and experimental challenge. Here we report a method of phase retrieval that uses a known modulation of the sample exit-wave. This coherent modulation imaging (CMI) method removes inherent ambiguities of CDI and uses a reliable, rapidly converging iterative algorithm involving three planes. It works formore » extended samples, does not require tight support for convergence, and relaxes dynamic range requirements on the detector. CMI provides a robust method for imaging in materials and biological science, while its single-shot capability will benefit the investigation of dynamical processes with pulsed sources, such as X-ray free electron laser.« less

Phase retrieval by coherent modulation imaging

DOE PAGES

Zhang, Fucai; Chen, Bo; Morrison, Graeme R.; ...

2016-11-18

Phase retrieval is a long-standing problem in imaging when only the intensity of the wavefield can be recorded. Coherent diffraction imaging (CDI) is a lensless technique that uses iterative algorithms to recover amplitude and phase contrast images from diffraction intensity data. For general samples, phase retrieval from a single diffraction pattern has been an algorithmic and experimental challenge. Here we report a method of phase retrieval that uses a known modulation of the sample exit-wave. This coherent modulation imaging (CMI) method removes inherent ambiguities of CDI and uses a reliable, rapidly converging iterative algorithm involving three planes. It works formore » extended samples, does not require tight support for convergence, and relaxes dynamic range requirements on the detector. CMI provides a robust method for imaging in materials and biological science, while its single-shot capability will benefit the investigation of dynamical processes with pulsed sources, such as X-ray free electron laser.« less

A polarization-independent liquid crystal phase modulation using polymer-network liquid crystal with orthogonal alignment layers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Ming-Syuan; Lin, Wei-Chih; Tsou, Yu-Shih; Lin, Yi-Hsin

2012-10-01

A polarization-independent liquid crystal (LC) phase modulation using polymer-network liquid crystals with orthogonal alignments layers (T-PNLC) is demonstrated. T-PNLC consists of three layers. LC directors in the two layers near glass substrates are orthogonal to each other. In the middle layer, LC directors are perpendicular to the glass substrate. The advantages of such T-PNLC include polarizer-free, larger phase shift (~0.4π rad) than the residual phase type (<0.05π rad), and low operating voltage (< 30Vrms). It does not require bias voltage for avoiding scattering because the refractive index of liquid crystals matches that of polymers. The phase shift of T-PNLC is affected by the cell gap and the curing voltages. The potential applications are laser beam steering, spatial light modulators and electrically tunable micro-lens arrays.

Link Performance Analysis of a Ship-to-Ship Laser Communication System

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-03-01

the optical output by a modulating signal. Direct detection requires only the intensity, and not the phase information, of the input signal to...links have a higher signal-to-noise ratio ( ) as compared to RF link. However, at approximately 108 km, the SNR for the optical links is much... optical signal received is mixed with a light signal generated from a local oscillator laser (LO-laser). The combined signals are then impinged onto the

Optomechanical design and analysis of a self-adaptive mounting method for optimizing phase matching of large potassium dihydrogen phosphate converter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Zheng; Tian, Menjiya; Quan, Xusong; Pei, Guoqing; Wang, Hui; Liu, Tianye; Long, Kai; Xiong, Zhao; Rong, Yiming

2017-11-01

Surface control and phase matching of large laser conversion optics are urgent requirements and huge challenges in high-power solid-state laser facilities. A self-adaptive, nanocompensating mounting configuration of a large aperture potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) frequency doubler is proposed based on a lever-type surface correction mechanism. A mechanical, numerical, and optical model is developed and employed to evaluate comprehensive performance of this mounting method. The results validate the method's advantages of surface adjustment and phase matching improvement. In addition, the optimal value of the modulation force is figured out through a series of simulations and calculations.

Shaping Laguerre-Gaussian laser modes with binary gratings using a digital micromirror device.

PubMed

Lerner, Vitaly; Shwa, David; Drori, Yehonathan; Katz, Nadav

2012-12-01

Laguerre-Gaussian (LG) beams are used in many research fields, including microscopy, laser cavity modes, and optical tweezing. We developed a holographic method to generate pure LG modes (amplitude and phase) with a binary amplitude-only digital micromirror device (DMD) as an alternative to the commonly used phase-only spatial light modulator. The advantages of such a DMD include very high frame rates, low cost, and high damage thresholds. We have shown that the propagating shaped beams are self-similar and their phase fronts are of helical shape as demanded. We estimate the purity of the resultant beams to be above 94%.

Development of 873 nm Raman Seed Pulse for Raman-seeded Laser Wakefield Acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grigsby, F.; Peng, D.; Downer, M. C.

2004-12-01

By using a Raman-shifted seed pulse coincident with a main driving pulse, laser wakefields can be generated with sub-relativistic intensity, coherent control and high repetition rate in the self-modulated regime. Experimentally, the generation of a chirped Stokes laser pulse by inserting a solid state Raman shifter, Ba(NO3)2, into a CPA system before the compressor (to suppress self-phase modulation) will be described. We will also report on design, modeling and experimental demonstration of a novel compressor for the Stokes pulse that uses a mismatched grating pair to achieve a near transform-limited seed pulse. Finally, we will describe the design, simulation and current status of Raman-seeded LWFA experiments that use this novel source.

OptoRadio: a method of wireless communication using orthogonal M-ary PSK (OMPSK) modulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaire, Sunil Kumar; Faruque, Saleh; Ahamed, Md. Maruf

2016-09-01

Laser based radio communication system, i.e. OptoRadio, using Orthogonal M-ary PSK Modulation scheme is presented in this paper. In this scheme, when a block of data needs to be transmitted, the corresponding block of biorthogonal code is transmitted by means of multi-phase shift keying. At the receiver, two photo diodes are cross coupled. The effect is that the net output power due to ambient light is close to zero. The laser signal is then transmitted only into one of the receivers. With all other signals being cancelled out, the laser signal is an overwhelmingly dominant signal. The detailed design, bit error correction capabilities, and bandwidth efficiency are presented to illustrate the concept.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Andreev, A L; Andreeva, T B; Kompanets, I N

We have studied the method for suppressing speckle noise in patterns produced by a laser based on a fast-response electro-optical cell with a ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) in which helicoid is absent, i.e., compensated for. The character of smectic layer deformation in an electric field is considered along with the mechanism of spatially inhomogeneous phase modulation of a laser beam passing through the cell which is accompanied by the destruction of phase relations in the beam. Advantages of a helix-free FLC cell are pointed out as compared to helical crystal cells studied previously. (liquid crystal devices)

Pulse-amplitude modulation of optical injection-locked quantum-dot lasers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Yue-Guang; Wang, Cheng

2018-02-01

This work theoretically investigates the four-level pulse-amplitude modulation characteristics of quantum dot lasers subject to optical injection. The rate equation model takes into account carrier dynamics in the carrier reservoir, in the excited state, and in the ground state, as well as photon dynamics and phase dynamics of the electric field. It is found that the optical injection significantly improves the eye diagram quality through suppressing the relaxation oscillation, while the extinction ratio is reduced as well. In addition, both the adiabatic chirp and the transient chirp of the signal are substantially suppressed.

Enhancement of high-order harmonics in a plasma waveguide formed in clustered Ar gas.

PubMed

Geng, Xiaotao; Zhong, Shiyang; Chen, Guanglong; Ling, Weijun; He, Xinkui; Wei, Zhiyi; Kim, Dong Eon

2018-02-05

Generation of high-order harmonics (HHs) is intensified by using a plasma waveguide created by a laser in a clustered gas jet. The formation of a plasma waveguide and the guiding of a laser beam are also demonstrated. Compared to the case without a waveguide, harmonics were strengthened up to nine times, and blue-shifted. Numerical simulation by solving the time-dependent Schrödinger equation in strong field approximation agreed well with experimental results. This result reveals that the strengthening is the result of improved phase matching and that the blue shift is a result of change in fundamental laser frequency due to self-phase modulation (SPM).

Stabilization and control of the carrier-envelope phase of high-power femtosecond laser pulses using the direct locking technique.

PubMed

Imran, Tayyab; Lee, Yong S; Nam, Chang H; Hong, Kyung-Han; Yu, Tae J; Sung, Jae H

2007-01-08

We have stabilized and electronically controlled the carrier-envelope phase (CEP) of high-power femtosecond laser pulses, generated in a grating-based chirped-pulse amplification kHz Ti:sapphire laser, using the direct locking technique [Opt. Express 13, 2969 (2005)] combined with a slow feedback loop. An f-2f spectral interferometer has shown the CEP stabilities of 1.2 rad with the direct locking loop applied to the oscillator and of 180 mrad with an additional slow feedback loop, respectively. The electronic CEP modulations that can be easily realized in the direct locking loop are also demonstrated with the amplified pulses.

Digitally Enhanced Heterodyne Interferometry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shaddock, Daniel; Ware, Brent; Lay, Oliver; Dubovitsky, Serge

2010-01-01

Spurious interference limits the performance of many interferometric measurements. Digitally enhanced interferometry (DEI) improves measurement sensitivity by augmenting conventional heterodyne interferometry with pseudo-random noise (PRN) code phase modulation. DEI effectively changes the measurement problem from one of hardware (optics, electronics), which may deteriorate over time, to one of software (modulation, digital signal processing), which does not. DEI isolates interferometric signals based on their delay. Interferometric signals are effectively time-tagged by phase-modulating the laser source with a PRN code. DEI improves measurement sensitivity by exploiting the autocorrelation properties of the PRN to isolate only the signal of interest and reject spurious interference. The properties of the PRN code determine the degree of isolation.

Optically addressed and submillisecond response phase only liquid crystal spatial light modulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Xiangjie; Duan, Jiazhu; Zhang, Dayong; Luo, Yongquan

2014-10-01

Liquid crystal based phase only spatial light modulator has attracted many research interests since last decades because of its superior advantage. Until now the liquid crystal spatial light modulator has been applied in many fields, but the response speed of nematic LC limited its further application. In this paper, an optically addressed phase only LC spatial light modulator was proposed based on polymer network liquid crystal. Morphology effect on the light scattering of PNLC was studied, which was mainly consisted of fiber and fiber bundles. The morphology nearly determined the light scattering and electro-optical property. Due to the high threshold voltage, to address the PNLC phase modulator was also concerned. Optical addressing method was proposed, in which BSO crystal was selected to replace one of the glass substrate. The response speed of PNLC was so fast that the reorientation of liquid crystal director will follow the change of effective voltage applied on LC layer, which was related with the voltage signal and especially with electron transport of photo-induced carriers due to diffusion and drift. The on state dynamic response of phase change was investigated. Based on this device, beam steering was also achieved by loading 488nm laser strip on the optical addressed phase only spatial light modulator.

Pattern recognition of electronic bit-sequences using a semiconductor mode-locked laser and spatial light modulators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bhooplapur, Sharad; Akbulut, Mehmetkan; Quinlan, Franklyn; Delfyett, Peter J.

2010-04-01

A novel scheme for recognition of electronic bit-sequences is demonstrated. Two electronic bit-sequences that are to be compared are each mapped to a unique code from a set of Walsh-Hadamard codes. The codes are then encoded in parallel on the spectral phase of the frequency comb lines from a frequency-stabilized mode-locked semiconductor laser. Phase encoding is achieved by using two independent spatial light modulators based on liquid crystal arrays. Encoded pulses are compared using interferometric pulse detection and differential balanced photodetection. Orthogonal codes eight bits long are compared, and matched codes are successfully distinguished from mismatched codes with very low error rates, of around 10-18. This technique has potential for high-speed, high accuracy recognition of bit-sequences, with applications in keyword searches and internet protocol packet routing.

Multi-kW coherent combining of fiber lasers seeded with pseudo random phase modulated light

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flores, Angel; Ehrehreich, Thomas; Holten, Roger; Anderson, Brian; Dajani, Iyad

2016-03-01

We report efficient coherent beam combining of five kilowatt-class fiber amplifiers with a diffractive optical element (DOE). Based on a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) configuration, the amplifiers were seeded with pseudo random phase modulated light. Each non-polarization maintaining fiber amplifier was optically path length matched and provides approximately 1.2 kW of near diffraction-limited output power (measured M2<1.1). Consequently, a low power sample of each laser was utilized for active linear polarization control. A low power sample of the combined beam after the DOE provided an error signal for active phase locking which was performed via Locking of Optical Coherence by Single-Detector Electronic-Frequency Tagging (LOCSET). After phase stabilization, the beams were coherently combined via the 1x5 DOE. A total combined output power of 4.9 kW was achieved with 82% combining efficiency and excellent beam quality (M2<1.1). The intrinsic DOE splitter loss was 5%. Similarly, losses due in part to non-ideal polarization, ASE content, uncorrelated wavefront errors, and misalignment errors contributed to the efficiency reduction.

Carrier-envelope offset stabilization of a GHz repetition rate femtosecond laser using opto-optical modulation of a SESAM.

PubMed

Hakobyan, Sargis; Wittwer, Valentin J; Gürel, Kutan; Mayer, Aline S; Schilt, Stéphane; Südmeyer, Thomas

2017-11-15

We demonstrate, to the best of our knowledge, the first carrier-envelope offset (CEO) frequency stabilization of a GHz femtosecond laser based on opto-optical modulation (OOM) of a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror (SESAM). The 1.05-GHz laser is based on a Yb:CALGO gain crystal and emits sub-100-fs pulses with 2.1-W average power at a center wavelength of 1055 nm. The SESAM plays two key roles: it starts and stabilizes the mode-locking operation and is simultaneously used as an actuator to control the CEO frequency. This second functionality is implemented by pumping the SESAM with a continuous-wave 980-nm laser diode in order to slightly modify its nonlinear reflectivity. We use the standard f-to-2f method for detection of the CEO frequency, which is stabilized by applying a feedback signal to the current of the SESAM pump diode. We compare the SESAM-OOM stabilization with the traditional method of gain modulation via control of the pump power of the Yb:CALGO gain crystal. While the bandwidth for gain modulation is intrinsically limited to ∼250  kHz by the laser cavity dynamics, we show that the OOM provides a feedback bandwidth above 500 kHz. Hence, we were able to obtain a residual integrated phase noise of 430 mrad for the stabilized CEO beat, which represents an improvement of more than 30% compared to gain modulation stabilization.

Electro-optic resonant phase modulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, Chien-Chung (Inventor); Hemmati, Hamid (Inventor); Robinson, Deborah L. (Inventor)

1992-01-01

An electro-optic resonant cavity is used to achieve phase modulation with lower driving voltages. Laser damage thresholds are inherently higher than with previously used integrated optics due to the utilization of bulk optics. Phase modulation is achieved at higher speeds with lower driving voltages than previously obtained with non-resonant electro-optic phase modulators. The instant scheme uses a data locking dither approach as opposed to the conventional sinusoidal locking schemes. In accordance with a disclosed embodiment, a resonant cavity modulator has been designed to operate at a data rate in excess of 100 megabits per sec. By carefully choosing the cavity finesse and its dimension, it is possible to control the pulse switching time to within 4 nano-sec. and to limit the required switching voltage to within 10 V. This cavity locking scheme can be applied by using only the random data sequence, and without the need of dithering of the cavity. Compared to waveguide modulators, the resonant cavity has a comparable modulating voltage requirement. Because of its bulk geometry, the resonant cavity modulator has the potential of accommodating higher throughput power. Mode matching into the bulk device is easier and typically can be achieved with higher efficiency. An additional control loop is incorporated into the modulator to maintain the cavity on resonance.

LLE Review Quarterly Report (January-March 1999). Volume 78

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Regan, Sean P.

1999-03-01

This volume of the LLE Review, covering the period January-March 1999, features two articles concerning issues relevant to 2-D SSD laser-beam smoothing on OMEGA. In the first article J. D. Zuegel and J. A. Marozas present the design of an efficient, bulk phase modulator operating at approximately 10.5 GHz, which can produce substantial phase-modulated bandwidth with modest microwave drive power. This modulator is the cornerstone of the 1-THz UV bandwidth operation planned for OMEGA this year. In the second article J. A. Marozas and J. H. Kelly describe a recently developed code -- Waasese -- that simulates the collective behaviormore » of the optical components in the SSD driver line. The measurable signatures predicted by the code greatly enhance the diagnostic capability of the SSD driver line. Other articles in this volume are titled: Hollow-Shell Implosion Studies on the 60-Beam, UC OMEGA Laser System; Simultaneous Measurements of Fuel Areal Density, Shell Areal Density, and Fuel Temperature in D 3He-Filled Imploding Capsules; The Design of Optical Pulse Shapes with an Aperture-Coupled-Stripline Pulse-Shaping System; Measurement Technique for Characterization of Rapidly Time- and Frequency-Varying Electronic Devices; and, Damage to Fused-Silica, Spatial-Filter Lenses on the OMEGA Laser System.« less

Phase-Shifted Laser Feedback Interferometry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ovryn, Benjie

1999-01-01

Phase-shifted, laser feedback interferometry is a new diagnostic tool developed at the NASA Lewis Research Center under the Advanced Technology Development (ATD) Program directed by NASA Headquarters Microgravity Research Division. It combines the principles of phase-shifting interferometry (PSI) and laser-feedback interferometry (LFI) to produce an instrument that can quantify both optical path length changes and sample reflectivity variations. In a homogenous medium, the optical path length between two points is the product of the index of refraction and the geometric distance between the two points. LFI differs from other forms of interferometry by using the laser as both the source and the phase detector. In LFI, coherent feedback of the incident light either reflected directly from a surface or reflected after transmission through a region of interest will modulate the output intensity of the laser. The combination of PSI and LFI has produced a robust instrument, based on a low-power helium-neon (HeNe) gas laser, with a high dynamic range that can be used to measure either static or oscillatory changes of the optical path length. Small changes in optical path length are limited by the fraction of a fringe that can be measured; we can measure nonoscillatory changes with a root mean square (rms) error of the wavelength/1000 without averaging.

Evidence of Photo-induced Dynamic Competition of Metallic and Insulating Phase in a Layered Manganite.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Yuelin; Walko, Donald A.; Li, Qing'an

2015-12-16

We show evidence that the competition between the antiferromagetic metallic phase and the charge- and orbital-ordered insulating phase at the reentrant phase boundary of a layered manganite, LaSr2Mn2O7, can be manipulated using ultrafast optical excitation. The time- dependent evolution of the Jahn-Teller superlattice reflection, which indicates the formation of the charge and orbital order, was measured at different laser fluences. The laser-induced enhancement and reduction the Jahn-Teller reflection intensity shows a reversal of sign between earlier (~10 ns) and later (~150 ns) time delays during the relaxation after photo excitation. This effect is consistent with a scenario whereby the lasermore » excitation modulates the local competition between the metallic and the insulating phases.« less

Applications of Optical Coherent Transient Technology to Pulse Shaping, Spectral Filtering Arbitrary Waveform Generation and RF Beamforming

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-04-14

the EOPM (~1 mW) was amplified by injection locking of a high power diode laser and further amplified to ~300 mW with a semiconductor optical ...The spectra of 8 GHz CW phase modulated signals in cascaded injection locking system from (a) master laser ; (b) the first slave, and (c) the second...cascaded injection locked amplifiers at 793nm, and frequency chirped lasers at 793nm. 15. SUBJECT TERMS Optical Coherent Transients, Spatial

Coherent cavity-enhanced dual-comb spectroscopy

PubMed Central

Fleisher, Adam J.; Long, David A.; Reed, Zachary D.; Hodges, Joseph T.; Plusquellic, David F.

2016-01-01

Dual-comb spectroscopy allows for the rapid, multiplexed acquisition of high-resolution spectra without the need for moving parts or low-resolution dispersive optics. This method of broadband spectroscopy is most often accomplished via tight phase locking of two mode-locked lasers or via sophisticated signal processing algorithms, and therefore, long integration times of phase coherent signals are difficult to achieve. Here we demonstrate an alternative approach to dual-comb spectroscopy using two phase modulator combs originating from a single continuous-wave laser capable of > 2 hours of coherent real-time averaging. The dual combs were generated by driving the phase modulators with step-recovery diodes where each comb consisted of > 250 teeth with 203 MHz spacing and spanned > 50 GHz region in the near-infrared. The step-recovery diodes are passive devices that provide low-phase-noise harmonics for efficient coupling into an enhancement cavity at picowatt optical powers. With this approach, we demonstrate the sensitivity to simultaneously monitor ambient levels of CO2, CO, HDO, and H2O in a single spectral region at a maximum acquisition rate of 150 kHz. Robust, compact, low-cost and widely tunable dual-comb systems could enable a network of distributed multiplexed optical sensors. PMID:27409866

Optical frequency locked loop for long-term stabilization of broad-line DFB laser frequency difference

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lipka, Michał; Parniak, Michał; Wasilewski, Wojciech

2017-09-01

We present an experimental realization of the optical frequency locked loop applied to long-term frequency difference stabilization of broad-line DFB lasers along with a new independent method to characterize relative phase fluctuations of two lasers. The presented design is based on a fast photodiode matched with an integrated phase-frequency detector chip. The locking setup is digitally tunable in real time, insensitive to environmental perturbations and compatible with commercially available laser current control modules. We present a simple model and a quick method to optimize the loop for a given hardware relying exclusively on simple measurements in time domain. Step response of the system as well as phase characteristics closely agree with the theoretical model. Finally, frequency stabilization for offsets within 4-15 GHz working range achieving <0.1 Hz long-term stability of the beat note frequency for 500 s averaging time period is demonstrated. For these measurements we employ an I/Q mixer that allows us to precisely and independently measure the full phase trace of the beat note signal.

Ti : sapphire laser synchronised with femtosecond Yb pump laser via nonlinear pulse coupling in Ti : sapphire active medium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Didenko, N. V.; Konyashchenko, A. V.; Konyashchenko, D. A.; Kostryukov, P. V.; Kuritsyn, I. I.; Lutsenko, A. P.; Mavritskiy, A. O.

2017-02-01

A laser system utilising the method of synchronous pumping of a Ti : sapphire laser by a high-power femtosecond Yb3+-doped laser is described. The pulse repetition rate of the Ti : sapphire laser is successfully locked to the repetition rate of the Yb laser for more than 6 hours without the use of any additional electronics. The measured timing jitter is shown to be less than 1 fs. A simple qualitative model addressing the synchronisation mechanism utilising the cross-phase modulation of oscillation and pump pulses within a Ti : sapphire active medium is proposed. Output parameters of the Ti : sapphire laser as functions of its cavity length are discussed in terms of this model.

Accumulation effects in modulation spectroscopy with high-repetition-rate pulses: Recursive solution of optical Bloch equations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Osipov, Vladimir Al.; Pullerits, Tõnu

2017-10-01

Application of the phase-modulated pulsed light for advance spectroscopic measurements is the area of growing interest. The phase modulation of the light causes modulation of the signal. Separation of the spectral components of the modulations allows to distinguish the contributions of various interaction pathways. The lasers with high repetition rate used in such experiments can lead to appearance of the accumulation effects, which become especially pronounced in systems with long-living excited states. Recently it was shown that such accumulation effects can be used to evaluate parameters of the dynamical processes in the material. In this work we demonstrate that the accumulation effects are also important in the quantum characteristics measurements provided by modulation spectroscopy. In particular, we consider a model of quantum two-level system driven by a train of phase-modulated light pulses, organized in analogy with the two-dimensional spectroscopy experiments. We evaluate the harmonics' amplitudes in the fluorescent signal and calculate corrections appearing from the accumulation effects. We show that the corrections can be significant and have to be taken into account at analysis of experimental data.

Computer Generated Holography with Intensity-Graded Patterns

PubMed Central

Conti, Rossella; Assayag, Osnath; de Sars, Vincent; Guillon, Marc; Emiliani, Valentina

2016-01-01

Computer Generated Holography achieves patterned illumination at the sample plane through phase modulation of the laser beam at the objective back aperture. This is obtained by using liquid crystal-based spatial light modulators (LC-SLMs), which modulate the spatial phase of the incident laser beam. A variety of algorithms is employed to calculate the phase modulation masks addressed to the LC-SLM. These algorithms range from simple gratings-and-lenses to generate multiple diffraction-limited spots, to iterative Fourier-transform algorithms capable of generating arbitrary illumination shapes perfectly tailored on the base of the target contour. Applications for holographic light patterning include multi-trap optical tweezers, patterned voltage imaging and optical control of neuronal excitation using uncaging or optogenetics. These past implementations of computer generated holography used binary input profile to generate binary light distribution at the sample plane. Here we demonstrate that using graded input sources, enables generating intensity graded light patterns and extend the range of application of holographic light illumination. At first, we use intensity-graded holograms to compensate for LC-SLM position dependent diffraction efficiency or sample fluorescence inhomogeneity. Finally we show that intensity-graded holography can be used to equalize photo evoked currents from cells expressing different levels of chanelrhodopsin2 (ChR2), one of the most commonly used optogenetics light gated channels, taking into account the non-linear dependence of channel opening on incident light. PMID:27799896

Self-pulsing in a 2 km single-mode fiber with the seed source broadened via WNS phase modulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zha, Congwen; Sun, Yinhong; Wang, Yanshan; Li, Tenglong; Peng, Wanjing; Ma, Yi; Zhang, Kai

2018-03-01

The seed source with spectral linewidth broadening via phase modulation is potential to achieve the higher output power with effective SBS suppression. However, self-pulsing from the amplifier output is harmful. In this work, we study the self-pulsing characteristics in a long single-mode fiber with lower self-pulsing threshold instead of the high power amplifier. We provide a powerful experimental support for the self-pulsing mechanism in high-power narrow-linewidth fiber lasers, which is important for further output power scaling.

Recovering Signals from Optical Fiber Interferometric Sensors

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-06-01

GROUP SUB* GROUp Demodulation-, optical fiber, fi ber optic, sensors, passive -homodyne demodulation, symmetric demodul -ation, asymmetric demodulation...interferomeler without feedback control or modulation ofl th laser itself and without requiring the use of electronics withi -n the interferometer. One of...the 3x3 coupler permits Passive Homodyne Demodulation -of the phase-modulated signals provided by the interferometcr without feedback control or

High resolution angular sensor. [reducing ring laser gyro output quantization using phase locked loops

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gneses, M. I.; Berg, D. S.

1981-01-01

Specifications for the pointing stabilization system of the large space telescope were used in an investigation of the feasibility of reducing ring laser gyro output quantization to the sub-arc-second level by the use of phase locked loops and associated electronics. Systems analysis procedures are discussed and a multioscillator laser gyro model is presented along with data on the oscillator noise. It is shown that a second order closed loop can meet the measurement noise requirements when the loop gain and time constant of the loop filter are appropriately chosen. The preliminary electrical design is discussed from the standpoint of circuit tradeoff considerations. Analog, digital, and hybrid designs are given and their applicability to the high resolution sensor is examined. the electrical design choice of a system configuration is detailed. The design and operation of the various modules is considered and system block diagrams are included. Phase 1 and 2 test results using the multioscillator laser gyro are included.

Frequency-domain nonlinear optics in two-dimensionally patterned quasi-phase-matching media.

PubMed

Phillips, C R; Mayer, B W; Gallmann, L; Keller, U

2016-07-11

Advances in the amplification and manipulation of ultrashort laser pulses have led to revolutions in several areas. Examples include chirped pulse amplification for generating high peak-power lasers, power-scalable amplification techniques, pulse shaping via modulation of spatially-dispersed laser pulses, and efficient frequency-mixing in quasi-phase-matched nonlinear crystals to access new spectral regions. In this work, we introduce and demonstrate a new platform for nonlinear optics which has the potential to combine these separate functionalities (pulse amplification, frequency transfer, and pulse shaping) into a single monolithic device that is bandwidth- and power-scalable. The approach is based on two-dimensional (2D) patterning of quasi-phase-matching (QPM) gratings combined with optical parametric interactions involving spatially dispersed laser pulses. Our proof of principle experiment demonstrates this technique via mid-infrared optical parametric chirped pulse amplification of few-cycle pulses. Additionally, we present a detailed theoretical and numerical analysis of such 2D-QPM devices and how they can be designed.

Laser Spot Welding of Copper-aluminum Joints Using a Pulsed Dual Wavelength Laser at 532 and 1064 nm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stritt, Peter; Hagenlocher, Christian; Kizler, Christine; Weber, Rudolf; Rüttimann, Christoph; Graf, Thomas

A modulated pulsed laser source emitting green and infrared laser light is used to join the dissimilar metals copper and aluminum. The resultant dynamic welding process is analyzed using the back reflected laser light and high speed video observations of the interaction zone. Different pulse shapes are applied to influence the melt pool dynamics and thereby the forming grain structure and intermetallic phases. The results of high-speed images and back-reflections prove that a modulation of the pulse shape is transferred to oscillations of the melt pool at the applied frequency. The outcome of the melt pool oscillation is shown by the metallurgically prepared cross-section, which indicates different solidification lines and grain shapes. An energy-dispersivex-ray analysis shows the mixture and the resultant distribution of the two metals, copper and aluminum, within the spot weld. It can be seen that the mixture is homogenized the observed melt pool oscillations.

A diode laser-based velocimeter providing point measurements in unseeded flows using modulated filtered Rayleigh scattering (MFRS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jagodzinski, Jeremy James

2007-12-01

The development to date of a diode-laser based velocimeter providing point-velocity-measurements in unseeded flows using molecular Rayleigh scattering is discussed. The velocimeter is based on modulated filtered Rayleigh scattering (MFRS), a novel variation of filtered Rayleigh scattering (FRS), utilizing modulated absorption spectroscopy techniques to detect a strong absorption of a relatively weak Rayleigh scattered signal. A rubidium (Rb) vapor filter is used to provide the relatively strong absorption; alkali metal vapors have a high optical depth at modest vapor pressures, and their narrow linewidth is ideally suited for high-resolution velocimetry. Semiconductor diode lasers are used to generate the relatively weak Rayleigh scattered signal; due to their compact, rugged construction diode lasers are ideally suited for the environmental extremes encountered in many experiments. The MFRS technique utilizes the frequency-tuning capability of diode lasers to implement a homodyne detection scheme using lock-in amplifiers. The optical frequency of the diode-based laser system used to interrogate the flow is rapidly modulated about a reference frequency in the D2-line of Rb. The frequency modulation is imposed on the Rayleigh scattered light that is collected from the probe volume in the flow under investigation. The collected frequency modulating Rayleigh scattered light is transmitted through a Rb vapor filter before being detected. The detected modulated absorption signal is fed to two lock-in amplifers synchronized with the modulation frequency of the source laser. High levels of background rejection are attained since the lock-ins are both frequency and phase selective. The two lock-in amplifiers extract different Fourier components of the detected modulated absorption signal, which are ratioed to provide an intensity normalized frequency dependent signal from a single detector. A Doppler frequency shift in the collected Rayleigh scattered light due to a change in the velocity of the flow under investigation results in a change in the detected modulated absorption signal. This change in the detected signal provides a quantifiable measure of the Doppler frequency shift, and hence the velocity in the probe volume, provided that the laser source exhibits acceptable levels of frequency stability (determined by the magnitude of the velocities being measured). An extended cavity diode laser (ECDL) in the Littrow configuration provides frequency tunable, relatively narrow-linewidth lasing for the MFRS velocimeter. Frequency stabilization of the ECDL is provided by a proportional-integral-differential (PID) controller based on an error signal in the reference arm of the experiment. The optical power of the Littrow laser source is amplified by an antireflection coated (AR coated) broad stripe diode laser. The single-mode, frequency-modulatable, frequency-stable O(50 mW) of optical power provided by this extended cavity diode laser master oscillator power amplifier (ECDL-MOPA) system provided sufficient scattering signal from a condensing jet of CO2 to implement the MFRS technique in the frequency-locked mode of operation.

Low jitter RF distribution system

DOEpatents

Wilcox, Russell; Doolittle, Lawrence; Huang, Gang

2012-09-18

A timing signal distribution system includes an optical frequency stabilized laser signal amplitude modulated at an rf frequency. A transmitter box transmits a first portion of the laser signal and receive a modified optical signal, and outputs a second portion of the laser signal and a portion of the modified optical signal. A first optical fiber carries the first laser signal portion and the modified optical signal, and a second optical fiber carries the second portion of the laser signal and the returned modified optical signal. A receiver box receives the first laser signal portion, shifts the frequency of the first laser signal portion outputs the modified optical signal, and outputs an electrical signal on the basis of the laser signal. A detector at the end of the second optical fiber outputs a signal based on the modified optical signal. An optical delay sensing circuit outputs a data signal based on the detected modified optical signal. An rf phase detect and correct signal circuit outputs a signal corresponding to a phase stabilized rf signal based on the data signal and the frequency received from the receiver box.

Homogeneous spectral broadening of pulsed terahertz quantum cascade lasers by radio frequency modulation.

PubMed

Wan, W J; Li, H; Cao, J C

2018-01-22

The authors present an experimental investigation of radio frequency modulation on pulsed terahertz quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) emitting around 4.3 THz. The QCL chip used in this work is based on a resonant phonon design which is able to generate a 1.2 W peak power at 10 K from a 400-µm-wide and 4-mm-long laser with a single plasmon waveguide. To enhance the radio frequency modulation efficiency and significantly broaden the terahertz spectra, the QCLs are also processed into a double-metal waveguide geometry with a Silicon lens out-coupler to improve the far-field beam quality. The measured beam patterns of the double-metal QCL show a record low divergence of 2.6° in vertical direction and 2.4° in horizontal direction. Finally we perform the inter-mode beat note and terahertz spectra measurements for both single plasmon and double-metal QCLs working in pulsed mode. Since the double-metal waveguide is more suitable for microwave signal transmission, the radio frequency modulation shows stronger effects on the spectral broadening for the double-metal QCL. Although we are not able to achieve comb operation in this work for the pulsed lasers due to the large phase noise, the homogeneous spectral broadening resulted from the radio frequency modulation can be potentially used for spectroscopic applications.

Fiber Laser Development for LISA

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Numata, Kenji; Chen, Jeffrey R.

2009-01-01

We have developed a linearly-polarized Ytterbium-doped fiber ring laser with single longitudinal-mode output at 1064nm for LISA and other space applications. Single longitudinal-mode selection was achieved by using a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) and a fiber Fabry-Perot (FFP). The FFP also serves as a frequency-reference within our ring laser. Our laser exhibits comparable low frequency and intensity noise to Non-Planar Ring Oscillator (NPRO). By using a fiber-coupled phase modulator as a frequency actuator, the laser frequency can be electro-optically tuned at a rate of 100kHz. It appears that our fiber ring laser is promising for space applications where robustness of fiber optics is desirable.

Critical temperature transitions in laser-mediated cartilage reshaping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wong, Brian J.; Milner, Thomas E.; Kim, Hong H.; Telenkov, Sergey A.; Chew, Clifford; Kuo, Timothy C.; Smithies, Derek J.; Sobol, Emil N.; Nelson, J. Stuart

1998-07-01

In this study, we attempted to determine the critical temperature [Tc] at which accelerated stress relaxation occurred during laser mediated cartilage reshaping. During laser irradiation, mechanically deformed cartilage tissue undergoes a temperature dependent phase transformation which results in accelerated stress relaxation. When a critical temperature is attained, cartilage becomes malleable and may be molded into complex new shapes that harden as the tissue cools. Clinically, reshaped cartilage tissue can be used to recreate the underlying cartilaginous framework of structures such as the ear, larynx, trachea, and nose. The principal advantages of using laser radiation for the generation of thermal energy in tissue are precise control of both the space-time temperature distribution and time- dependent thermal denaturation kinetics. Optimization of the reshaping process requires identification of the temperature dependence of this phase transformation and its relationship to observed changes in cartilage optical, mechanical, and thermodynamic properties. Light scattering, infrared radiometry, and modulated differential scanning calorimetry (MDSC) were used to measure temperature dependent changes in the biophysical properties of cartilage tissue during fast (laser mediated) and slow (conventional calorimetric) heating. Our studies using MDSC and laser probe techniques have identified changes in cartilage thermodynamic and optical properties suggestive of a phase transformation occurring near 60 degrees Celsius.

Development of high-power dye laser chain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Konagai, Chikara; Kimura, Hironobu; Fukasawa, Teruichiro; Seki, Eiji; Abe, Motohisa; Mori, Hideo

2000-01-01

Copper vapor laser (CVL) pumped dye laser (DL) system, both in a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) configuration, has been developed for Atomic Vapor Isotope Separation program in Japan. Dye laser output power of about 500 W has been proved in long-term operations over 200 hours. High power fiber optic delivery system is utilized in order to efficiently transport kilowatt level CVL beams to the DL MOPA. Single model CVL pumped DL oscillator has been developed and worked for 200 hours within +/- 0.1 pm wavelength stability. Phase modulator for spreading spectrum to the linewidth of hyperfine structure has been developed and demonstrated.

Calibration-free wavelength-modulation spectroscopy based on a swiftly determined wavelength-modulation frequency response function of a DFB laser.

PubMed

Zhao, Gang; Tan, Wei; Hou, Jiajia; Qiu, Xiaodong; Ma, Weiguang; Li, Zhixin; Dong, Lei; Zhang, Lei; Yin, Wangbao; Xiao, Liantuan; Axner, Ove; Jia, Suotang

2016-01-25

A methodology for calibration-free wavelength modulation spectroscopy (CF-WMS) that is based upon an extensive empirical description of the wavelength-modulation frequency response (WMFR) of DFB laser is presented. An assessment of the WMFR of a DFB laser by the use of an etalon confirms that it consists of two parts: a 1st harmonic component with an amplitude that is linear with the sweep and a nonlinear 2nd harmonic component with a constant amplitude. Simulations show that, among the various factors that affect the line shape of a background-subtracted peak-normalized 2f signal, such as concentration, phase shifts between intensity modulation and frequency modulation, and WMFR, only the last factor has a decisive impact. Based on this and to avoid the impractical use of an etalon, a novel method to pre-determine the parameters of the WMFR by fitting to a background-subtracted peak-normalized 2f signal has been developed. The accuracy of the new scheme to determine the WMFR is demonstrated and compared with that of conventional methods in CF-WMS by detection of trace acetylene. The results show that the new method provides a four times smaller fitting error than the conventional methods and retrieves concentration more accurately.

FIBER AND INTEGRATED OPTICS: Multiplexed optical-fiber sensors with autodyne detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Potapov, V. T.; Mamedov, A. M.; Shatalin, S. V.; Yushkaĭtis, R. V.

1993-09-01

A method is proposed for multiplexing optical-fiber interference sensors. The method involves autodyne reception of frequency-modulated radiation reflected back to the laser. The response of a He-Ne laser with a linearly varying generation frequency to radiation reflected back from a single-mode fiber is studied. The spectrum of beats caused in the laser radiation by the reflection is shown to be governed by the distribution of reflectors along the fiber. The phases of the spectral components contain information about the phase shift of the reflected optical signal. A hydrophone array with a sensitivity of 30 μrad/Hz1/2 is described. A distributed temperature sensor with a spatial resolution of 1 m is also described.

Laboratory demonstration of an optical vortex mask coronagraph using photonic crystal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murakami, N.; Baba, N.; Ise, A.; Sakamoto, M.; Oka, K.

2010-10-01

Photonic crystal, artificial periodic nanostructure, is an attractive device for constructing focal-plane phase-mask coronagraphs such as segmented phase masks (four-quadrant, eight-octant, and 4N-segmented ones) and an optical vortex mask (OVM), because of its extremely small manufacturing defect. Recently, speckle-noise limited contrast has been demonstrated for two monochromatic lasers by using the eight-octant phase-mask made of the photonic crystal (Murakami et al. 2010, ApJ, 714, 772). We applied the photonic-crystal device to the OVM coronagraph. The OVM is more advantageous over the segmented phase masks because it does not have discontinuities other than a central singular point and provides a full on-sky field of view. For generating an achromatic optical vortex, we manufactured an axially-symmetric half-wave plate (ASHWP). It is expected that a size of the manufacturing defect due to the central singularity is an order of several hundreds nanometers. The ASHWP is placed between two circular polarizers for modulating a Pancharatnam phase. A continuous spiral phase modulation is then implemented achromatically. We carried out preliminary laboratory demonstration of the OVM coronagraph using two monochromatic lasers as a model star (wavelengths of 532 nm and 633 nm). We report a principle of the achromatic optical-vortex generation, and results of the laboratory demonstration of the OVM coronagraph.

Note: Fully integrated 3.2 Gbps quantum random number generator with real-time extraction

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhang, Xiao-Guang; Nie, You-Qi; Liang, Hao

2016-07-15

We present a real-time and fully integrated quantum random number generator (QRNG) by measuring laser phase fluctuations. The QRNG scheme based on laser phase fluctuations is featured for its capability of generating ultra-high-speed random numbers. However, the speed bottleneck of a practical QRNG lies on the limited speed of randomness extraction. To close the gap between the fast randomness generation and the slow post-processing, we propose a pipeline extraction algorithm based on Toeplitz matrix hashing and implement it in a high-speed field-programmable gate array. Further, all the QRNG components are integrated into a module, including a compact and actively stabilizedmore » interferometer, high-speed data acquisition, and real-time data post-processing and transmission. The final generation rate of the QRNG module with real-time extraction can reach 3.2 Gbps.« less

Dynamics of a two-phase flow through a minichannel: Transition from churn to slug flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Górski, Grzegorz; Litak, Grzegorz; Mosdorf, Romuald; Rysak, Andrzej

2016-04-01

The churn-to-slug flow bifurcations of two-phase (air-water) flow patterns in a 2mm diameter minichannel were investigated. With increasing a water flow rate, we observed the transition of slugs to bubbles of different sizes. The process was recorded by a digital camera. The sequences of light transmission time series were recorded by a laser-phototransistor sensor, and then analyzed using the recurrence plots and recurrence quantification analysis (RQA). Due to volume dependence of bubbles velocities, we observed the formation of periodic modulations in the laser signal.

Manipulating femtosecond laser interactions in bulk glass and thin-film with spatial light modulation (Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alimohammadian, Ehsan; Ho, Stephen; Ertorer, Erden; Gherghe, Sebastian; Li, Jianzhao; Herman, Peter R.

2017-03-01

Spatial Light Modulators (SLM) are emerging as a power tool for laser beam shaping whereby digitally addressed phase shifts can impose computer-generated hologram patterns on incoming laser light. SLM provide several additional advantages with ultrashort-pulsed lasers in controlling the shape of both surface and internal interactions with materials. Inside transparent materials, nonlinear optical effects can confine strong absorption only to the focal volume, extend dissipation over long filament tracks, or reach below diffraction-limited spot sizes. Hence, SLM beam shaping has been widely adopted for laser material processing applications that include parallel structuring, filamentation, fiber Bragg grating formation and optical aberration correction. This paper reports on a range of SLM applications we have studied in femtosecond processing of transparent glasses and thin films. Laser phase-fronts were tailored by the SLM to compensate for spherical surface aberration, and to further address the nonlinear interactions that interplay between Kerr-lens self-focusing and plasma defocusing effects over shallow and deep focusing inside the glass. Limits of strong and weak focusing were examined around the respective formation of low-loss optical waveguides and long uniform filament tracks. Further, we have employed the SLM for beam patterning inside thin film, exploring the limits of phase noise, resolution and fringe contrast during interferometric intra-film structuring. Femtosecond laser pulses of 200 fs pulse duration and 515 nm wavelength were shaped by a phase-only LCOS-SLM (Hamamatsu X10468-04). By imposing radial phase profiles, axicon, grating and beam splitting gratings, volume shape control of filament diameter, length, and uniformity as well as simultaneous formation of multiple filaments has been demonstrated. Similarly, competing effects of spherical surface aberration, self-focusing, and plasma de-focusing were studied and delineated to enable formation of low-loss optical waveguides over shallow and deep focusing conditions. Lastly, SLM beam shaping has been successfully extended to interferometric processing inside thin transparent film, enabling the arbitrary formation of uniform or non-uniform, symmetric or asymmetric patterns of flexible shape on nano-scale dimensions without phase-noise degradation by the SLM patterning. We present quantized structuring of thin films by a single laser pulse, demonstrating λ/2nfilm layer ejection control, blister formation, nano-cavities, and film colouring. Closed intra-film nanochannels with high aspect ratio (20:1) have been formed inside 3.5 um thick silica, opening new prospects for sub-cellular studies and lab-in-film concepts that integrate on CMOS silicon technologies.

Multipixel frequency-domain imaging of spontaneous canine breast disease using fluorescent contrast agents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reynolds, Jeffery S.; Thompson, Alan B.; Troy, Tamara L.; Mayer, Ralf H.; Waters, David J.; Sevick-Muraca, Eva M.

1999-07-01

In this paper we demonstrate the ability to detect the frequency-domain fluorescent signal from the contrast agent indocyanine green within the mammary chain of dogs with spontaneous mammary tumors. We use a gain-modulated image intensifier to rapidly capture multi-pixel images of the fluorescent modulation amplitude, modulation phase, and average intensity signals. Excitation is provided by a 100 MHz amplitude-modulated, 780 nm laser diode. Time series images of the uptake and clearance of the contrast agent in the diseased tissue are also presented.

Integration of Optical Manipulation and Electrophysiological Tools to Modulate and Record Activity in Neural Networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Difato, F.; Schibalsky, L.; Benfenati, F.; Blau, A.

2011-07-01

We present an optical system that combines IR (1064 nm) holographic optical tweezers with a sub-nanosecond-pulsed UV (355 nm) laser microdissector for the optical manipulation of single neurons and entire networks both on transparent and non-transparent substrates in vitro. The phase-modulated laser beam can illuminate the sample concurrently or independently from above or below assuring compatibility with different types of microelectrode array and patch-clamp electrophysiology. By combining electrophysiological and optical tools, neural activity in response to localized stimuli or injury can be studied and quantified at sub-cellular, cellular, and network level.

Optical UWB pulse generator using an N tap microwave photonic filter and phase inversion adaptable to different pulse modulation formats.

PubMed

Bolea, Mario; Mora, José; Ortega, Beatriz; Capmany, José

2009-03-30

We propose theoretically and demonstrate experimentally an optical architecture for flexible Ultra-Wideband pulse generation. It is based on an N-tap reconfigurable microwave photonic filter fed by a laser array by using phase inversion in a Mach-Zehnder modulator. Since a large number of positive and negative coefficients can be easily implemented, UWB pulses fitted to the FCC mask requirements can be generated. As an example, a four tap pulse generator is experimentally demonstrated which complies with the FCC regulation. The proposed pulse generator allows different pulse modulation formats since the amplitude, polarity and time delay of generated pulse is controlled.

Phase-locked-loop-based delay-line-free picosecond electro-optic sampling system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Gong-Ru; Chang, Yung-Cheng

2003-04-01

A delay-line-free, high-speed electro-optic sampling (EOS) system is proposed by employing a delay-time-controlled ultrafast laser diode as the optical probe. Versatile optoelectronic delay-time controllers (ODTCs) based on modified voltage-controlled phase-locked-loop phase-shifting technologies are designed for the laser. The integration of the ODTC circuit and the pulsed laser diode has replaced the traditional optomechanical delay-line module used in the conventional EOS system. This design essentially prevents sampling distortion from misalignment of the probe beam, and overcomes the difficulty in sampling free-running high-speed transients. The maximum tuning range, error, scanning speed, tuning responsivity, and resolution of the ODTC are 3.9π (700°), <5% deviation, 25-2405 ns/s, 0.557 ps/mV, and ˜1 ps, respectively. Free-running wave forms from the analog, digital, and pulsed microwave signals are sampled and compared with those measured by the commercial apparatus.

Laser-directed hierarchical assembly of liquid crystal defects and control of optical phase singularities

PubMed Central

Ackerman, Paul J.; Qi, Zhiyuan; Lin, Yiheng; Twombly, Christopher W.; Laviada, Mauricio J.; Lansac, Yves; Smalyukh, Ivan I.

2012-01-01

Topological defect lines are ubiquitous and important in a wide variety of fascinating phenomena and theories in many fields ranging from materials science to early-universe cosmology, and to engineering of laser beams. However, they are typically hard to control in a reliable manner. Here we describe facile erasable “optical drawing” of self-assembled defect clusters in liquid crystals. These quadrupolar defect clusters, stabilized by the medium's chirality and the tendency to form twisted configurations, are shaped into arbitrary two-dimensional patterns, including reconfigurable phase gratings capable of generating and controlling optical phase singularities in laser beams. Our findings bridge the studies of defects in condensed matter physics and optics and may enable applications in data storage, singular optics, displays, electro-optic devices, diffraction gratings, as well as in both optically- and electrically-addressed pixel-free spatial light modulators. PMID:22679553

Laser-Directed Hierarchical Assembly of Liquid Crystal Defects and Control of Optical Phase Singularities

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ackerman, P. J.; Qi, Z. Y.; Lin, Y. H.

2012-06-07

Topological defect lines are ubiquitous and important in a wide variety of fascinating phenomena and theories in many fields ranging from materials science to early-universe cosmology, and to engineering of laser beams. However, they are typically hard to control in a reliable manner. Here we describe facile erasable 'optical drawing' of self-assembled defect clusters in liquid crystals. These quadrupolar defect clusters, stabilized by the medium's chirality and the tendency to form twisted configurations, are shaped into arbitrary two-dimensional patterns, including reconfigurable phase gratings capable of generating and controlling optical phase singularities in laser beams. Our findings bridge the studies ofmore » defects in condensed matter physics and optics and may enable applications in data storage, singular optics, displays, electro-optic devices, diffraction gratings, as well as in both optically- and electrically-addressed pixel-free spatial light modulators.« less

Absolute calibration of Phase Contrast Imaging on HL-2A tokamak

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Yi; Gong, Shaobo; Xu, Min; Wu, Yifan; Yuan, Boda; Ye, Minyou; Duan, Xuru; HL-2A Team Team

2017-10-01

Phase contrast imaging (PCI) has recently been developed on HL-2A tokamak. In this article we present the calibration of this diagnostic. This system is to diagnose chord integral density fluctuations by measuring the phase shift of a CO2 laser beam with a wavelength of 10.6 μm when the laser beam passes through plasma. Sound waves are used to calibrate PCI diagnostic. The signal series in different PCI channels show a pronounced modulation of incident laser beam by the sound wave. Frequency-wavenumber spectrum is achieved. Calibrations by sound waves with different frequencies exhibit a maximal wavenumber response of 12 cm-1. The conversion relationship between the chord integral plasma density fluctuation and the signal intensity is 2.3-1013 m-2/mV, indicating a high sensitivity. Supported by the National Magnetic Confinement Fusion Energy Research Project (Grant No.2015GB120002, 2013GB107001).

Laser processing of sapphire with picosecond and sub-picosecond pulses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ashkenasi, D.; Rosenfeld, A.; Varel, H.; Wähmer, M.; Campbell, E. E. B.

1997-11-01

Laser processing of sapphire using a Ti:sapphire laser at 790 and 395 nm and pulse widths varying between 0.2 and 5 ps is reported. A clear improvement in quality is demonstrated for multi-shot processing with sub-ps laser pulses. For fluences between 3 and 12 J/cm 2 two ablation phases were observed, in agreement with previous work from Tam et al. using 30 ps, 266 nm laser pulses [A.C. Tam, J.L. Brand, D.C. Cheng, W. Zapka, Appl. Phys. Lett. 55 (20) (1994) 2045]. During the `gentle ablation' phase periodic wavelike structures, i.e. ripples, were observed on the Al 2O 3 surface, perpendicular to the laser polarisation and with a spacing almost equalling the laser wavelength, indicating metallic-like behaviour. The ripple modulation depth was in the order of a few tens of nm. For fluences between 1 and 2.5 J/cm 2, below the single-shot surface damage threshold and at a pulse width above 200 fs, microstructures could be produced at the rear side of a 1 mm thick sapphire substrate without affecting the front surface.

Polarized millijoule fiber laser system with high beam quality and pulse shaping ability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Rui; Tian, Xiaocheng; Xu, Dangpeng; Zhou, Dandan; Zong, Zhaoyu; Li, Hongxun; Fan, Mengqiu; Huang, Zhihua; Zhu, Na; Su, Jingqin; Zhu, Qihua; Jing, Feng

2017-05-01

The coherent amplification network (CAN) aims at developing a laser system based on the coherent combination of multiple laser beams, which are produced through a network of high beam quality optical fiber amplifiers. The scalability of the CAN laser facilitates the development of many novel applications, such as fiber-based acceleration, orbital debris removal and inertial confinement fusion energy. According to the requirements of CAN and the front end of high-power laser facilities, a millijoule polarized fiber laser system was studied in this paper. Using polarization maintaining Ytterbium-fiber laser system as the seed, and 10-μm core Yb-doped fiber amplifier as the first power amplifier and 40-μm core polarizing (PZ) photonic crystal fiber (PCF) as the second power amplifier, the all-fiber laser system outputs 1.06-mJ energy at 10 ns and diffraction limited mode quality. Using 85-μm rod-type PCF as the third power amplifiers, 2.5-mJ energy at 10-ns pulse width was obtained with better than 500:1 peak-to-foot pulse shaping ability and fundamental mode beam quality. The energy fluctuation of the system is 1.3% rms with 1-mJ output in one hour. When using phase-modulated pulse as the seed, the frequency modulation to amplitude modulation (FM-to-AM) conversion ratio of the system is better than 5%. This fiber laser system has the advantages of high beam quality, high beam shaping ability, good stability, small volume and free of maintenance, which can be used in many applications.

Pure-quartic solitons

PubMed Central

Blanco-Redondo, Andrea; Martijn, de Sterke C.; Sipe, J.E.; Krauss, Thomas F.; Eggleton, Benjamin J.; Husko, Chad

2016-01-01

Temporal optical solitons have been the subject of intense research due to their intriguing physics and applications in ultrafast optics and supercontinuum generation. Conventional bright optical solitons result from the interaction of anomalous group-velocity dispersion and self-phase modulation. Here we experimentally demonstrate a class of bright soliton arising purely from the interaction of negative fourth-order dispersion and self-phase modulation, which can occur even for normal group-velocity dispersion. We provide experimental and numerical evidence of shape-preserving propagation and flat temporal phase for the fundamental pure-quartic soliton and periodically modulated propagation for the higher-order pure-quartic solitons. We derive the approximate shape of the fundamental pure-quartic soliton and discover that is surprisingly Gaussian, exhibiting excellent agreement with our experimental observations. Our discovery, enabled by precise dispersion engineering, could find applications in communications, frequency combs and ultrafast lasers. PMID:26822758

Compact 1 mJ fiber MOPA for space-based laser-ablation resonant ionization mass spectrometry (LARIMS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mu, Xiaodong; Crain, William; Nguyen, Can; Ionov, Pavel; Steinvurzel, Paul; Dotan, Yaniv; Karuza, Petras; Lotshaw, William; Rose, Todd; Beck, Steven; Anderson, F. Scott

2018-02-01

A 1064 nm, 1 mJ pulsed fiber MOPA module, housed in 16"x14"x2.5" package for application in a lunar and planetary in-situ surface dating instrument is demonstrated. The module is based on a three-stage MOPA with a 60 μm core tapered fiber terminal amplifier. The master oscillator and first two preamplifier stages, which generate 20 μJ pulses, are all contained on a 13"x11"x1" board. Several improvements to the electronic signal control were instrumental to the laser development, including bipolar drive of the phase modulator for SBS suppression, shaping of the seed pulse to compensate pulse steepening, and pulsed operation of the power amplifier pump to reduce spontaneous emission at low pulse repetition frequency. The packaged laser runs at a repetition rate of 10 kHz and generates 10 ns pulses at 1 mJ with a 40 GHz linewidth, an M2 1.2 beam quality, and an 18 dB polarization extinction ratio. The modular design enables seven independent lasers to be stacked in a 20"x18"x16.25" enclosure, supporting a path towards a fiber laser based LARIMS for advanced materials characterization and chronological dating in harsh and remote environments.

Apparatus and method for increasing the bandwidth of a laser beam

DOEpatents

Chaffee, Paul H.

1991-01-01

A method and apparatus is disclosed that provides a laser output beam having a broad bandwidth and an intensity smooth over time. The bandwidth of the laser output can be varied easily by varying the intensity of a broadband source. The present invention includes an optical modulation apparatus comprising a narrowband laser that outputs a horizontally polarized beam (a "signal beam") and a broadband laser that outputs a vertically polarized beam (a "pump beam") whose intensity varies rapidly. The two beam are coupled into a birefringent laser material so that the respective polarizations coincide with the principal axes of the material. As the two beams travel through the material, the polarization preserving properties of the birefringent material maintain the respective polarizations of the two beam; however there is coupling between the two beams as a result of cross phase modulations, which induces a bandwidth change of the signal beam. The amount of bandwidth change is dependent upon the average intensity of the pump beam. The beams are coupled out from the birefringent material and the modulated signal beam is separated by a polarization selector. The modulated signal beam now has a wider bandwidth, and its shape remains smooth in time. This signal beam can be applied to incoherence inducing systems. The different bandwidths required by these different incoherence inducing systems can be obtained by varying the intensity of the pump beam. The United States Government has rights in this invention pursuant to Contract No. W7405-ENG-48 between the United States Department of Energy and the University of California for the operation of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Extended-bandwidth frequency sweeps of a distributed feedback laser using combined injection current and temperature modulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hefferman, Gerald; Chen, Zhen; Wei, Tao

2017-07-01

This article details the generation of an extended-bandwidth frequency sweep using a single, communication grade distributed feedback (DFB) laser. The frequency sweep is generated using a two-step technique. In the first step, injection current modulation is employed as a means of varying the output frequency of a DFB laser over a bandwidth of 99.26 GHz. A digital optical phase lock loop is used to lock the frequency sweep speed during current modulation, resulting in a linear frequency chirp. In the second step, the temperature of the DFB laser is modulated, resulting in a shifted starting laser output frequency. A laser frequency chirp is again generated beginning at this shifted starting frequency, resulting in a frequency-shifted spectrum relative to the first recorded data. This process is then repeated across a range of starting temperatures, resulting in a series of partially overlapping, frequency-shifted spectra. These spectra are then aligned using cross-correlation and combined using averaging to form a single, broadband spectrum with a total bandwidth of 510.9 GHz. In order to investigate the utility of this technique, experimental testing was performed in which the approach was used as the swept-frequency source of a coherent optical frequency domain reflectometry system. This system was used to interrogate an optical fiber containing a 20 point, 1-mm pitch length fiber Bragg grating, corresponding to a period of 100 GHz. Using this technique, both the periodicity of the grating in the frequency domain and the individual reflector elements of the structure in the time domain were resolved, demonstrating the technique's potential as a method of extending the sweeping bandwidth of semiconductor lasers for frequency-based sensing applications.

Extended-bandwidth frequency sweeps of a distributed feedback laser using combined injection current and temperature modulation.

PubMed

Hefferman, Gerald; Chen, Zhen; Wei, Tao

2017-07-01

This article details the generation of an extended-bandwidth frequency sweep using a single, communication grade distributed feedback (DFB) laser. The frequency sweep is generated using a two-step technique. In the first step, injection current modulation is employed as a means of varying the output frequency of a DFB laser over a bandwidth of 99.26 GHz. A digital optical phase lock loop is used to lock the frequency sweep speed during current modulation, resulting in a linear frequency chirp. In the second step, the temperature of the DFB laser is modulated, resulting in a shifted starting laser output frequency. A laser frequency chirp is again generated beginning at this shifted starting frequency, resulting in a frequency-shifted spectrum relative to the first recorded data. This process is then repeated across a range of starting temperatures, resulting in a series of partially overlapping, frequency-shifted spectra. These spectra are then aligned using cross-correlation and combined using averaging to form a single, broadband spectrum with a total bandwidth of 510.9 GHz. In order to investigate the utility of this technique, experimental testing was performed in which the approach was used as the swept-frequency source of a coherent optical frequency domain reflectometry system. This system was used to interrogate an optical fiber containing a 20 point, 1-mm pitch length fiber Bragg grating, corresponding to a period of 100 GHz. Using this technique, both the periodicity of the grating in the frequency domain and the individual reflector elements of the structure in the time domain were resolved, demonstrating the technique's potential as a method of extending the sweeping bandwidth of semiconductor lasers for frequency-based sensing applications.

CEO stabilization of a femtosecond laser using a SESAM as fast opto-optical modulator.

PubMed

Hoffmann, Martin; Schilt, Stéphane; Südmeyer, Thomas

2013-12-02

We present a new method for intra-cavity control of the carrier-envelope offset (CEO) frequency of ultrafast lasers that combines high feedback bandwidth with low loss, low nonlinearity, and low dispersion. A semiconductor saturable-absorber mirror (SESAM) inside a modelocked laser is optically pumped with a continuous-wave (cw) laser. In this way, the SESAM acts as intra-cavity opto-optical modulator (OOM): the optical power of the cw-laser corresponds to a high-bandwidth modulation channel for CEO frequency control. We experimentally verified this method for a femtosecond Er:Yb:glass oscillator (ERGO), in which one SESAM is in parallel used for modelocking and as intra-cavity OOM for achieving a tight CEO lock. This laser can also be CEO-stabilized in the usual scheme, in which the laser pump current is modulated, i.e., the gain element acts as intra-cavity OOM. We compare the performance with gain and SESAM OOM measuring CEO transfer function, frequency noise power spectral density (PSD), and Allan deviation for integration times up to 1000 s. In the case of the gain OOM, the millisecond upper-state lifetime of the Er:Yb:glass limits the achievable CEO-control bandwidth to <10 kHz. The feedback bandwidth of the SESAM OOM was more than a factor of 10 higher than the gain OOM bandwidth and was mainly limited by the used current driver. The residual integrated phase noise (1 Hz - 100 kHz) of the ~20-MHz CEO beat was improved by more than an order of magnitude (from 720 mrad to less than 65 mrad), and the fractional frequency stability by a factor of 4 (from 1∙10

New laser media based on microporous glasses

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Altshuler, G.B.; Bakanov, V.A.; Dulneva, E.G.

The results of the investigation of new class of the laser media based on dye solutions impregnated microporous glasses are presented. Based on such media highly effective active elements of tunable dye lasers and passive modulators for solid-state lasers are created. This article is devoted to laser media of the new type - the heterogenous solid-liquid media on the basis of the impregnated by the solutions of the dyes of the microporous glasses. The microporous glasses represent themselves the products of the leaching of heat - treated sodium borosilicate glasses of a certain composition range. As a result of heatmore » treatment is realized the phase separated glass. It consists of two interconnected phases: the silica rich phase and the chemical unstable sodium - borate - rich phase. If we place this glass in the acid then the ions of sodium and borate will be transfered to the solution. As a result we obtain the porous glass and this process produces the continuous claster. Therefore it could be easily impregnated by liquids and gases. We now have the technology that permits us to obtain the samples with the volume porosity from ten to fifty percent and the size of this poroses could be varied from twenty angstroms up to one thousand angstroms.« less

Self-mixing laser diode included in scanning microwave microscope to the control of probe nanodisplacement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Usanov, D. A.; Skripal, A. V.; Astakhov, E. I.; Dobdin, S. Y.

2018-04-01

The possibilities of self-mixing interferometry for measuring nanodisplacement of a probe included in a near-field scanning microwave microscope have been considered. The features of the formation of a laser interference signal at current modulation of the wavelength of laser radiation have been investigated. Experimental responses of a semiconductor laser system included in scanning microwave microscope to control nanodisplacement of the probe have been demonstrated.To register the nanodisplacement of the probe, it is proposed to use the method of determining the stationary phase of a laser interference signal by low-frequency spectrum of a semiconductor laser. The change of the amplitudes of the spectral components in the spectrum of the interference signal due to creation of the standing wave in the external resonator of the laser self-mixing system has been shown. The form of the interference signal at current modulation of the radiation wavelength was experimentally obtained when the probe moves with a step of 80 nm. The results of measuring nanodisplacements of an electromagnetic translator STANDA 8MVT40-13 have been demonstrated. Deviation of the nanodisplacement of the proposed method does not exceed 15%.

Plasma channel localisation during multiple filamentation in air

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Panov, N A; Kosareva, O G; Kandidov, V P

It is shown by numerical simulations that multiple filamentation of a femtosecond laser pulse with a negative initial phase modulation in air leads to an increase in the density of self-induced laser plasma compared to the case when a transform-limited laser pulse of the same duration is used. Simultaneous control of the duration of the chirped pulse and the beam diameter results in an increase in the distance over which the first filament is formed, the length of the plasma channel, and its linear density. (nonlinear optical phenomena)

Self-injection of electrons in a laser-wakefield accelerator by using longitudinal density ripple

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dahiya, Deepak; Sharma, A. K.; Sajal, Vivek

By introducing a longitudinal density ripple (periodic modulation in background plasma density), we demonstrate self-injection of electrons in a laser-wakefield accelerator. The wakefield driven plasma wave, in presence of density ripple excites two side band waves of same frequency but different wave numbers. One of these side bands, having smaller phase velocity compared to wakefield driven plasma wave, preaccelerates the background plasma electrons. Significant number of these preaccelerated electrons get trapped in the laser-wakefield and further accelerated to higher energies.

Modulated optical phase conjugation in rhodamine 110 doped boric acid glass saturable absorber thin films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharma, Ramesh C.; Waigh, Thomas A.; Singh, Jagdish P.

2008-03-01

The optical phase conjugation signal in nearly nondegenerate four wave mixing was studied using a rhodamine 110 doped boric acid glass saturable absorber nonlinear medium. We have demonstrated a narrow band optical filter (2.56±0.15Hz) using an optical phase conjugation signal in the frequency modulation of a weak probe beam in the presence of two strong counterpropagating pump beams in rhodamine 110 doped boric acid glass thin films (10-4m). Both the pump beams and the probe beam are at a wavelength of 488nm (continuous-wave Ar+ laser). The probe beam frequency was detuned with a ramp signal using a piezoelectric transducer mirror.

Phase noise analysis of a 10-GHz optical injection-locked vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser-based optoelectronic oscillator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coronel, Juan; Varón, Margarita; Rissons, Angélique

2016-09-01

The optical injection locking (OIL) technique is proposed to reduce the phase noise of a carrier generated for a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL)-based optoelectronic oscillator. The OIL technique permits the enhancement of the VCSEL direct modulation bandwidth as well as the stabilization of the optical noise of the laser. A 2-km delay line, 10-GHz optical injection-locked VCSEL-based optoelectronic oscillator (OILVBO) was implemented. The internal noise sources of the optoelectronic oscillator components were characterized and analyzed to understand the noise conversion of the system into phase noise in the oscillator carrier. The implemented OILVBO phase noise was -105.7 dBc/Hz at 10 kHz from the carrier; this value agrees well with the performed simulated analysis. From the computed and measured phase noise curves, it is possible to infer the noise processes that take place inside the OILVBO. As a second measurement of the oscillation quality, a time-domain analysis was done through the Allan's standard deviation measurement, reported for first time for an optoelectronic oscillator using the OIL technique.

Pump-induced phase aberrations in Yb3+-doped materials(Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keppler, Sebastian; Tamer, Issa; Hornung, Marco; Körner, Jörg; Liebetrau, Hartmut; Hein, Joachim; Kaluza, Malte C.

2017-05-01

Optical pumping of laser materials is an effective way to create a population inversion necessary for laser operation. However, a fraction of the pump energy is always transfered as heat into the laser material, which is mainly caused by the quantum defect. For Yb3+-doped materials, the small energy difference between the pump level and the laser level and the pumping with narrowband high-power laser diodes result in a quantum defect of approx. 9%, which is significantly lower compared to other dopants e.g. Ti3+ (33%) or Nd3+ (24%). Due to the low heat introduction, high optical-to-optical efficiency and high repetition rate laser systems based on diode-pumping are well-suited for a number of applications. Here, however, laser beam quality is of crucial importance. Phase distortions and beam profile modulations can lead to optical damages as well as a significant reduction of the focal spot intensity. Pump-induced phase aberrations are the main cause for phase distortions of the amplified laser beam. The heat transferred to the material causes a change of the refractive index (dn/dT), thermal expansion and stress within the laser material, eventually leading to spatial phase aberrations (also called `thermal lens'). However, the spatially dependent distribution of the population inversion itself also leads to spatial phase aberrations. Since electron excitation directly leads to a change in the charge distribution of the laser active ions, the dynamic response of the material to external fields changes. These electronic phase aberrations (also called `population lens') are described by a change in the polarizability of the material. Due to the low quantum defect of Yb3+-doped materials, this effect becomes more important. We show the first comprehensive spatio-temporal characterization of the pump-induced phase aberration including both effects. A high-resolution interference measurement was carried out with time steps of 50µs for times during the pump period and the cooling period between subsequent pump pulses. We found that both phase effects significantly contribute to the overall phase distortions. Since the temporal characteristic of the electronic phase depends on the fluorescence lifetime and the thermal phase on the thermal diffusivity, both phase effects could be distinguished by their different lifetimes. The measurements were carried out for Yb:YAG, Yb:CaF2 and Yb:glass, and are in excellent agreement to our detailed, COMSOL-based, spatio-temporal phase simulations. Since Yb:CaF2 and Yb:glass provide a negative dn/dT, the electronic phase change becomes even more important and, in case of Yb:CaF2, almost completely compensates the thermal phase imprint of a pump pulse during the time frame of laser pulse amplification.

Air-coupled laser vibrometry: analysis and applications.

PubMed

Solodov, Igor; Döring, Daniel; Busse, Gerd

2009-03-01

Acousto-optic interaction between a narrow laser beam and acoustic waves in air is analyzed theoretically. The photoelastic relation in air is used to derive the phase modulation of laser light in air-coupled reflection vibrometry induced by angular spatial spectral components comprising the acoustic beam. Maximum interaction was found for the zero spatial acoustic component propagating normal to the laser beam. The angular dependence of the imaging efficiency is determined for the axial and nonaxial acoustic components with the regard for the laser beam steering in the scanning mode. The sensitivity of air-coupled vibrometry is compared with conventional "Doppler" reflection vibrometry. Applications of the methodology for visualization of linear and nonlinear air-coupled fields are demonstrated.

Recent advances in the front-end sources of the LMJ fusion laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gleyze, Jean-François; Hares, Jonathan; Vidal, Sebastien; Beck, Nicolas; Dubertrand, Jerome; Perrin, Arnaud

2011-03-01

LMJ is typical of lasers used for inertial confinement fusion and requires a laser of programmable parameters for injection into the main amplifier. For several years, the CEA has developed front end fiber sources, based on telecommunications fiber optics technologies. These sources meet the needs but as the technology evolves we can expect improved efficiency and reductions in size and cost. We give an up-to-date description of some present development issues, particularly in the field of temporal shaping with the use of digital system. The synchronization of such electronics has been challenging however we now obtain system jitter of less then 7ps rms. Secondly, we will present recent advance in the use of fiber based pre-comp system to avoid parasitic amplitude modulation from phase modulation used for spectral broadening.

Investigation on Nonlinear-Optical Properties of Palm Oil/Silver Nanoparticles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zamiri, R.; Parvizi, R.; Zakaria, A.; Sadrolhosseini, A. R.; Zamiri, G.; Darroudi, M.; Husin, M. S.

2012-06-01

We have investigated the spatial self phase modulation of palm oil containing silver nanoparticles (palm oil/Ag-NPs). The study carried out using continuous wave diode pumped solid state laser with wavelength of 405 nm and power of 50 mW. The strong spatial self phase modulation patterns were observed that suggest the palm oil/Ag-NPs have a relatively large nonlinear refractive index. The obtained values of nonlinear refractive index were increased with the increment in the volume fractions. The observed experimental patterns were also theoretically modeled which are in good agreement with experimental results.

Fiber optic extrinsic Fabry-Perot accelerometer using laser emission frequency modulated phase generated carrier demodulation scheme

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Dai-Hua; Jia, Ping-Gang

2013-05-01

The principle of a fiber optic Fabry-Perot (F-P) accelerometer (FOFPA) system using the laser emission frequency modulated phase generated carrier (FMPGC) demodulation scheme is first described and experimentally demonstrated. The F-P cavity, which is constituted by placing the end face of a gradient-index lens in parallel with the reflector on the inertial mass, directly translates the inertial mass's displacement generated by the measured acceleration into phase shifts of the interference output from the F-P cavity. An FMPGC demodulation scheme based on the arctangent (Arctan) algorithm is adapted to demodulate the phase shifts. The sensing model for the FOFPA system using the FMPGC-Arctan demodulation scheme is established and the sensing characteristics are theoretically analyzed. On these bases, the FOFPA is designed and fabricated and a prototyping system is built and tested. The results indicate that: (1) the nonlinearity of the FOFPA system using the FMPGC-Arctan demodulation scheme is less than 0.58%, (2) the resonant frequency, on-axial sensitivity, and resolution are 393 Hz, 13.11 rad/g, and 450 μ, respectively, and (3) the maximum deviation of the phase sensitivity of the FOFPA within the temperature range of 30 to 80°C is 0.49 dB re 1 rad/g.

Coherent cavity-enhanced dual-comb spectroscopy.

PubMed

Fleisher, Adam J; Long, David A; Reed, Zachary D; Hodges, Joseph T; Plusquellic, David F

2016-05-16

Dual-comb spectroscopy allows for the rapid, multiplexed acquisition of high-resolution spectra without the need for moving parts or low-resolution dispersive optics. This method of broadband spectroscopy is most often accomplished via tight phase locking of two mode-locked lasers or via sophisticated signal processing algorithms, and therefore, long integration times of phase coherent signals are difficult to achieve. Here we demonstrate an alternative approach to dual-comb spectroscopy using two phase modulator combs originating from a single continuous-wave laser capable of > 2 hours of coherent real-time averaging. The dual combs were generated by driving the phase modulators with step-recovery diodes where each comb consisted of > 250 teeth with 203 MHz spacing and spanned > 50 GHz region in the near-infrared. The step-recovery diodes are passive devices that provide low-phase-noise harmonics for efficient coupling into an enhancement cavity at picowatt optical powers. With this approach, we demonstrate the sensitivity to simultaneously monitor ambient levels of CO₂, CO, HDO, and H₂O in a single spectral region at a maximum acquisition rate of 150 kHz. Robust, compact, low-cost and widely tunable dual-comb systems could enable a network of distributed multiplexed optical sensors.

In-situ high-resolution visualization of laser-induced periodic nanostructures driven by optical feedback.

PubMed

Aguilar, Alberto; Mauclair, Cyril; Faure, Nicolas; Colombier, Jean-Philippe; Stoian, Razvan

2017-11-28

Optical feedback is often evoked in laser-induced periodic nanostructures. Visualizing the coupling between surfaces and light requires highly-resolved imaging methods. We propose in-situ structured-illumination-microscopy to observe ultrafast-laser-induced nanostructures during fabrication on metallic glass surfaces. This resolves the pulse-to-pulse development of periodic structures on a single irradiation site and indicates the optical feedback on surface topographies. Firstly, the quasi-constancy of the ripples pattern and the reinforcement of the surface relief with the same spatial positioning indicates a phase-locking mechanism that stabilizes and amplifies the ordered corrugation. Secondly, on sites with uncorrelated initial corrugation, we observe ripple patterns spatially in-phase. These feedback aspects rely on the electromagnetic interplay between the laser pulse and the surface relief, stabilizing the pattern in period and position. They are critically dependent on the space-time coherence of the exciting pulse. This suggests a modulation of energy according to the topography of the surface with a pattern phase imposed by the driving pulse. A scattering and interference model for ripple formation on surfaces supports the experimental observations. This relies on self-phase-stabilized far-field interaction between surface scattered wavelets and the incoming pulse front.

Enhancements to the timing of the OMEGA laser system to improve illumination uniformity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Donaldson, W. R.; Katz, J.; Kosc, T. Z.; Kelly, J. H.; Hill, E. M.; Bahr, R. E.

2016-09-01

Two diagnostics have been developed to improve the uniformity on the OMEGA Laser System, which is used for inertial confinement fusion (ICF) research. The first diagnostic measures the phase of an optical modulator (used for the spectral dispersion technique employed on OMEGA to enhance spatial smoothing), which adds bandwidth to the optical pulse. Setting this phase precisely is required to reduce pointing errors. The second diagnostic ensures that the arrival times of all the beams are synchronized. The arrival of each of the 60 OMEGA beams is measured by placing a 1-mm diffusing sphere at target chamber center. By comparing the arrival time of each beam with respect to a reference pulse, the measured timing spread of the OMEGA Laser System is now 3.8 ps.

Generation of flower high-order Poincaré sphere laser beams from a spatial light modulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, T. H.; Huang, T. D.; Wang, J. G.; Wang, L. W.; Alfano, R. R.

2016-12-01

We propose and experimentally demonstrate a new complex laser beam with inhomogeneous polarization distributions mapping onto high-order Poincaré spheres (HOPSs). The complex laser mode is achieved by superposition of Laguerre-Gaussian modes and manifests exotic flower-like localization on intensity and phase profiles. A simple optical system is used to generate a polarization-variant distribution on the complex laser mode by superposition of orthogonal circular polarizations with opposite topological charges. Numerical analyses of the polarization distribution are consistent with the experimental results. The novel flower HOPS beams can act as a new light source for photonic applications.

High-resolution interferometic microscope for traceable dimensional nanometrology in Brazil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malinovski, I.; França, R. S.; Lima, M. S.; Bessa, M. S.; Silva, C. R.; Couceiro, I. B.

2016-07-01

The double color interferometric microscope is developed for step height standards nanometrology traceable to meter definition via primary wavelength laser standards. The setup is based on two stabilized lasers to provide traceable measurements of highest possible resolution down to the physical limits of the optical instruments in sub-nanometer to micrometer range of the heights. The wavelength reference is He-Ne 633 nm stabilized laser, the secondary source is Blue-Green 488 nm grating laser diode. Accurate fringe portion is measured by modulated phase-shift technique combined with imaging interferometry and Fourier processing. Self calibrating methods are developed to correct systematic interferometric errors.

Six-beam homodyne laser Doppler vibrometry based on silicon photonics technology.

PubMed

Li, Yanlu; Zhu, Jinghao; Duperron, Matthieu; O'Brien, Peter; Schüler, Ralf; Aasmul, Soren; de Melis, Mirko; Kersemans, Mathias; Baets, Roel

2018-02-05

This paper describes an integrated six-beam homodyne laser Doppler vibrometry (LDV) system based on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) full platform technology, with on-chip photo-diodes and phase modulators. Electronics and optics are also implemented around the integrated photonic circuit (PIC) to enable a simultaneous six-beam measurement. Measurement of a propagating guided elastic wave in an aluminum plate (speed ≈ 909 m/s @ 61.5 kHz) is demonstrated.

System and Method for Generating a Frequency Modulated Linear Laser Waveform

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pierrottet, Diego F. (Inventor); Petway, Larry B. (Inventor); Amzajerdian, Farzin (Inventor); Barnes, Bruce W. (Inventor); Lockard, George E. (Inventor); Hines, Glenn D. (Inventor)

2017-01-01

A system for generating a frequency modulated linear laser waveform includes a single frequency laser generator to produce a laser output signal. An electro-optical modulator modulates the frequency of the laser output signal to define a linear triangular waveform. An optical circulator passes the linear triangular waveform to a band-pass optical filter to filter out harmonic frequencies created in the waveform during modulation of the laser output signal, to define a pure filtered modulated waveform having a very narrow bandwidth. The optical circulator receives the pure filtered modulated laser waveform and transmits the modulated laser waveform to a target.

System and Method for Generating a Frequency Modulated Linear Laser Waveform

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pierrottet, Diego F. (Inventor); Petway, Larry B. (Inventor); Amzajerdian, Farzin (Inventor); Barnes, Bruce W. (Inventor); Lockard, George E. (Inventor); Hines, Glenn D. (Inventor)

2014-01-01

A system for generating a frequency modulated linear laser waveform includes a single frequency laser generator to produce a laser output signal. An electro-optical modulator modulates the frequency of the laser output signal to define a linear triangular waveform. An optical circulator passes the linear triangular waveform to a band-pass optical filter to filter out harmonic frequencies created in the waveform during modulation of the laser output signal, to define a pure filtered modulated waveform having a very narrow bandwidth. The optical circulator receives the pure filtered modulated laser waveform and transmits the modulated laser waveform to a target.

Flattened optical frequency-locked multi-carrier generation by cascading one EML and one phase modulator driven by different RF clocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Xinying; Xiao, Jiangnan

2015-06-01

We propose a novel scheme for optical frequency-locked multi-carrier generation based on one electro-absorption modulated laser (EML) and one phase modulator (PM) in cascade driven by different sinusoidal radio-frequency (RF) clocks. The optimal operating zone for the cascaded EML and PM is found out based on theoretical analysis and numerical simulation. We experimentally demonstrate 25 optical subcarriers with frequency spacing of 12.5 GHz and power difference less than 5 dB can be generated based on the cascaded EML and PM operating in the optimal zone, which agrees well with the numerical simulation. We also experimentally demonstrate 28-Gbaud polarization division multiplexing quadrature phase shift keying (PDM-QPSK) modulated coherent optical transmission based on the cascaded EML and PM. The bit error ratio (BER) can be below the pre-forward-error-correction (pre-FEC) threshold of 3.8 × 10-3 after 80-km single-mode fiber-28 (SMF-28) transmission.

Microwave fiber optics delay line

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slayman, C.; Yen, H. W.

1980-01-01

A microwave delay line is one of the devices used in EW systems for preserving the frequency and phase contents of RF signals. For such applications, delay lines are required to have large dynamic range, wide bandwidth, low insertion loss, and a linear response. The basic components of a fiber-optics delay line are: an optical source, a wideband optical modulator, a spool of single-mode fiber with appropriate length to provide a given microwave signal delay, and a high-speed photodetector with an RF amplifier. This contract program is to study the feasibility of such a fiber-optic delay line in the frequency range of 4.0 to 6.5 GHz. The modulation scheme studied is the direct modulation of injection lasers. The most important issue identified is the frequency response of the injection laser and the photodetector.

Influence of the four-photon parametric processes and cross-phase modulation on the relative motion of optical filaments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kovachev, L. M.; Georgieva, D. A.; Dakova, A. M.

2015-10-01

We investigate two types of nonlinear interaction between collinear femtosecond laser pulses with power slightly above the critical for self-focusing {{P}\\text{cr}} . In the first case we study energy exchange between filaments. The model describes this process through a degenerate four-photon parametric mixing (FPPM) scheme and requests initial phase difference between the waves. When there is no initial phase difference between the pulses, the FPPM process does not work. In this case the second type of interaction is obtained as merging between two, three or four filaments in a single filament with higher power. It is found that in the second case the interflow between the filaments has the potential for interaction due to cross-phase modulation (CPM).

Highly dissipative Hénon map behavior in the four-level model of the CO 2 laser with modulated losses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pando L., C. L.; Acosta, G. A. Luna; Meucci, R.; Ciofini, M.

1995-02-01

We show that the four-level model for the CO 2 laser with modulated losses behaves in a qualitatively similar way as the highly dissipative Hénon map. The ubiquity of elements of the universal sequence, their related symbolic dynamics, and the presence of reverse bifurcations of chaotic bands in the model are reminiscent of the logistic map which is the limit of the Hénon map when the Jacobian equals zero. The coexistence of attractors, its dynamics related to contraction of volumes in phase space and the associated return maps can be correlated with those of the highly dissipative Hénon map.

Fiber laser welding of dual-phase galvanized sheet steel (DP590): traditional analysis and new quality assessment techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Stephanie; Pfeif, Erik; Kazakov, Andrei; Baumann, Esther; Dowell, Marla

2016-03-01

Laser welding has many advantages over traditional joining methods, yet remains underutilized. NIST has undertaken an ambitious initiative to improve predictions of weldability, reliability, and performance of laser welds. This study investigates butt welding of galvanized and ungalvanized dual-phase automotive sheet steels (DP 590) using a 10 kW commercial fiber laser system. Parameter development work, hardness profiles, microstructural characterization, and optical profilometry results are presented. Sound welding was accomplished in a laser power range of 2.0 kW to 4.5 kW and travel speed of 2000 mm/min to 5000 mm/min. Vickers hardness ranged from approximately 2 GPa to 4 GPa across the welds, with limited evidence of heat affected zone softening. Decreased hardness across the heat affected zone directly correlated to the appearance of ferrite. A technique was developed to non-destructively evaluate weld quality based on geometrical criteria. Weld face profilometry data were compared between light optical, metallographic sample, and frequency-modulated continuous-wave laser detection and ranging (FMCW LADAR) methods.

FIBER OPTICS. ACOUSTOOPTICS: Amplitude and phase nonreciprocities of acoustooptic modulators for counterpropagating light waves under the Bragg diffraction conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Veselovskaya, T. V.; Klochan, E. L.; Lariontsev, E. G.; Parfenov, S. V.; Shelaev, A. N.

1990-07-01

Theoretical and experimental investigations demonstrated that in real acoustooptic modulators the diffraction of light by a standing ultrasonic wave may give rise to both phase and amplitude nonreciprocities of counterpropagating light waves. Analytic expressions are derived for the dependences of these nonreciprocities on the parameters of the traveling component of an ultrasonic wave in a modulator. It is shown that when the angle of incidence of light on a modulator deviates from the Bragg angle, the phase nonreciprocity may be suppressed, but the amplitude nonreciprocity becomes maximal and its sign is governed by the law of deviation of the angle of incidence from the Bragg angle. A diffraction acoustooptic feedback makes it possible not only to achieve mode locking with an acoustooptic modulator utilizing a traveling ultrasonic wave, but also to control the magnitude and sign of amplitude-frequency nonreciprocities. It is reported that an acoustooptic feedback can be used to generate self-pumping waves in a solid-state mode-locked ring laser and thus stabilize bidirectional lasing in a wide range of the frequency offset between the counterpropagating waves.

Target tracking and pointing for arrays of phase-locked lasers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Macasaet, Van P.; Hughes, Gary B.; Lubin, Philip; Madajian, Jonathan; Zhang, Qicheng; Griswold, Janelle; Kulkarni, Neeraj; Cohen, Alexander; Brashears, Travis

2016-09-01

Arrays of phase-locked lasers are envisioned for planetary defense and exploration systems. High-energy beams focused on a threatening asteroid evaporate surface material, creating a reactionary thrust that alters the asteroid's orbit. The same system could be used to probe an asteroid's composition, to search for unknown asteroids, and to propel interplanetary and interstellar spacecraft. Phased-array designs are capable of producing high beam intensity, and allow beam steering and beam profile manipulation. Modular designs allow ongoing addition of emitter elements to a growing array. This paper discusses pointing control for extensible laser arrays. Rough pointing is determined by spacecraft attitude control. Lateral movement of the laser emitter tips behind the optical elements provides intermediate pointing adjustment for individual array elements and beam steering. Precision beam steering and beam formation is accomplished by coordinated phase modulation across the array. Added cells are incorporated into the phase control scheme by precise alignment to local mechanical datums using fast, optical relative position sensors. Infrared target sensors are also positioned within the datum scheme, and provide information about the target vector relative to datum coordinates at each emitter. Multiple target sensors allow refined determination of the target normal plane, providing information to the phase controller for each emitter. As emitters and sensors are added, local position data allows accurate prediction of the relative global position of emitters across the array, providing additional constraints to the phase controllers. Mechanical design and associated phase control that is scalable for target distance and number of emitters is presented.

A technique to calibrate spatial light modulator for varying phase response over its spatial regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gupta, Deepak K.; Tata, B. V. R.; Ravindran, T. R.

2018-05-01

Holographic Optical Tweezers (HOTs) employ the technique of beam shaping and holography in an optical manipulation system to create a multitude of focal spots for simultaneous trapping and manipulation of sub-microscopic particles. The beam shaping is accomplished by the use of a phase only liquid crystal spatial light modulator (SLM). The efficiency and the uniformity in the generated traps greatly depend on the phase response behavior of SLMs. In addition the SLMs are found to show different phase response over its different spatial regions, due to non-flat structure of SLMs. Also the phase responses are found to vary over different spatial regions due to non-uniform illumination (Gaussian profile of incident laser). There are various techniques to calibrate for the varying phase response by characterizing the phase modulation at various sub-sections. We present a simple and fast technique to calibrate the SLM suffering with spatially varying phase response. We divide the SLM into many sub-sections and optimize the brightness and gamma of each sub-section for maximum diffraction efficiency. This correction is incorporated in the Weighted Gerchberg Saxton (WGS) algorithm for generation of holograms.

High-Power, High-Speed Electro-Optic Pockels Cell Modulator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hawthorne, Justin; Battle, Philip

2013-01-01

Electro-optic modulators rely on a change in the index of refraction for the optical wave as a function of an applied voltage. The corresponding change in index acts to delay the wavefront in the waveguide. The goal of this work was to develop a high-speed, high-power waveguide- based modulator (phase and amplitude) and investigate its use as a pulse slicer. The key innovation in this effort is the use of potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) waveguides, making the highpower, polarization-based waveguide amplitude modulator possible. Furthermore, because it is fabricated in KTP, the waveguide component will withstand high optical power and have a significantly higher RF modulation figure of merit (FOM) relative to lithium niobate. KTP waveguides support high-power TE and TM modes - a necessary requirement for polarization-based modulation as with a Pockels cell. High-power fiber laser development has greatly outpaced fiber-based modulators in terms of its maturity and specifications. The demand for high-performance nonlinear optical (NLO) devices in terms of power handling, efficiency, bandwidth, and useful wavelength range has driven the development of bulk NLO options, which are limited in their bandwidth, as well as waveguide based LN modulators, which are limited by their low optical damage threshold. Today, commercially available lithium niobate (LN) modulators are used for laser formatting; however, because of photorefractive damage that can reduce transmission and increase requirements on bias control, LN modulators cannot be used with powers over several mW, dependent on wavelength. The high-power, high-speed modulators proposed for development under this effort will enable advancements in several exciting fields including lidarbased remote sensing, atomic interferometry, free-space laser communications, and others.

ESTIMATION OF SHEAR STRESS WORKING ON SUBMERGED HOLLOW FIBRE MEMBRANE BY CFD METHOD IN MBRs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaw, Hlwan Moe; Li, Tairi; Nagaoka, Hiroshi

This study was conducted to evaluate shear stress working on submerged hollow fibre membrane by CFD (Computation Fluid Dynamics) method in MBRs. Shear stress on hollow fibre membrane caused by aeration was measured directly using a two-direction load sensor. The measurement of water-phase flow velocity was done also by using laser doppler velocimeter. It was confirmed that the shear stress was possible to be evaluated from the water-phase flow velocityby the result of comparison of time average shear stress actually measured with one hollow fibre membrane and the one calculated by the water-phase flow velocity. In the estimation of the water-phase flow velocity using the CFD method, time average water-phase flow velocity estimated by consideration of the fluid resistance of the membrane module nearly coincided with the measured values, and it was shown that it was possible to be estimated also within the membrane module. Moreover, the measured shear stress and drag force well coincided with the values calculated from the estimated water-phase flow velocity outside of membrane module and in the center of membrane module, and it was suggested that the shear stress on the hollow fibre membrane could be estimated by the CFD method in MBRs.

Modulated Fourier Transform Raman Fiber-Optic Spectroscopy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jensen, Brian J. (Inventor); Cooper, John B. (Inventor); Wise, Kent L. (Inventor)

2000-01-01

A modification to a commercial Fourier Transform (FT) Raman spectrometer is presented for the elimination of thermal backgrounds in the FT Raman spectra. The modification involves the use of a mechanical optical chopper to modulate the continuous wave laser, remote collection of the signal via fiber optics, and connection of a dual-phase digital-signal-processor (DSP) lock-in amplifier between the detector and the spectrometer's collection electronics to demodulate and filter the optical signals. The resulting Modulated Fourier Transform Raman Fiber-Optic Spectrometer is capable of completely eliminating thermal backgrounds at temperatures exceeding 300 C.

Optical interference fringe reduction in frequency-modulation spectroscopy experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hjelme, Dag Roar; Neegard, Steinar; Vartdal, Erling

1995-08-01

We show both theoretically and experimentally that interference fringe signals can always be suppressed to improve the signal-to-noise ratio, provided that the modulation frequency is of the order of the absorption linewidth or higher. Suppression of optical interference fringes by more than 1 order of magnitude and signal-to-noise ratio enhancement of more than 13 dB is demonstrated by use of a proper choice of laser modulation frequency. A further fringe reduction of 10 dB is possible by adjustment of the local oscillator phase.

Monolithic device for modelocking and stabilization of frequency combs.

PubMed

Lee, C-C; Hayashi, Y; Silverman, K L; Feldman, A; Harvey, T; Mirin, R P; Schibli, T R

2015-12-28

We demonstrate a device that integrates a III-V semiconductor saturable absorber mirror with a graphene electro-optic modulator, which provides a monolithic solution to modelocking and noise suppression in a frequency comb. The device offers a pure loss modulation bandwidth exceeding 5 MHz and only requires a low voltage driver. This hybrid device provides not only compactness and simplicity in laser cavity design, but also small insertion loss, compared to the previous metallic-mirror-based modulators. We believe this work paves the way to portable and fieldable phase-coherent frequency combs.

Digital micromirror device-based ultrafast pulse shaping for femtosecond laser.

PubMed

Gu, Chenglin; Zhang, Dapeng; Chang, Yina; Chen, Shih-Chi

2015-06-15

In this Letter, we present a new digital micromirror device (DMD)-based ultrafast pulse shaper, i.e., DUPS. To the best of our knowledge, the DUPS is the first binary pulse shaper that can modulate high repetition rate laser sources at up to a 32 kHz rate (limited by the DMD pattern rate). Since pulse modulation occurs in the frequency domain through reflective two-dimensional micromirror arrays, i.e., DMD, the DUPS is not only compact and low in cost, but also possesses a high damage threshold that is critical for high pulse energy laser applications. In this work, a grating pair was introduced in the DUPS to compensate the DMD induced dispersion. Double pulses were generated to validate the effectiveness of the DUPS and calibrate the system. Subsequently, we demonstrated arbitrary phase shaping capability by continuous tuning of group velocity dispersion (GVD) and modulation of half-spectrum shifted by π. The overall efficiency was measured to be 1.7%, while an efficiency of up to 5% can be expected when high efficiency gratings and properly coated DMDs are used.

Quantum Limits of Space-to-Ground Optical Communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hemmati, H.; Dolinar, S.

2012-01-01

For a pure loss channel, the ultimate capacity can be achieved with classical coherent states (i.e., ideal laser light): (1) Capacity-achieving receiver (measurement) is yet to be determined. (2) Heterodyne detection approaches the ultimate capacity at high mean photon numbers. (3) Photon-counting approaches the ultimate capacity at low mean photon numbers. A number of current technology limits drive the achievable performance of free-space communication links. Approaching fundamental limits in the bandwidth-limited regime: (1) Heterodyne detection with high-order coherent-state modulation approaches ultimate limits. SOA improvements to laser phase noise, adaptive optics systems for atmospheric transmission would help. (2) High-order intensity modulation and photon-counting can approach heterodyne detection within approximately a factor of 2. This may have advantages over coherent detection in the presence of turbulence. Approaching fundamental limits in the photon-limited regime (1) Low-duty cycle binary coherent-state modulation (OOK, PPM) approaches ultimate limits. SOA improvements to laser extinction ratio, receiver dark noise, jitter, and blocking would help. (2) In some link geometries (near field links) number-state transmission could improve over coherent-state transmission

Self-phase modulation enabled, wavelength-tunable ultrafast fiber laser sources: an energy scalable approach.

PubMed

Liu, Wei; Li, Chen; Zhang, Zhigang; Kärtner, Franz X; Chang, Guoqing

2016-07-11

We propose and demonstrate a new approach to implement a wavelength-tunable ultrafast fiber laser source suitable for multiphoton microscopy. We employ fiber-optic nonlinearities to broaden a narrowband optical spectrum generated by an Yb-fiber laser system and then use optical bandpass filters to select the leftmost or rightmost spectral lobes from the broadened spectrum. Detailed numerical modeling shows that self-phase modulation dominates the spectral broadening, self-steepening tends to blue shift the broadened spectrum, and stimulated Raman scattering is minimal. We also find that optical wave breaking caused by fiber dispersion slows down the shift of the leftmost/rightmost spectral lobes and therefore limits the wavelength tuning range of the filtered spectra. We show both numerically and experimentally that shortening the fiber used for spectral broadening while increasing the input pulse energy can overcome this dispersion-induced limitation; as a result, the filtered spectral lobes have higher power, constituting a powerful and practical approach for energy scaling the resulting femtosecond sources. We use two commercially available photonic crystal fibers to verify the simulation results. More specific, use of 20-mm fiber NL-1050-ZERO-2 enables us to implement an Yb-fiber laser based ultrafast source, delivering femtosecond (70-120 fs) pulses tunable from 825 nm to 1210 nm with >1 nJ pulse energy.

Controlling the femtosecond laser-driven transformation of dicyclopentadiene into cyclopentadiene

PubMed Central

Goswami, Tapas; Das, Dipak K.; Goswami, Debabrata

2013-01-01

Dynamics of the chemical transformation of dicyclopentadiene into cyclopentadiene in a supersonic molecular beam is elucidated using femtosecond time-resolved degenerate pump–probe mass spectrometry. Control of this ultrafast chemical reaction is achieved by using linearly chirped frequency modulated pulses. We show that negatively chirped femtosecond laser pulses enhance the cyclopentadiene photoproduct yield by an order of magnitude as compared to that of the unmodulated or the positively chirped pulses. This demonstrates that the phase structure of femtosecond laser pulse plays an important role in determining the outcome of a chemical reaction. PMID:24098059

Dynamic characteristics of far-field radiation of current modulated phase-locked diode laser arrays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Elliott, R. A.; Hartnett, K.

1987-01-01

A versatile and powerful streak camera/frame grabber system for studying the evolution of the near and far field radiation patterns of diode lasers was assembled and tested. Software needed to analyze and display the data acquired with the steak camera/frame grabber system was written and the total package used to record and perform preliminary analyses on the behavior of two types of laser, a ten emitter gain guided array and a flared waveguide Y-coupled array. Examples of the information which can be gathered with this system are presented.

High efficiency and high-energy intra-cavity beam shaping laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Hailong; Meng, Junqing; Chen, Weibiao

2015-09-01

We present a technology of intra-cavity laser beam shaping with theory and experiment to obtain a flat-top-like beam with high-pulse energy. A radial birefringent element (RBE) was used in a crossed Porro prism polarization output coupling resonator to modulate the phase delay radially. The reflectively of a polarizer used as an output mirror was variable radially. A flat-top-like beam with 72.5 mJ, 11 ns at 20 Hz was achieved by a side-pumped Nd:YAG zigzag slab laser, and the optical-to-optical conversion efficiency was 17.3%.

Multiwavelength self-pulsating fibre laser based on cascaded SPM spectral broadening and filtering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rochette, Martin; Sun, Kai; Hernández-Cordero, Juan; Chen, Lawrence R.

2008-06-01

We experimentally demonstrate the operation of a laser based on self-phase modulation followed by offset spectral filtering. This laser has three operation modes: a continuous-wave mode, a self-pulsating mode where the laser self ignites and produces pulses, and a pulse-buffering mode where no new pulse is formed from spontaneous emission noise but only pulses already propagating or pulses injected in the laser cavity can be sustained. In the self-pulsating and pulse-buffering modes, the laser is multi-wavelength and continuously tunable over the entire gain band of the amplifiers. The output pulse width is quasi transform-limited with respect to the spectral-width of the filters used in the cavity. Overall, this device provides a simple alternative to pulsed laser source and also represents a promising approach for signal buffering.

Frequency stabilization of multiple lasers on a single medium-finesse cavity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Chengyin; Zhou, Min; Gao, Qi; Li, Shangyan; Zhang, Shuang; Qiao, Hao; Ai, Di; Zhang, Mengya; Lou, Ge; Luo, Limeng; Xu, Xinye

2018-04-01

We present a simple, compact, and robust frequency stabilization system of three lasers operating at 649, 759, and 770 nm, respectively. These lasers are applied in experiments on ytterbium optical lattice clocks, for which each laser needs to have a linewidth of a few hundred or tens of kilohertz while maintaining a favorable long-term stability. Here, a single medium-finesse cavity is adopted as the frequency reference and the standard Pound-Drever-Hall technique is used to stabilize the laser frequencies. Based on the independent phase modulation, multiple-laser locking is demonstrated without mutual intervention. The locked lasers are measured to have a linewidth of 100 kHz and the residual frequency drift is about 78.5 Hz s-1. This kind of setup provides a construction that is much simpler than that in previous work.

Nonlinear processes associated with the amplification of MHz-linewidth laser pulses in single-mode Tm:fiber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sincore, Alex; Bodnar, Nathan; Bradford, Joshua; Abdulfattah, Ali; Shah, Lawrence; Richardson, Martin C.

2017-03-01

This work studies the accumulated nonlinearities when amplifying a narrow linewidth 2053 nm seed in a single mode Tm:fiber amplifier. A <2 MHz linewidth CW diode seed is externally modulated using a fiberized acousto-optic modulator. This enables independent control of repetition rate and pulse duration (>30 ns). The pulses are subsequently amplified and the repetition rate is further reduced using a second acousto-optic modulator. It is well known that spectral degradation occurs in such fibers for peak powers over 100's of watts due to self-phase modulation, four-wave mixing, and stimulated Raman scattering. In addition to enabling a thorough test bed to study such spectral broadening, this system will also enable the investigation of stimulated Brillouin scattering thresholds in the same system. This detailed study of the nonlinearities encountered in 2 μm fiber amplifiers is important in a range of applications from telecommunications to the amplification of ultrashort laser pulses.

Research on the system performance evaluation of minimum-shift keying in uplink ground-to-satellite with gamma-gamma distribution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yi; Zhang, Ao; Ma, Jing

2017-07-01

Minimum-shift keying (MSK) has the advantages of constant envelope, continuous phase, and high spectral efficiency, and it is applied in radio communication and optical fiber communication. MSK modulation of coherent detection is proposed in the ground-to-satellite laser communication system; in addition, considering the inherent noise of uplink, such as intensity scintillation and beam wander, the communication performance of the MSK modulation system with coherent detection is studied in the uplink ground-to-satellite laser. Based on the gamma-gamma channel model, the closed form of bit error rate (BER) of MSK modulation with coherent detection is derived. In weak, medium, and strong turbulence, the BER performance of the MSK modulation system is simulated and analyzed. To meet the requirements of the ground-to-satellite coherent MSK system to optimize the parameters and configuration of the transmitter and receiver, the influence of the beam divergence angle, the zenith angle, the transmitter beam radius, and the receiver diameter are studied.

Modulating capacitive response of MoS2 flake by controlled nanostructuring through focused laser irradiation.

PubMed

Rani, Renu; Kundu, Anirban; Balal, Mohammad; Sheet, Goutam; Hazra, Kiran Shankar

2018-08-24

Unlike graphene nanostructures, various physical properties of nanostructured MoS 2 have remained unexplored due to the lack of established fabrication routes. Herein, we have reported unique electrostatic properties of MoS 2 nanostructures, fabricated in a controlled manner of different geometries on 2D flake by using focused laser irradiation technique. Electrostatic force microscopy has been carried out on MoS 2 nanostructures by varying tip bias voltage and lift height. The analysis depicts no contrast flip in phase image of the patterned nanostructure due to the absence of free surface charges. However, prominent change in phase shift at the patterned area is observed. Such contrast changes signify the capacitive interaction between tip and nanostructures at varying tip bias voltage and lift height, irrespective of their shape and size. Such unperturbed capacitive behavior of the MoS 2 nanostructures offer modulation of capacitance in periodic array on 2D MoS 2 flake for potential application in capacitive devices.

Circle-16QAM for a zero-guard-interval CO-OFDM system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kong, Lingyu; Yang, Aiying; Guo, Peng; Lu, Yueming; Qiao, Yaojun

2018-01-01

In this paper, we introduce circle 16 quadrature amplitude modulation (C-16QAM) modulation format in a high spectral efficiency zero-guard-interval (ZGI) coherent optical (CO) orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) system. At transmitter, the C-16QAM has advantages over the conventional square 16QAM in terms of transmission distance and tolerance to laser linewidth and fiber nonlinearities. ZGI CO-OFDM enables to take away the cyclic prefix (CP), so it has the benefit of higher spectral efficiency compared with the conventional CO-OFDM system. At receiver, in order to compensate chromatic dispersion (CD) and phase noise in a single channel ZGI CO-OFDM system, we studied the overlapped frequency domain equalizer (OFDE) and two carrier phase recovery (CPR) algorithms. We simulate the above systems and the results demonstrate that with the C-16QAM, a 28GBaud ZGI CO-OFDM system can have the longer transmission distance, the higher tolerance to laser linewidth and fiber nonlinearities with contrast to the conventional square 16QAM.

Systematic optimization of laser cooling of dysprosium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mühlbauer, Florian; Petersen, Niels; Baumgärtner, Carina; Maske, Lena; Windpassinger, Patrick

2018-06-01

We report on an apparatus for cooling and trapping of neutral dysprosium. We characterize and optimize the performance of our Zeeman slower and 2D molasses cooling of the atomic beam by means of Doppler spectroscopy on a 136 kHz broad transition at 626 nm. Furthermore, we demonstrate the characterization and optimization procedure for the loading phase of a magneto-optical trap (MOT) by increasing the effective laser linewidth by sideband modulation. After optimization of the MOT compression phase, we cool and trap up to 10^9 atoms within 3 seconds in the MOT at temperatures of 9 μK and phase space densities of 1.7 \\cdot 10^{-5}, which constitutes an ideal starting point for loading the atoms into an optical dipole trap and for subsequent forced evaporative cooling.

Laser fabrication of diffractive optical elements based on detour-phase computer-generated holograms for two-dimensional Airy beams.

PubMed

Călin, Bogdan-Ştefăniţă; Preda, Liliana; Jipa, Florin; Zamfirescu, Marian

2018-02-20

We have designed, fabricated, and tested an amplitude diffractive optical element for generation of two-dimensional (2D) Airy beams. The design is based on a detour-phase computer-generated hologram. Using laser ablation of metallic films, we obtained a 2  mm×2  mm diffractive optical element with a pixel of 5  μm×5  μm and demonstrated a fast, cheap, and reliable fabrication process. This device can modulate 2D Airy beams or it can be used as a UV lithography mask to fabricate a series of phase holograms for higher energy efficiency. Tests according to the premise and an analysis of the transverse profile and propagation are presented.

Atmospheric simulation using a liquid crystal wavefront-controlling device

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brooks, Matthew R.; Goda, Matthew E.

2004-10-01

Test and evaluation of laser warning devices is important due to the increased use of laser devices in aerial applications. This research consists of an atmospheric aberrating system to enable in-lab testing of various detectors and sensors. This system employs laser light at 632.8nm from a Helium-Neon source and a spatial light modulator (SLM) to cause phase changes using a birefringent liquid crystal material. Measuring outgoing radiation from the SLM using a CCD targetboard and Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor reveals an acceptable resemblance of system output to expected atmospheric theory. Over three turbulence scenarios, an error analysis reveals that turbulence data matches theory. A wave optics computer simulation is created analogous to the lab-bench design. Phase data, intensity data, and a computer simulation affirm lab-bench results so that the aberrating SLM system can be operated confidently.

Manipulation of Micro Scale Particles in an Optical Trap Using Interferometry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seibel, Robin

2002-01-01

This research shows that micro particles can be manipulated via interferometric patterns superimposed on an optical tweezers beam. Interferometry allows the manipulation of intensity distributions, and thus, force distributions on a trapped particle. To demonstrate the feasibility of such manipulation, 458 nm light, from an argon-ion laser, was injected into a Mach Zender interferometer. One mirror in the interferometer was oscillated with a piezoelectric phase modulator. The light from the interferometer was then injected into a microscope to trap a 9.75 micron polystyrene sphere. By varying the phase modulation, the sphere was made to oscillate in a controlled fashion.

Tetravalent chromium (Cr(4+)) as laser-active ion for tunable solid-state lasers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seas, A.; Petricevic, V.; Alfano, Robert R.

1993-01-01

Major accomplishments under NASA grant NAG-1-1346 are summarized. (1) numerical modeling of the four mirror astigmatically compensated, Z-fold cavity was performed and several design parameters to be used for the construction of a femtosecond forsterite laser were revealed by simulation. (2) femtosecond pulses from a continuous wave mode-locked chromium doped forsterite laser were generated. The forsterite laser was actively mode-locked using an acousto-optic modulator operating at 78 MHz with two Brewster high dispersion glass prisms for intra-cavity chirp compensation. Transform-limited sub-100-fs pulses were routinely generated in the TEM(sub 00) mode with 85 mW of continuous power tunable over 1230-1280 nm. The shortest pulses of 60-fs pulsewidth were measured. (3) Self-mode-locked operation of the Cr:forsterite laser was achieved. Synchronous pumping was used to mode lock the forsterite laser resulting in picosecond pulses, which in turn provided the starting mechanism for self-mode-locking. The pulses generated had an FWHM of 105 fs and were tunable between 1230-1270 nm. (4) Numerical calculations indicated that the pair of SF 14 prisms used in the cavity compensated for quadratic phase but introduced a large cubic phase term. Further calculations of other optical glasses indicated that a pair of SFN 64 prisms can introduce the same amount of quadratic phase as SF 14 prisms but introduce a smaller cubic phase. When the SF 14 prisms were replaced by SFN 64 prisms the pulsewidth was reduced to 50 fs. Great improvement was observed in the stability of the self mode-locked forsterite laser and in the ease of achieving mode locking. Using the same experimental arrangement and a new forsterite crystal with improved FOM the pulse width was reduced to 36 fs.

Ultrastable laser array at 633 nm for real-time dimensional metrology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lawall, John; Pedulla, J. Marc; Le Coq, Yann

2001-07-01

We describe a laser system for very-high-accuracy dimensional metrology. A sealed-cavity helium-neon laser is offset locked to an iodine-stabilized laser in order to realize a secondary standard with higher power and less phase noise. Synchronous averaging is employed to remove the effect of the frequency modulation present on the iodine-stabilized laser. Additional lasers are offset locked to the secondary standard for use in interferometry. All servo loops are implemented digitally. The offset-locked lasers have intrinsic linewidths of the order of 2.5 kHz and exhibit a rms deviation from the iodine-stabilized laser below 18 kHz. The amplitude noise is at the shot-noise limit for frequencies above 700 kHz. We describe and evaluate the system in detail, and include a discussion of the noise associated with various types of power supplies.

Generation of flat wideband chaos with suppressed time delay signature by using optical time lens.

PubMed

Jiang, Ning; Wang, Chao; Xue, Chenpeng; Li, Guilan; Lin, Shuqing; Qiu, Kun

2017-06-26

We propose a flat wideband chaos generation scheme that shows excellent time delay signature suppression effect, by injecting the chaotic output of general external cavity semiconductor laser into an optical time lens module composed of a phase modulator and two dispersive units. The numerical results demonstrate that by properly setting the parameters of the driving signal of phase modulator and the accumulated dispersion of dispersive units, the relaxation oscillation in chaos can be eliminated, wideband chaos generation with an efficient bandwidth up to several tens of GHz can be achieved, and the RF spectrum of generated chaotic signal is nearly as flat as uniform distribution. Moreover, the periodicity of chaos induced by the external cavity modes can be simultaneously destructed by the optical time lens module, based on this the time delay signature can be completely suppressed.

Adaptive beam shaping for improving the power coupling of a two-Cassegrain-telescope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ma, Haotong; Hu, Haojun; Xie, Wenke; Zhao, Haichuan; Xu, Xiaojun; Chen, Jinbao

2013-08-01

We demonstrate the adaptive beam shaping for improving the power coupling of a two-Cassegrain-telescope based on the stochastic parallel gradient descent (SPGD) algorithm and dual phase only liquid crystal spatial light modulators (LC-SLMs). Adaptive pre-compensation the wavefront of projected laser beam at the transmitter telescope is chosen to improve the power coupling efficiency. One phase only LC-SLM adaptively optimizes phase distribution of the projected laser beam and the other generates turbulence phase screen. The intensity distributions of the dark hollow beam after passing through the turbulent atmosphere with and without adaptive beam shaping are analyzed in detail. The influence of propagation distance and aperture size of the Cassegrain-telescope on coupling efficiency are investigated theoretically and experimentally. These studies show that the power coupling can be significantly improved by adaptive beam shaping. The technique can be used in optical communication, deep space optical communication and relay mirror.

Quantum Cascade Lasers Modulation and Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luzhansky, Edward

The mid-wave IR (MWIR) spectral band, extending from 3 to 5 microns, is considered to be a low loss atmospheric window. There are several spectral sub-bands with relatively low atmospheric attenuation in this region making it popular for various commercial and military applications. Relatively low thermal and solar background emissions, effective penetration through the natural and anthropogenic obscurants and eye safety add to the long list of advantages of MWIR wavelengths. Quantum Cascade Lasers are compact semiconductor devices capable of operating in MWIR spectrum. They are based on inter-subband transitions in a multiple-quantum-well (QW) hetero-structure, designed by means of band-structure engineering. The inter-subband nature of the optical transition has several key advantages. First, the emission wavelength is primarily a function of the QW thickness. This characteristic allows choosing well-understood and reliable semiconductors for the generation of light in a wavelength range of interest. Second, a cascade process in which tens of photons are generated per injected electron. This cascading process is behind the intrinsic high-power capabilities of QCLs. This dissertation is focused on modulation properties of Quantum Cascade Lasers. Both amplitude and phase/frequency modulations were studied including modulation bandwidth, modulation efficiency and chirp linearity. Research was consisted of the two major parts. In the first part we describe the theory of frequency modulation (FM) response of Distributed Feedback Quantum Cascade Lasers (DFB QCL). It includes cascading effect on the QCL's maximum modulation frequency. The "gain levering" effect for the maximum FM response of the two section QCLs was studied as well. In the second part of research we concentrated on the Pulse Position Amplitude Modulation of a single section QCL. The low complexity, low size, weight and power Mid-Wavelength Infra-Red optical communications transceiver concept is introduced. The concept was realized and tested in the laboratory environment. The resilience to atmospheric impairments are analyzed with simulated turbulence. The performance compared to typical telecom based Short Wavelength Infra-Red transceiver.

Generation and transmission of DPSK signals using a directly modulated passive feedback laser.

PubMed

Karar, Abdullah S; Gao, Ying; Zhong, Kang Ping; Ke, Jian Hong; Cartledge, John C

2012-12-10

The generation of differential-phase-shift keying (DPSK) signals is demonstrated using a directly modulated passive feedback laser at 10.709-Gb/s, 14-Gb/s and 16-Gb/s. The quality of the DPSK signals is assessed using both noncoherent detection for a bit rate of 10.709-Gb/s and coherent detection with digital signal processing involving a look-up table pattern-dependent distortion compensator. Transmission over a passive link consisting of 100 km of single mode fiber at a bit rate of 10.709-Gb/s is achieved with a received optical power of -45 dBm at a bit-error-ratio of 3.8 × 10(-3) and a 49 dB loss margin.

Generation of dark hollow femtosecond pulsed beam by phase-only liquid crystal spatial light modulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nie, Yongming; Ma, Haotong; Li, Xiujian; Hu, Wenhua; Yang, Jiankun

2011-07-01

Based on the refractive laser beam shaping system, the dark hollow femtosecond pulse beam shaping technique with a phase-only liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LC-SLM) is demonstrated. The phase distribution of the LC-SLM is derived by the energy conservation and constant optical path principle. The effects of the shaping system on the temporal properties, including spectral phase distribution and bandwidth of the femtosecond pulse, are analyzed in detail. Experimental results show that the hollow intensity distribution of the output pulsed beam can be maintained much at more than 1200mm. The spectral phase of the pulse is changed, and the pulse width is expanded from 199 to 230fs, which is caused by the spatial--temporal coupling effect. The coupling effect mainly depends on the phase-only LC-SLM itself, not on its loaded phase distribution. The experimental results indicate that the proposed shaping setup can generate a dark hollow femtosecond pulsed beam effectively, because the temporal Gaussian waveform is unchanged.

Harmonizing HeLa cell cytoskeleton behavior by multi-Ti oxide phased nanostructure synthesized through ultrashort pulsed laser

PubMed Central

Chinnakkannu Vijayakumar, Chandramouli; Venkatakrishnan, Krishnan; Tan, Bo

2015-01-01

Knowledge about cancer cell behavior on heterogeneous nanostructures is relevant for developing a distinct biomaterial that can actuate cancer cells. In this manuscript, we have demonstrated a harmonized approach of forming multi Ti-oxide phases in a nanostructure (MTOP nanostructure) for its unique cancer cell controlling behavior.Conventionally, single phases of TiO2 are used for targeted therapy and as drug carrier systems.In this research, we have shown a biomaterial that can control HeLa cells diligently using a combination of TiO, Ti3O and TiO2 phases when compared to fibroblast (NIH3T3) cells.MTOP-nanostructures are generated by varying the ionization energy in the vapor plume of the ultrashort pulse laser; this interaction with the material allows accurate tuning and composition of phases within the nanostructure. In addition, the lattice spacing of MTOP-nanostructures was analyzed as shown by HR-TEM investigations. An FESEM investigation of MTOP-nanostructures revealed a greater reduction of HeLa cells relative to fibroblast cells. Altered cell adhesion was followed by modulation of HeLa cell architecture with a significant reduction of actin stress fibers.The intricate combination of MTOP-nanostructures renders a biomaterial that can precisely alter HeLa cell but not fibroblast cell behavior, filling a void in the research for a biomaterial to modulate cancer cell behavior. PMID:26469886

Harmonizing HeLa cell cytoskeleton behavior by multi-Ti oxide phased nanostructure synthesized through ultrashort pulsed laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chinnakkannu Vijayakumar, Chandramouli; Venkatakrishnan, Krishnan; Tan, Bo

2015-10-01

Knowledge about cancer cell behavior on heterogeneous nanostructures is relevant for developing a distinct biomaterial that can actuate cancer cells. In this manuscript, we have demonstrated a harmonized approach of forming multi Ti-oxide phases in a nanostructure (MTOP nanostructure) for its unique cancer cell controlling behavior.Conventionally, single phases of TiO2 are used for targeted therapy and as drug carrier systems.In this research, we have shown a biomaterial that can control HeLa cells diligently using a combination of TiO, Ti3O and TiO2 phases when compared to fibroblast (NIH3T3) cells.MTOP-nanostructures are generated by varying the ionization energy in the vapor plume of the ultrashort pulse laser; this interaction with the material allows accurate tuning and composition of phases within the nanostructure. In addition, the lattice spacing of MTOP-nanostructures was analyzed as shown by HR-TEM investigations. An FESEM investigation of MTOP-nanostructures revealed a greater reduction of HeLa cells relative to fibroblast cells. Altered cell adhesion was followed by modulation of HeLa cell architecture with a significant reduction of actin stress fibers.The intricate combination of MTOP-nanostructures renders a biomaterial that can precisely alter HeLa cell but not fibroblast cell behavior, filling a void in the research for a biomaterial to modulate cancer cell behavior.

Laser induced periodic surface structuring on Si by temporal shaped femtosecond pulses.

PubMed

Almeida, G F B; Martins, R J; Otuka, A J G; Siqueira, J P; Mendonca, C R

2015-10-19

We investigated the effect of temporal shaped femtosecond pulses on silicon laser micromachining. By using sinusoidal spectral phases, pulse trains composed of sub-pulses with distinct temporal separations were generated and applied to the silicon surface to produce Laser Induced Periodic Surface Structures (LIPSS). The LIPSS obtained with different sub-pulse separation were analyzed by comparing the intensity of the two-dimensional fast Fourier Transform (2D-FFT) of the AFM images of the ripples (LIPSS). It was observed that LIPSS amplitude is more emphasized for the pulse train with sub-pulses separation of 128 fs, even when compared with the Fourier transform limited pulse. By estimating the carrier density achieved at the end of each pulse train, we have been able to interpret our results with the Sipe-Drude model, that predicts that LIPSS efficacy is higher for a specific induced carrier density. Hence, our results indicate that temporal shaping of the excitation pulse, performed by spectral phase modulation, can be explored in fs-laser microstructuring.

Coherent control of plasma dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Zhaohan

2014-10-01

The concept of coherent control - precise measurement or determination of a process through control of the phase of an applied oscillating field - has been applied to numerous systems with great success. Here, we demonstrate the use of coherent control on plasma dynamics in a laser wakefield electron acceleration experiment. A tightly focused femtosecond laser pulse (10 mJ, 35 fs) was used to generate electron beams by plasma wakefield acceleration in the density down ramp. The technique is based on optimization of the electron beam using a deformable mirror adaptive optical system with an iterative evolutionary genetic algorithm. The image of the electrons on a scintillator screen was processed and used in a fitness function as direct feedback for the optimization algorithm. This coherent manipulation of the laser wavefront leads to orders of magnitude improvement to the electron beam properties such as the peak charge and beam divergence. The laser beam optimized to generate the best electron beam was not the one with the ``best'' focal spot. When a particular wavefront of laser light interacts with plasma, it can affect the plasma wave structures and trapping conditions of the electrons in a complex way. For example, Raman forward scattering, envelope self-modulation, relativistic self-focusing, and relativistic self-phase modulation and many other nonlinear interactions modify both the pulse envelope and phase as the pulse propagates, in a way that cannot be easily predicted and that subsequently dictates the formation of plasma waves. The optimal wavefront could be successfully determined via the heuristic search under laser-plasma conditions that were not known a priori. Control and shaping of the electron energy distribution was found to be less effective, but was still possible. Particle-in-cell simulations were performed to show that the mode structure of the laser beam can affect the plasma wave structure and trapping conditions of electrons, which subsequently produces electron beams with a different divergence. The proof-of-principle demonstration of coherent control for plasmas opens new possibilities for future laser-based accelerators and their applications. This study should also enable a significantly improved understanding of the complex dynamics of laser plasma interactions. This work was supported by DARPA under Contract No. N66001-11-1-4208, the NSF under Contract No. 0935197 and MCubed at the University of Michigan.

Maximum-Likelihood Estimation for Frequency-Modulated Continuous-Wave Laser Ranging using Photon-Counting Detectors

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-21

instruments where frequency estimates are calcu- lated from coherently detected fields, e.g., coherent Doppler LIDAR . Our CRB results reveal that the best...wave coherent lidar using an optical field correlation detection method,” Opt. Rev. 5, 310–314 (1998). 8. H. P. Yuen and V. W. S. Chan, “Noise in...2170–2180 (2007). 13. T. J. Karr, “Atmospheric phase error in coherent laser radar,” IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag. 55, 1122–1133 (2007). 14. Throughout

Array Automated Assembly Task Low Cost Silicon Solar Array Project, Phase 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rhee, S. S.; Jones, G. T.; Allison, K. L.

1978-01-01

Progress in the development of solar cells and module process steps for low-cost solar arrays is reported. Specific topics covered include: (1) a system to automatically measure solar cell electrical performance parameters; (2) automation of wafer surface preparation, printing, and plating; (3) laser inspection of mechanical defects of solar cells; and (4) a silicon antireflection coating system. Two solar cell process steps, laser trimming and holing automation and spray-on dopant junction formation, are described.

Two spatial light modulator system for laboratory simulation of random beam propagation in random media.

PubMed

Wang, Fei; Toselli, Italo; Korotkova, Olga

2016-02-10

An optical system consisting of a laser source and two independent consecutive phase-only spatial light modulators (SLMs) is shown to accurately simulate a generated random beam (first SLM) after interaction with a stationary random medium (second SLM). To illustrate the range of possibilities, a recently introduced class of random optical frames is examined on propagation in free space and several weak turbulent channels with Kolmogorov and non-Kolmogorov statistics.

Investigations of SBS and Laser Gain Competition in High-Power Phase Modulated Fiber Amplifiers (Postprint)

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-02-26

through RF filtering . Subsequently, this modulated signal is used in a cutback experiment with a passive fiber . Studies describing enhancement factors...to filter out higher order modes [3]. However, in order to maintain single-mode (diffraction limited) operation, conventional step-index fiber core...Letters 36, 2686-2688 (2011). [3] J. P. Koplaw, D. Kliner, and L. Goldberg, “Single-mode operation of a coiled multimode fiber amplifier,” Optics Letters

Photographic Video Disc Technology Assessment

DTIC Science & Technology

1976-09-27

by a universal type motor that is driven from the ac power lines using a triac . The triac is controlled by a phase locked loop control circuit that...Regardless of signal format, direct analogue or an A/D converted digital signal, it is recorded by modulated laser beam and can be read out by either...was made to record with frequency modulation (FM) because of its immunity to noise at low frequencies where much of the system noise is. The usual

Large-area triple-junction a-Si alloy production scaleup. Annual subcontract report, 17 March 1993--18 March 1994

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Oswald, R.; Morris, J.

1994-11-01

The objective of this subcontract over its three-year duration is to advance Solarex`s photovoltaic manufacturing technologies, reduce its a-Si:H module production costs, increase module performance and expand the Solarex commercial production capacity. Solarex shall meet these objectives by improving the deposition and quality of the transparent front contact, by optimizing the laser patterning process, scaling-up the semiconductor deposition process, improving the back contact deposition, scaling-up and improving the encapsulation and testing of its a-Si:H modules. In the Phase 2 portion of this subcontract, Solarex focused on improving deposition of the front contact, investigating alternate feed stocks for the front contact,more » maximizing throughput and area utilization for all laser scribes, optimizing a-Si:H deposition equipment to achieve uniform deposition over large-areas, optimizing the triple-junction module fabrication process, evaluating the materials to deposit the rear contact, and optimizing the combination of isolation scribe and encapsulant to pass the wet high potential test. Progress is reported on the following: Front contact development; Laser scribe process development; Amorphous silicon based semiconductor deposition; Rear contact deposition process; Frit/bus/wire/frame; Materials handling; and Environmental test, yield and performance analysis.« less

A Stimulated Raman Scattering CMOS Pixel Using a High-Speed Charge Modulator and Lock-in Amplifier.

PubMed

Lioe, De Xing; Mars, Kamel; Kawahito, Shoji; Yasutomi, Keita; Kagawa, Keiichiro; Yamada, Takahiro; Hashimoto, Mamoru

2016-04-13

A complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) lock-in pixel to observe stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) using a high speed lateral electric field modulator (LEFM) for photo-generated charges and in-pixel readout circuits is presented. An effective SRS signal generated after the SRS process is very small and needs to be extracted from an extremely large offset due to a probing laser signal. In order to suppress the offset components while amplifying high-frequency modulated small SRS signal components, the lock-in pixel uses a high-speed LEFM for demodulating the SRS signal, resistor-capacitor low-pass filter (RC-LPF) and switched-capacitor (SC) integrator with a fully CMOS differential amplifier. AC (modulated) components remained in the RC-LPF outputs are eliminated by the phase-adjusted sampling with the SC integrator and the demodulated DC (unmodulated) components due to the SRS signal are integrated over many samples in the SC integrator. In order to suppress further the residual offset and the low frequency noise (1/f noise) components, a double modulation technique is introduced in the SRS signal measurements, where the phase of high-frequency modulated laser beam before irradiation of a specimen is modulated at an intermediate frequency and the demodulation is done at the lock-in pixel output. A prototype chip for characterizing the SRS lock-in pixel is implemented and a successful operation is demonstrated. The reduction effects of residual offset and 1/f noise components are confirmed by the measurements. A ratio of the detected small SRS to offset a signal of less than 10(-)⁵ is experimentally demonstrated, and the SRS spectrum of a Benzonitrile sample is successfully observed.

Idler-resonant intracavity KTA-based OPO pumped by a dual-loss modulated-Q-switched-laser with AOM and Cr4+:YAG

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qiao, Junpeng; Zhao, Shengzhi; Yang, Kejian; Zhao, Jia; Li, Guiqiu; Li, Dechun; Li, Tao; Qiao, Wenchao

2017-06-01

An idler-resonant KTiOAsO4 (KTA)-based intracavity optical parametric oscillator (IOPO) pumped by a dual-loss-modulated Q-switched laser with an acousto-optic modulator (AOM) and a Cr4+:YAG saturable absorber (Cr4+:YAG-SA) has been presented. By utilizing a type-II non-critically phase-matched KTA crystal, signal wave at 1535 nm and idler wave at 3467 nm have been generated. Under an incident pump power of 18.3 W, maximum output powers of 615 mW for signal wave and 228 mW for idler wave were obtained at an AOM modulation rate of 10 kHz, corresponding to a whole optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 4.6%. The shortest pulse widths of signal and idler wave were measured to be 898 ps and 2.9 ns, corresponding to the highest peak powers of 68.4 and 7.9 kW, respectively. In comparison with IOPO pumped by a singly Q-switched laser with an AOM, the IOPO pumped by a doubly Q-switched laser (DIOPO) with an AOM and a Cr4+:YAG-SA can generate signal wave and idler wave with shorter pulse width and higher peak power. By considering the spatial Gaussian distribution of intracavity photon density, a set of coupled rate equations for the idler-resonant DIOPO were built for the first time to the best of our knowledge. The simulation results agreed well with the experimental results.

Thin EFG octagons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalejs, J. P.

1994-01-01

Mobil Solar Energy Corporation currently practices a unique crystal growth technology for producing crystalline silicon sheet, which is then cut with lasers into wafers. The wafers are processed into solar cells and incorporated into modules for photovoltaic applications. The silicon sheet is produced using a method known as Edge-defined Film-fed growth (EFG), in the form of hollow eight-sided polygons (octagons) with 10 cm faces. These are grown to lengths of 5 meters and thickness of 300 microns, with continuous melt replenishment, in compact furnaces designed to operate at a high sheet area production area of 135 sq cm/min. The present Photovoltaic Manufacturing Technology (PVMaT) three-year program seeks to advance the manufacturing line capabilities of the Mobil Solar crystal growth and cutting technologies. If successful, these advancements will provide significant reductions in already low silicon raw material usage, improve process productivity, laser cutting throughput and yield, and so lower both individual wafer cost and the cost of module production. This report summarizes the significant technical improvements in EFG technology achieved in Phase 1 of this program. Technical results are reported for each of the three main program areas: (1) thin octagon growth (crystal growth) -- to reduce the thickness of the octagon to an interim goal of 250 microns during Phase 1, with an ultimate goal of achieving 200 micron thicknesses; (2) laser cutting -- to improve the laser cutting process, so as to produce wafers with decreased laser cutting damage at increased wafer throughput rates; and (3) process control and product specification -- to implement advanced strategies in crystal growth process control and productivity designed to increase wafer yields.

Advanced Sine Wave Modulation of Continuous Wave Laser System for Atmospheric CO2 Differential Absorption Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, Joel F.; Lin, Bing; Nehrir, Amin R.

2014-01-01

NASA Langley Research Center in collaboration with ITT Exelis have been experimenting with Continuous Wave (CW) laser absorption spectrometer (LAS) as a means of performing atmospheric CO2 column measurements from space to support the Active Sensing of CO2 Emissions over Nights, Days, and Seasons (ASCENDS) mission.Because range resolving Intensity Modulated (IM) CW lidar techniques presented here rely on matched filter correlations, autocorrelation properties without side lobes or other artifacts are highly desirable since the autocorrelation function is critical for the measurements of lidar return powers, laser path lengths, and CO2 column amounts. In this paper modulation techniques are investigated that improve autocorrelation properties. The modulation techniques investigated in this paper include sine waves modulated by maximum length (ML) sequences in various hardware configurations. A CW lidar system using sine waves modulated by ML pseudo random noise codes is described, which uses a time shifting approach to separate channels and make multiple, simultaneous online/offline differential absorption measurements. Unlike the pure ML sequence, this technique is useful in hardware that is band pass filtered as the IM sine wave carrier shifts the main power band. Both amplitude and Phase Shift Keying (PSK) modulated IM carriers are investigated that exibit perfect autocorrelation properties down to one cycle per code bit. In addition, a method is presented to bandwidth limit the ML sequence based on a Gaussian filter implemented in terms of Jacobi theta functions that does not seriously degrade the resolution or introduce side lobes as a means of reducing aliasing and IM carrier bandwidth.

Compact atom interferometer using single laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiow, Sheng-wey; Yu, Nan

2018-06-01

A typical atom interferometer requires vastly different laser frequencies at different stages of operation, e.g., near resonant light for laser cooling and far detuned light for atom optics, such that multiple lasers are typically employed. The number of laser units constrains the achievable minimum size and power in practical devices for resource critical environments such as space. We demonstrate a compact atom interferometer accelerometer operated by a single diode laser. This is achieved by dynamically changing the laser output frequency in GHz range while maintaining spectroscopic reference to an atomic transition via a sideband generated by phase modulation. At the same time, a beam path sharing configuration is also demonstrated for a compact sensor head design, in which atom interferometer beams share the same path as that of the cooling beam. This beam path sharing also significantly simplifies three-axis atomic accelerometry in microgravity using single sensor head.

Ultrashort, high power, and ultralow noise mode-locked optical pulse generation using quantum-dot semiconductor lasers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Myoung-Taek

This dissertation explores various aspects and potential of optical pulse generation based on active, passive, and hybrid mode-locked quantum dot semiconductor lasers with target applications such as optical interconnect and high speed signal processing. Design guidelines are developed for the single mode operation with suppressed reflection from waveguide discontinuities. The device fabrication procedure is explained, followed by characteristics of FP laser, SOA, and monolithic two-section devices. Short pulse generation from an external cavity mode-locked QD two-section diode laser is studied. High quality, sub-picosecond (960 fs), high peak power (1.2 W) pulse trains are obtained. The sign and magnitude of pulse chirp were measured for the first time. The role of the self-phase modulation and the linewidth enhancement factor in QD mode-locked lasers is addressed. The noise performance of two-section mode-locked lasers and a SOA-based ring laser was investigated. Significant reduction of the timing jitter under hybrid mode-locked operation was achieved owing to more than one order of magnitude reduction of the linewidth in QD gain media. Ultralow phase noise performance (integrated timing jitter of a few fs at a 10 GHz repetition rate) was demonstrated from an actively mode-locked unidirectional ring laser. These results show that quantum dot mode-locked lasers are strong competitors to conventional semiconductor lasers in noise performance. Finally we demonstrated an opto-electronic oscillator (OEO) and coupled opto-electronic oscillators (COEO) which have the potential for both high purity microwave and low noise optical pulse generation. The phase noise of the COEO is measured by the photonic delay line frequency discriminator method. Based on this study we discuss the prospects of the COEO as a low noise optical pulse source.

Demonstration of high sensitivity laser ranging system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Millar, Pamela S.; Christian, Kent D.; Field, Christopher T.

1994-01-01

We report on a high sensitivity semiconductor laser ranging system developed for the Gravity and Magnetic Earth Surveyor (GAMES) for measuring variations in the planet's gravity field. The GAMES laser ranging instrument (LRI) consists of a pair of co-orbiting satellites, one which contains the laser transmitter and receiver and one with a passive retro-reflector mounted in an drag-stabilized housing. The LRI will range up to 200 km in space to the retro-reflector satellite. As the spacecraft pair pass over the spatial variations in the gravity field, they experience along-track accelerations which change their relative velocity. These time displaced velocity changes are sensed by the LRI with a resolution of 20-50 microns/sec. In addition, the pair may at any given time be drifting together or apart at a rate of up to 1 m/sec, introducing a Doppler shift into the ranging signals. An AlGaAs laser transmitter intensity modulated at 2 GHz and 10 MHz is used as fine and medium ranging channels. Range is measured by comparing phase difference between the transmit and received signals at each frequency. A separate laser modulated with a digital code, not reported in this paper, will be used for coarse ranging to unambiguously determine the distance up to 200 km.

Manipulation of Micro Scale Particles in Optical Traps Using Programmable Spatial Light Modulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seibel, Robin E.; Decker, Arthur J. (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

1064 nm light, from an Nd:YAG laser, was polarized and incident upon a programmable parallel aligned liquid crystal spatial light modulator (PAL-SLM), where it was phase modulated according to the program controlling the PAL-SLM. Light reflected from the PAL-SLM was injected into a microscope and focused. At the focus, multiple optical traps were formed in which 9.975 m spheres were captured. The traps and the spheres were moved by changing the program of the PAL-SLM. The motion of ordered groups of micro particles was clearly demonstrated.

A 20fs synchronization system for lasers and cavities in accelerators and FELs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilcox, R. B.; Byrd, J. M.; Doolittle, L. R.; Huang, G.; Staples, J. W.

2010-02-01

A fiber-optic RF distribution system has been developed for synchronizing lasers and RF plants in short pulse FELs. Typical requirements are 50-100fs rms over time periods from 1ms to several hours. Our system amplitude modulates a CW laser signal, senses fiber length using an interferometer, and feed-forward corrects the RF phase digitally at the receiver. We demonstrate less than 15fs rms error over 12 hours, between two independent channels with a fiber path length difference of 200m and transmitting S-band RF. The system is constructed using standard telecommunications components, and uses regular telecom fiber.

Balanced detection for self-mixing interferometry.

PubMed

Li, Kun; Cavedo, Federico; Pesatori, Alessandro; Zhao, Changming; Norgia, Michele

2017-01-15

We propose a new detection scheme for self-mixing interferometry using two photodiodes for implementing a differential acquisition. The method is based on the phase opposition of the self-mixing signal measured between the two laser diode facet outputs. The subtraction of the two outputs implements a sort of balanced detection that improves the signal quality, and allows canceling of unwanted signals due to laser modulation and disturbances on laser supply and transimpedance amplifier. Experimental results demonstrate the benefits of differential acquisition in a system for both absolute distance and displacement-vibration measurement. This Letter provides guidance for the design of self-mixing interferometers using balanced detection.

Observing quantum control of up-conversion luminescence in Dy3+ ion doped glass from weak to intermediate shaped femtosecond laser fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Pei; Cheng, Wenjing; Yao, Yunhua; Xu, Cheng; Zheng, Ye; Deng, Lianzhong; Jia, Tianqing; Qiu, Jianrong; Sun, Zhenrong; Zhang, Shian

2017-11-01

Controlling the up-conversion luminescence of rare-earth ions in real-time, in a dynamical and reversible manner, is very important for their application in laser sources, fiber-optic communications, light-emitting diodes, color displays and biological systems. In previous studies, the up-conversion luminescence control mainly focused on the weak femtosecond laser field. Here, we further extend this control behavior from weak to intermediate femtosecond laser fields. In this work, we experimentally and theoretically demonstrate that the up-conversion luminescence in Dy3+ ion doped glass can be artificially controlled by a π phase step modulation, but the up-conversion luminescence control behavior will be affected by the femtosecond laser intensity, and the up-conversion luminescence is suppressed by lower laser intensity while enhanced by higher laser intensity. We establish a new theoretical model (i.e. the fourth-order perturbation theory) to explain the physical control mechanism by considering the two- and four-photon absorption processes, and the theoretical results show that the relative weight of four-photon absorption in the whole excitation process will increase with the increase in laser intensity, and the interference between two- and four-photon absorptions results in up-conversion luminescence control modulation under different laser intensities. These theoretical and experimental works can provide a new method to control and understand up-conversion luminescence in rare-earth ions, and also may open a new opportunity to the related application areas of rare-earth ions.

Security-enhanced chaos communication with time-delay signature suppression and phase encryption.

PubMed

Xue, Chenpeng; Jiang, Ning; Lv, Yunxin; Wang, Chao; Li, Guilan; Lin, Shuqing; Qiu, Kun

2016-08-15

A security-enhanced chaos communication scheme with time delay signature (TDS) suppression and phase-encrypted feedback light is proposed, in virtue of dual-loop feedback with independent high-speed phase modulation. We numerically investigate the property of TDS suppression in the intensity and phase space and quantitatively discuss security of the proposed system by calculating the bit error rate of eavesdroppers who try to crack the system by directly filtering the detected signal or by using a similar semiconductor laser to synchronize the link signal and extract the data. The results show that TDS embedded in the chaotic carrier can be well suppressed by properly setting the modulation frequency, which can keep the time delay a secret from the eavesdropper. Moreover, because the feedback light is encrypted, without the accurate time delay and key, the eavesdropper cannot reconstruct the symmetric operation conditions and decode the correct data.

Automated aberration correction of arbitrary laser modes in high numerical aperture systems.

PubMed

Hering, Julian; Waller, Erik H; Von Freymann, Georg

2016-12-12

Controlling the point-spread-function in three-dimensional laser lithography is crucial for fabricating structures with highest definition and resolution. In contrast to microscopy, aberrations have to be physically corrected prior to writing, to create well defined doughnut modes, bottlebeams or multi foci modes. We report on a modified Gerchberg-Saxton algorithm for spatial-light-modulator based automated aberration compensation to optimize arbitrary laser-modes in a high numerical aperture system. Using circularly polarized light for the measurement and first-guess initial conditions for amplitude and phase of the pupil function our scalar approach outperforms recent algorithms with vectorial corrections. Besides laser lithography also applications like optical tweezers and microscopy might benefit from the method presented.

Parallel multiplex laser feedback interferometry

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhang, Song; Tan, Yidong; Zhang, Shulian, E-mail: zsl-dpi@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn

2013-12-15

We present a parallel multiplex laser feedback interferometer based on spatial multiplexing which avoids the signal crosstalk in the former feedback interferometer. The interferometer outputs two close parallel laser beams, whose frequencies are shifted by two acousto-optic modulators by 2Ω simultaneously. A static reference mirror is inserted into one of the optical paths as the reference optical path. The other beam impinges on the target as the measurement optical path. Phase variations of the two feedback laser beams are simultaneously measured through heterodyne demodulation with two different detectors. Their subtraction accurately reflects the target displacement. Under typical room conditions, experimentalmore » results show a resolution of 1.6 nm and accuracy of 7.8 nm within the range of 100 μm.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ma, Q. L., E-mail: maqinli@gmail.com, E-mail: mizukami@wpi-aimr.tohoku.ac.jp; Miyazaki, T.; Mizukami, S., E-mail: maqinli@gmail.com, E-mail: mizukami@wpi-aimr.tohoku.ac.jp

The laser-induced spin dynamics of FeCo in perpendicularly magnetized L1{sub 0}-MnGa/FeCo bilayers with ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interfacial exchange coupling (IEC) are examined using the time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect. We found a precessional phase reversal of the FeCo layer as the IEC changes from ferromagnetic to antiferromagnetic. Moreover, a precession-suspension window was observed when the magnetic field was applied in a certain direction for the bilayer with ferromagnetic IEC. Our observations reveal that the spin dynamics modulation is strongly dependent on the IEC type within the Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert depiction. The IEC dependence of the precessional phase and amplitude suggests the interesting methodmore » for magnetization dynamics modulation.« less

Distributed ultrafast fibre laser

PubMed Central

Liu, Xueming; Cui, Yudong; Han, Dongdong; Yao, Xiankun; Sun, Zhipei

2015-01-01

A traditional ultrafast fibre laser has a constant cavity length that is independent of the pulse wavelength. The investigation of distributed ultrafast (DUF) lasers is conceptually and technically challenging and of great interest because the laser cavity length and fundamental cavity frequency are changeable based on the wavelength. Here, we propose and demonstrate a DUF fibre laser based on a linearly chirped fibre Bragg grating, where the total cavity length is linearly changeable as a function of the pulse wavelength. The spectral sidebands in DUF lasers are enhanced greatly, including the continuous-wave (CW) and pulse components. We observe that all sidebands of the pulse experience the same round-trip time although they have different round-trip distances and refractive indices. The pulse-shaping of the DUF laser is dominated by the dissipative processes in addition to the phase modulations, which makes our ultrafast laser simple and stable. This laser provides a simple, stable, low-cost, ultrafast-pulsed source with controllable and changeable cavity frequency. PMID:25765454

UV lifetime demonstrator for space-based applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Albert, Michael; Puffenburger, Kent; Schum, Tom; Fitzpatrick, Fran; Litvinovitch, Slava; Jones, Darrell; Rudd, Joseph; Hovis, Floyd

2016-05-01

A long-lived UV laser is an enabling technology for a number of high-priority, space-based lidar instruments. These include next generation cloud and aerosol lidars that incorporates a UV channel, direct detection 3-D wind lidars, and ozone DIAL (differential absorption lidar) systems. In previous SBIR funded work we developed techniques for increasing the survivability of components in high power UV lasers and demonstrated improved operational lifetimes. In this Phase III ESTO funded effort we are designing and building a TRL (Technology Readiness Level) 6 demonstrator that will have increased output power and a space-qualifiable package that is mechanically robust and thermally-stable. For full space compatibility, thermal control will be through pure conductive cooling. Contamination control processes and optical coatings will be chosen that are compatible with lifetimes in excess of 1 billion shots. The 1064nm output will be frequency tripled to provide greater than 100 mJ pulses of 355 nm light at 150 Hz. The laser module build was completed in the third quarter of 2015 at which time a series of life tests were initiated. The first phase of the lifetime testing is a 532 nm only test that is expected to complete in April 2016. The 532 nm lifetest will be followed by a 4 month half power UV life test and then a four month full power UV life test. The lifetime tests will be followed by thermal/vacuum (TVAC) and vibration testing to demonstrate that the laser optics module design is at TRL 6.

Parallel phase-sensitive three-dimensional imaging camera

DOEpatents

Smithpeter, Colin L.; Hoover, Eddie R.; Pain, Bedabrata; Hancock, Bruce R.; Nellums, Robert O.

2007-09-25

An apparatus is disclosed for generating a three-dimensional (3-D) image of a scene illuminated by a pulsed light source (e.g. a laser or light-emitting diode). The apparatus, referred to as a phase-sensitive 3-D imaging camera utilizes a two-dimensional (2-D) array of photodetectors to receive light that is reflected or scattered from the scene and processes an electrical output signal from each photodetector in the 2-D array in parallel using multiple modulators, each having inputs of the photodetector output signal and a reference signal, with the reference signal provided to each modulator having a different phase delay. The output from each modulator is provided to a computational unit which can be used to generate intensity and range information for use in generating a 3-D image of the scene. The 3-D camera is capable of generating a 3-D image using a single pulse of light, or alternately can be used to generate subsequent 3-D images with each additional pulse of light.

Receiver concepts for data transmission at 10 microns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scholtz, A. L.; Philipp, H. K.; Leeb, W. R.

1984-05-01

Receivers for digitally modulated CO2 laser signals are compared. Incoherent heterodyne receivers and coherent homodyne setups, including the linear phase locked loop (PLL) receiver, the low intermediate frequency translation loop, and the Costas loop receiver were studied. Experiments covered the homodyne systems, emphasizing the linear PLL receiver. Reliable phase lock of the receiver is achieved at carrier levels as low as 3 nW. Reception of signals phase shift keyed with a data rate of up to 150 Mbit/sec is demonstrated at subnanowatt sideband power levels.

Plasma optical modulators for intense lasers

PubMed Central

Yu, Lu-Le; Zhao, Yao; Qian, Lie-Jia; Chen, Min; Weng, Su-Ming; Sheng, Zheng-Ming; Jaroszynski, D. A.; Mori, W. B.; Zhang, Jie

2016-01-01

Optical modulators can have high modulation speed and broad bandwidth, while being compact. However, these optical modulators usually work for low-intensity light beams. Here we present an ultrafast, plasma-based optical modulator, which can directly modulate high-power lasers with intensity up to 1016 W cm−2 to produce an extremely broad spectrum with a fractional bandwidth over 100%, extending to the mid-infrared regime in the low-frequency side. This concept relies on two co-propagating laser pulses in a sub-millimetre-scale underdense plasma, where a drive laser pulse first excites an electron plasma wave in its wake while a following carrier laser pulse is modulated by the plasma wave. The laser and plasma parameters suitable for the modulator to work are based on numerical simulations. PMID:27283369

Advances in coherent optical modems and 16-QAM transmission with feedforward carrier recovery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noé, Reinhold; Hoffmann, Sebastian; Wördehoff, Christian; Al-Bermani, Ali; El-Darawy, Mohamed

2011-01-01

Polarization multiplexing and quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) both double spectral efficiency. Combined with synchronous coherent polarization diverse intradyne receivers this modulation format is ultra-robust and cost-efficient. A feedforward carrier recovery is required in order to tolerate phase noise of normal DFB lasers. Signal processing in the digital domain permits compensation of at least chromatic and polarization mode dispersion. Some companies have products on the market, others are working on them. For 100 GbE transmission, 50 GHz channel spacing is sufficient. 16ary quadrature amplitude modulation (16-QAM) is attractive to double capacity once more, possibly in a modulation format flexible transponder which is switched down to QPSK only if system margin is too low. For 16-QAM the phase noise problem is sharply increased. However, also here a feedforward carrier recovery has been implemented. A number of carrier phase angles is tested in parallel, and the recovered data is selected for that phase angle where squared distance of recovered data to the nearest constellation point, averaged over a number of symbols, is minimum. An intradyne/selfhomodyne synchronous coherent 16-QAM experiment (2.5 Gb/s, 81 km) is presented.

Ultrashort polarization-tailored bichromatic fields from a CEP-stable white light supercontinuum.

PubMed

Kerbstadt, Stefanie; Timmer, Daniel; Englert, Lars; Bayer, Tim; Wollenhaupt, Matthias

2017-05-29

We apply ultrafast polarization shaping to an ultrabroadband carrier envelope phase (CEP) stable white light supercontinuum to generate polarization-tailored bichromatic laser fields of low-order frequency ratio. The generation of orthogonal linearly and counter-rotating circularly polarized bichromatic fields is achieved by introducing a composite polarizer in the Fourier plane of a 4 f polarization shaper. The resulting Lissajous- and propeller-type polarization profiles are characterized experimentally by cross-correlation trajectories. The scheme provides full control over all bichromatic parameters and allows for individual spectral phase modulation of both colors. Shaper-based CEP control and the generation of tailored bichromatic fields is demonstrated. These bichromatic CEP-stable polarization-shaped ultrashort laser pulses provide a versatile class of waveforms for coherent control experiments.

AlGaAs heterojunction lasers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goldstein, B.; Pultz, G. N.; Carlin, D. B.; Slavin, S. E.; Ettenberg, M.

1988-01-01

The characterization of 8300 A lasers was broadened, especially in the area of beam quality. Modulation rates up to 2 Gbit/sec at output powers of 20 mW were observed, waveform fidelity was fully adequate for low BER data transmission, and wavefront measurements showed that phase aberrations were less than lamda/50. Also, individually addressable arrays of up to ten contiguous diode lasers were fabricated and tested. Each laser operates at powers up to 30 mW CW in single spatial mode. Shifting the operating wavelength of the basic CSP laser from 8300 A to 8650 A was accomplished by the addition of Si to the active region. Output power has reached 100 mW single mode, with excellent far field wave front properties. Operating life is currently approx. 1000 hrs at 35 mW CW. In addition, laser reliability, for operation at both 8300 A and 8650 A, has profited significantly from several developments in the processing procedures.

Suppression of thermal frequency noise in erbium-doped fiber random lasers.

PubMed

Saxena, Bhavaye; Bao, Xiaoyi; Chen, Liang

2014-02-15

Frequency and intensity noise are characterized for erbium-doped fiber (EDF) random lasers based on Rayleigh distributed feedback mechanism. We propose a theoretical model for the frequency noise of such random lasers using the property of random phase modulations from multiple scattering points in ultralong fibers. We find that the Rayleigh feedback suppresses the noise at higher frequencies by introducing a Lorentzian envelope over the thermal frequency noise of a long fiber cavity. The theoretical model and measured frequency noise agree quantitatively with two fitting parameters. The random laser exhibits a noise level of 6  Hz²/Hz at 2 kHz, which is lower than what is found in conventional narrow-linewidth EDF fiber lasers and nonplanar ring laser oscillators (NPROs) by a factor of 166 and 2, respectively. The frequency noise has a minimum value for an optimum length of the Rayleigh scattering fiber.

Modulation characteristics of a high-power semiconductor Master Oscillator Power Amplifier (MOPA)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cornwell, Donald Mitchell, Jr.

1992-01-01

A semiconductor master oscillator-power amplifier was demonstrated using an anti-reflection (AR) coated broad area laser as the amplifier. Under CW operation, diffraction-limited single-longitudinal-mode powers up to 340 mW were demonstrated. The characteristics of the far-field pattern were measured and compared to a two-dimensional reflective Fabry-Perot amplifier model of the device. The MOPA configuration was modulated by the master oscillator. Prior to injection into the amplifier, the amplitude and frequency modulation properties of the master oscillator were characterized. The frequency response of the MOPA configuration was characterized for an AM/FM modulated injection beam, and was found to be a function of the frequency detuning between the master oscillator and the resonant amplifier. A shift in the phase was also observed as a function of frequency detuning; this phase shift is attributed to the optical phase shift imparted to a wave reflected from a Fabry-Perot cavity. Square-wave optical pulses were generated at 10 MHz and 250 MHz with diffraction-limited peak powers of 200 mW and 250 mW. The peak power for a given modulation frequency is found to be limited by the injected power and the FM modulation at that frequency. The modulation results make the MOPA attractive for use as a transmitter source in applications such as free-space communications and ranging/altimetry.

Coordinate interferometric system for measuring the position of a sample with infrared telecom laser diode

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holá, Miroslava; Lazar, Josef; Čížek, Martin; Hucl, Václav; Řeřucha, Šimon; Číp, Ondřej

2016-11-01

We report on a design of an interferometric position measuring system for control of a sample stage in an e-beam writer with reproducibility of the position on nanometer level and resolution below nanometer. We introduced differential configuration of the interferometer where the position is measured with respect to a central reference point to eliminate deformations caused by thermal and pressure effects on the vacuum chamber. The reference is here the electron gun of the writer. The interferometer is designed to operate at infrared, telecommunication wavelength due to the risk of interference of stray light with sensitive photodetectors in the chamber. The laser source is here a narrow-linewidth DFB laser diode with electronics of our own design offering precision and stability of temperature and current, low-noise, protection from rf interference, and high-frequency modulation. Detection of the interferometric signal relies on a novel derivative technique utilizing hf frequency modulation and phase-sensitive detection.

Two-phase SLIPI for instantaneous LIF and Mie imaging of transient fuel sprays.

PubMed

Storch, Michael; Mishra, Yogeshwar Nath; Koegl, Matthias; Kristensson, Elias; Will, Stefan; Zigan, Lars; Berrocal, Edouard

2016-12-01

We report in this Letter a two-phase structured laser illumination planar imaging [two-pulse SLIPI (2p-SLIPI)] optical setup where the "lines structure" is spatially shifted by exploiting the birefringence property of a calcite crystal. By using this optical component and two cross-polarized laser pulses, the shift of the modulated pattern is not "time-limited" anymore. Consequently, two sub-images with spatially mismatched phases can be recorded within a few hundred of nanoseconds only, freezing the motion of the illuminated transient flow. In comparison with previous setups for instantaneous imaging based on structured illumination, the current optical design presents the advantage of having a single optical path, greatly simplifying its complexity. Due to its virtue of suppressing the effects from multiple light scattering, the 2p-SLIPI technique is applied here in an optically dense multi-jet direct-injection spark-ignition (DISI) ethanol spray. The fast formation of polydispersed droplets and appearance of voids after fuel injection are investigated by simultaneous detection of Mie scattering and liquid laser-induced fluorescence. The results allow for significantly improved analysis of the spray structure.

Digital Data Acquisition for Laser Radar for Vibration Analysis

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-06-01

and the resulting signal is a function of the relative phase of the two waves , which changes as the target vibrates. The relative phase is inversely...light crosses the medium in a direction perpendicular to the acoustic waves , a modulated optical wave front will result. A standing acoustic wave in the...mean that the frequency can be up or down-shifted, depending on the orientation of the AOM, or the direction of the traveling acoustic waves . An

Ultrafast gigantic photo-response in (EDO-TTF)2PF6 initiated by 10-fs laser pulses

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schoenlein, Robert William; Itatani, Jiro; Rini, Matteo

2006-08-07

We photo-exited a charge-ordered organic salt (EDO-TTF)2PF6 with sub-10-fs optical pulses. The photo-induced metallic phase appeared within 80-fs after pumping, characterized by large changes in reflectivity (DELTA R/R~0.8) followed by strong coherent phonon modulation

Generation of UV light by intense ultrashort laser pulses in air

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alexeev, Ilya; Ting, Antonio; Gordon, Daniel; Briscoe, Eldridge; Penano, Joe; Sprangle, Phillip

2004-11-01

The propagation of collimated high-peak-power ultrashort laser pulses in air has attracted considerable attention, which may have a variety of important applications including remote sensing and chemical-biological aerosols standoff detection. Sub-millimeter diameter laser filaments can develop without any focusing optics and instead solely from laser self-focusing and plasma formation in air. These filaments can produce ultraviolet radiations in the form of the 3rd harmonic of the fundamental frequency and also through spectral broadening due to self-phase modulation of the laser pulse. Using femtosecond laser pulses produced by a high power Ti:Sapphire laser (0.8 TW, 50 fs, 800 nm) we observed generation of the third harmonic radiation light in air (centered around 267 nm) by the laser filaments. Characterization of the 3rd harmonic generation with respect to the major gas components of the air will be reported. Supported by the ONR and RDECOM. I. Alexeev is NRC/NRL Post-Doc.

Chirped laser dispersion spectroscopy using a directly modulated quantum cascade laser

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hangauer, Andreas, E-mail: hangauer@princeton.edu; Nikodem, Michal; Wysocki, Gerard, E-mail: gwysocki@princeton.edu

2013-11-04

Chirped laser dispersion spectroscopy (CLaDS) utilizing direct modulation of a quantum cascade laser (QCL) is presented. By controlling the laser bias nearly single- and dual-sideband CLaDS operation can be realized in an extremely simplified optical setup with no external optical modulators. Capability of direct single-sideband modulation is a unique feature of QCLs that exhibit a low linewidth enhancement factor. The developed analytical model shows excellent agreement with the experimental, directly modulated CLaDS spectra. This method overcomes major technical limitations of mid-infrared CLaDS systems by allowing significantly higher modulation frequencies and eliminating optical fringes introduced by external modulators.

10 GHz dual loop opto-electronic oscillator without RF-amplifiers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Weimin; Okusaga, Olukayode; Nelson, Craig; Howe, David; Carter, Gary

2008-02-01

We report the first demonstration of a 10 GHz dual-fiber-loop Opto-Electronic Oscillator (OEO) without RF-amplifiers. Using a recently developed highly efficient RF-Photonic link with RF-to-RF gain facilitated by a high power laser, highly efficient optical modulator and high power phototectectors, we have built an amplifier-less OEO that eliminates the phase noise produced by the electronic amplifier. The dual-loop approach can provide additional gain and reduce unwanted multi-mode spurs. However, we have observed RF phase noise produced by the high power laser include relative intensity noise (RIN) and noise related to the laser's electronic control system. In addition, stimulated Brillouin scattering limits the fiber loop's length to ~2km at the 40mW laser power needed to provide the RF gain which limits the system's quality factor, Q. We have investigated several different methods for solving these problems. One promising technique is the use of a multi-longitudinal-mode laser to carry the RF signal, maintaining the total optical power but reducing the optical power of each mode to eliminate the Brillouin scattering in a longer fiber thereby reducing the phase noise of the RF signal produced by the OEO. This work shows that improvement in photonic components increases the potential for more RF system applications such as an OEO's with higher performance and new capabilities.

Characterization of modulated time-of-flight range image sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Payne, Andrew D.; Dorrington, Adrian A.; Cree, Michael J.; Carnegie, Dale A.

2009-01-01

A number of full field image sensors have been developed that are capable of simultaneously measuring intensity and distance (range) for every pixel in a given scene using an indirect time-of-flight measurement technique. A light source is intensity modulated at a frequency between 10-100 MHz, and an image sensor is modulated at the same frequency, synchronously sampling light reflected from objects in the scene (homodyne detection). The time of flight is manifested as a phase shift in the illumination modulation envelope, which can be determined from the sampled data simultaneously for each pixel in the scene. This paper presents a method of characterizing the high frequency modulation response of these image sensors, using a pico-second laser pulser. The characterization results allow the optimal operating parameters, such as the modulation frequency, to be identified in order to maximize the range measurement precision for a given sensor. A number of potential sources of error exist when using these sensors, including deficiencies in the modulation waveform shape, duty cycle, or phase, resulting in contamination of the resultant range data. From the characterization data these parameters can be identified and compensated for by modifying the sensor hardware or through post processing of the acquired range measurements.

Primary Radiometry for the mise-en-pratique: The Laser-Based Radiance Method Applied to a Pyrometer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Briaudeau, S.; Sadli, M.; Bourson, F.; Rougi, B.; Rihan, A.; Zondy, J.-J.

2011-12-01

A new setup has been implemented at LCM-LNE-CNAM for the determination "of the spectral responsivity of radiation thermometers for the determination" of the thermodynamic temperature of high-temperature blackbodies at the temperature of a metal-carbon eutectic phase transition. In this new setup, an innovative acoustic-optic modulator feedback loop is used to stabilize the radiance of a wavelength tunable laser. The effect of residual optical interferences on the calibration of a test pyrometer is analyzed. The full uncertainty budget is presented.

Frequency modulation spectroscopy with a THz quantum-cascade laser.

PubMed

Eichholz, R; Richter, H; Wienold, M; Schrottke, L; Hey, R; Grahn, H T; Hübers, H-W

2013-12-30

We report on a terahertz spectrometer for high-resolution molecular spectroscopy based on a quantum-cascade laser. High-frequency modulation (up to 50 MHz) of the laser driving current produces a simultaneous modulation of the frequency and amplitude of the laser output. The modulation generates sidebands, which are symmetrically positioned with respect to the laser carrier frequency. The molecular transition is probed by scanning the sidebands across it. In this way, the absorption and the dispersion caused by the molecular transition are measured. The signals are modeled by taking into account the simultaneous modulation of the frequency and amplitude of the laser emission. This allows for the determination of the strength of the frequency as well as amplitude modulation of the laser and of molecular parameters such as pressure broadening.

Enhancement of the static extinction ratio by using a dual-section distributed feedback laser integrated with an electro-absorption modulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cho, Chun-Hyung; Kim, Jongseong; Sung, Hyuk-Kee

2016-09-01

We report on the enhancement of the static extinction ratio by using a dual-section distributed feedback laser diode integrated with an electro-absorption modulator. A directly- modulated dual-section laser can provide improved modulation performance under a low bias level ( i.e., below the threshold level) compared with a standard directly-modulated laser. By combining the extinction ratio from a dual-section laser with that from an electro-absorption modulator section, a total extinction ratio of 49.6. dB are successfully achieved.

Characterization of depolarizing fringing fields of a liquid crystal spatial light modulator for laser beam steering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haellstig, Emil J.; Martin, Torleif; Stigwall, Johan; Sjoqvist, Lars; Lindgren, Mikael

2004-02-01

A commercial linear one-dimensional, 1x4096 pixels, zero-twist nematic liquid crystal spatial light modulator (SLM), giving more than 2π phase modulation at λ = 850 nm, was evaluated for beam steering applications. The large ratio (7:1) between the liquid crystal layer thickness and pixel width gives rise to voltage leakage and fringing fields between pixels. Due to the fringing fields the ideal calculated phase patterns cannot be perfectly realized by the device. Losses in high frequency components in the phase patterns were found to limit the maximum deflection angle. The inhomogeneous optical anisotropy of the SLM was determined by modelling of the liquid crystal director distribution within the electrode-pixel structure. The effects of the fringing fields on the amplitude and phase modulation were studied by full vector finite-difference time-domain simulations. It was found that the fringing fields also resulted in coupling into an unwanted polarization mode. Measurements of how this mode coupling affects the beam steering quality were carried out and the results compared with calculated results. A method to compensate for the fringing field effects is discussed and it is shown how the usable steering range of the SLM can be extended to +/- 2 degrees.

Generation of dark hollow femtosecond pulsed beam by phase-only liquid crystal spatial light modulator.

PubMed

Nie, Yongming; Ma, Haotong; Li, Xiujian; Hu, Wenhua; Yang, Jiankun

2011-07-20

Based on the refractive laser beam shaping system, the dark hollow femtosecond pulse beam shaping technique with a phase-only liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LC-SLM) is demonstrated. The phase distribution of the LC-SLM is derived by the energy conservation and constant optical path principle. The effects of the shaping system on the temporal properties, including spectral phase distribution and bandwidth of the femtosecond pulse, are analyzed in detail. Experimental results show that the hollow intensity distribution of the output pulsed beam can be maintained much at more than 1200 mm. The spectral phase of the pulse is changed, and the pulse width is expanded from 199 to 230 fs, which is caused by the spatial-temporal coupling effect. The coupling effect mainly depends on the phase-only LC-SLM itself, not on its loaded phase distribution. The experimental results indicate that the proposed shaping setup can generate a dark hollow femtosecond pulsed beam effectively, because the temporal Gaussian waveform is unchanged. © 2011 Optical Society of America

Matched-filtering generalized phase contrast using LCoS pico-projectors for beam-forming.

PubMed

Bañas, Andrew; Palima, Darwin; Glückstad, Jesper

2012-04-23

We report on a new beam-forming system for generating high intensity programmable optical spikes using so-called matched-filtering Generalized Phase Contrast (mGPC) applying two consumer handheld pico-projectors. Such a system presents a low-cost alternative for optical trapping and manipulation, optical lattices and other beam-shaping applications usually implemented with high-end spatial light modulators. Portable pico-projectors based on liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) devices are used as binary phase-only spatial light modulators by carefully setting the appropriate polarization of the laser illumination. The devices are subsequently placed into the object and Fourier plane of a standard 4f-setup according to the mGPC spatial filtering configuration. Having a reconfigurable spatial phase filter, instead of a fixed and fabricated one, allows the beam shaper to adapt to different input phase patterns suited for different requirements. Despite imperfections in these consumer pico-projectors, the mGPC approach tolerates phase aberrations that would have otherwise been hard to overcome by standard phase projection. © 2012 Optical Society of America

Generation and detection of edge magnetoplasmons in a quantum Hall system using a photoconductive switch

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Chaojing; Morita, Kyosuke; Muraki, Koji; Fujisawa, Toshimasa

2018-04-01

Edge magnetoplasmons (EMPs) are unidirectional charge density waves travelling in an edge channel of a two-dimensional electron gas in the quantum Hall regime. We present both generation and detection schemes with a photoconductive switch (PCS) for EMPs. Here, the conductance of the PCS is modulated by irradiation with a laser beam, whose amplitude can be modulated by an external signal. When the PCS is used as a generator, the electrical current from the PCS is injected into the edge channel to excite EMPs. When the PCS is used as a detector, the electronic potential induced by EMPs is applied to the PCS with a modulated laser beam so as to constitute a phase-sensitive measurement. For both experiments, we confirm that the time of flight for the EMPs increases with the magnetic field in agreement with the EMP characteristics. Combination of the two schemes would be useful in investigating and utilizing EMPs at higher frequencies.

Optical microwave interactions in semiconductor devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Figueroa, L.; Slayman, C. W.; Yen, H. W.

1980-11-01

The results of an extensive characterization of high speed analog modulation of (GaAl)As injection lasers, high speed optical detectors, and mode locking of (GaAl)As injection lasers are presented. Commercial injection lasers were successfully modulated up to 5 GHz. The 5 GHz value represents a practical upper limit to the modulation bandwith of existing commercial lasers. The laser equivalent circuit was characterized and the parasitics were found to play a significant role in the high speed modulation of the injection laser.

VCSEL Scaling, Laser Integration on Silicon, and Bit Energy

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-03-01

need of high efficiency with high temperature operation eliminates essentially all laser diode technologies except VCSELs. Therefore scaling of the...CW laser diode and separate modulator. Lower diagram circuitry shows the case for a DML VCSEL. The small gain volume and high speed modulation...speed of the modulator. However the CW laser that is needed for the modulator appears to create a technological roadblock for laser diode platforms

Generation of a CW local oscillator signal using a stabilized injection locked semiconductor laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pezeshki, Jonah Massih

In high speed-communications, it is desirable to be able to detect small signals while maintaining a low bit-error rate. Conventional receivers for high-speed fiber optic networks are Amplified Direct Detectors (ADDs) that use erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs) before the detector to achieve a suitable sensitivity. In principle, a better method for obtaining the maximum possible signal to noise ratio is through the use of homodyne detection. The major difficulty in implementing a homodyne detection system is the generation of a suitable local oscillator signal. This local oscillator signal must be at the same frequency as the received data signal, as well as be phase coherent with it. To accomplish this, a variety of synchronization techniques have been explored, including Optical Phase-Lock Loops (OPLL), Optical Injection Locking (OIL) with both Fabry-Perot and DFB lasers, and an Optical Injection Phase-Lock Loop (OIPLL). For this project I have implemented a method for regenerating a local oscillator from a portion of the received optical signal. This regenerated local oscillator is at the same frequency, and is phase coherent with, the received optical signal. In addition, we show that the injection locking process can be electronically stabilized by using the modulation transfer ratio of the slave laser as a monitor, given either a DFB or Fabry-Perot slave laser. We show that this stabilization technique maintains injection lock (given a locking range of ˜1GHz) for laser drift much greater than what is expected in a typical transmission system. In addition, we explore the quality of the output of the slave laser, and analyze its suitability as a local oscillator signal for a homodyne receiver.

Experimental evidence of body centered cubic iron in Earth's core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hrubiak, R.; Meng, Y.; Shen, G.

2017-12-01

The Earth's core is mainly composed of iron. While seismic evidence has shown a liquid outer core and a solid inner core, the crystalline nature of the solid iron at the core condition remains debated, largely due to the difficulties in experimental determination of exact polymorphs at corresponding pressure-temperature conditions. We have examined crystal structures of iron up to 220 GPa and 6000 K with x-ray diffraction using a double-sided laser heating system at HPCAT, Advanced Photon Source. The iron sample is confined in a small chamber surrounded by single crystal MgO. The laser power can be modulated together with temperature measurements. The modulated heating of iron in an MgO single crystal matrix allows for microstructure analysis during heating and after the sample is quenched. We present experimental evidence of a body-centered-cubic (BCC) iron from about 100 GPa and 3000 K to at least 220 GPa and 4000 K. The observed BCC phase may be consistent with a theoretically predicted BCC phase that is dynamically stable in similar pressure-temperature conditions [1]. We will discuss the stability region of the BCC phase and the melting curve of iron and their implications in the nature of the Earth's inner core. References: A. B. Belonoshko et al., Nat. Geosci., 1-6 (2017).

Error compensation of IQ modulator using two-dimensional DFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ohshima, Takashi; Maesaka, Hirokazu; Matsubara, Shinichi; Otake, Yuji

2016-06-01

It is important to precisely set and keep the phase and amplitude of an rf signal in the accelerating cavity of modern accelerators, such as an X-ray Free Electron Laser (XFEL) linac. In these accelerators an acceleration rf signal is generated or detected by an In-phase and Quadrature (IQ) modulator, or a demodulator. If there are any deviations of the phase and the amplitude from the ideal values, crosstalk between the phase and the amplitude of the output signal of the IQ modulator or the demodulator arises. This causes instability of the feedback controls that simultaneously stabilize both the rf phase and the amplitude. To compensate for such deviations, we developed a novel compensation method using a two-dimensional Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT). Because the observed deviations of the phase and amplitude of an IQ modulator involve sinusoidal and polynomial behaviors on the phase angle and the amplitude of the rf vector, respectively, the DFT calculation with these basis functions makes a good approximation with a small number of compensation coefficients. Also, we can suppress high-frequency noise components arising when we measure the deviation data. These characteristics have advantages compared to a Look Up Table (LUT) compensation method. The LUT method usually demands many compensation elements, such as about 300, that are not easy to treat. We applied the DFT compensation method to the output rf signal of a C-band IQ modulator at SACLA, which is an XFEL facility in Japan. The amplitude deviation of the IQ modulator after the DFT compensation was reduced from 15.0% at the peak to less than 0.2% at the peak for an amplitude control range of from 0.1 V to 0.9 V (1.0 V full scale) and for a phase control range from 0 degree to 360 degrees. The number of compensation coefficients is 60, which is smaller than that of the LUT method, and is easy to treat and maintain.

Simultaneous multicolor imaging of wide-field epi-fluorescence microscopy with four-bucket detection

PubMed Central

Park, Kwan Seob; Kim, Dong Uk; Lee, Jooran; Kim, Geon Hee; Chang, Ki Soo

2016-01-01

We demonstrate simultaneous imaging of multiple fluorophores using wide-field epi-fluorescence microscopy with a monochrome camera. The intensities of the three lasers are modulated by a sinusoidal waveform in order to excite each fluorophore with the same modulation frequency and a different time-delay. Then, the modulated fluorescence emissions are simultaneously detected by a camera operating at four times the excitation frequency. We show that two different fluorescence beads having crosstalk can be clearly separated using digital processing based on the phase information. In addition, multiple organelles within multi-stained single cells are shown with the phase mapping method, demonstrating an improved dynamic range and contrast compared to the conventional fluorescence image. These findings suggest that wide-field epi-fluorescence microscopy with four-bucket detection could be utilized for high-contrast multicolor imaging applications such as drug delivery and fluorescence in situ hybridization. PMID:27375944

Inverse four-wave-mixing and self-parametric amplification effect in optical fibre

PubMed Central

Turitsyn, Sergei K.; Bednyakova, Anastasia E.; Fedoruk, Mikhail P.; Papernyi, Serguei B.; Clements, Wallace R.L.

2015-01-01

An important group of nonlinear processes in optical fibre involves the mixing of four waves due to the intensity dependence of the refractive index. It is customary to distinguish between nonlinear effects that require external/pumping waves (cross-phase modulation and parametric processes such as four-wave mixing) and self-action of the propagating optical field (self-phase modulation and modulation instability). Here, we present a new nonlinear self-action effect, self-parametric amplification (SPA), which manifests itself as optical spectrum narrowing in normal dispersion fibre, leading to very stable propagation with a distinctive spectral distribution. The narrowing results from an inverse four-wave mixing, resembling an effective parametric amplification of the central part of the spectrum by energy transfer from the spectral tails. SPA and the observed stable nonlinear spectral propagation with random temporal waveform can find applications in optical communications and high power fibre lasers with nonlinear intra-cavity dynamics. PMID:26345290

Electro-optic modulator material

DOEpatents

Adams, John J.; Ebbers, Chris A.

2005-02-22

An electro-optic device for use with a laser beam. A crystal has a first face and a second face. Means are provided for applying a voltage across the crystal to obtain a net phase retardation on the polarization of the laser beam when the laser beam is passed through the crystal. In one embodiment the crystal is composed of a compound having the chemical formula ReAe40(BO3)3 where: RE consists of one or more of the following elements La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu and two other elements Y and Sc; and where Ae is from the list of Ca, Sr, or Ba.

Generation of 70 fs broadband pulses in a hybrid nonlinear amplification system with mode-locked Yb:YAG ceramic oscillator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Yang; Wang, Chao; Luo, Daping; Yang, Chao; Li, Jiang; Ge, Lin; Pan, Yubai; Li, Wenxue

2017-12-01

We demonstrate the passively mode-locked laser performances of bulk Yb:YAG ceramic prepared by non-aqueous tape casting, which generates initial pulses in temporal width of 3 ps and spectrum width of 3 nm without intra-cavity dispersion management. The ceramic laser is further used as seeding oscillator in a fiber nonlinear amplification system, where ultrashort pulses in maximum output power of ˜100 W and pulse duration of 70 fs are achieved. Moreover, the laser spectrum is broadened to be ˜41 nm due to self-phase modulation effects in the gain fiber, overcoming the narrow spectrum limitations of ceramic materials. Our approach opens a new avenue for power-scaling and spectrum-expanding of femtosecond ceramic lasers.

Laser frequency modulator for modulating a laser cavity

DOEpatents

Erbert, Gaylen V.

1992-01-01

The present invention relates to a laser frequency modulator for modulating a laser cavity. It is known in the prior art to utilize a PZT (piezoelectric transducer) element in combination with a mirror to change the cavity length of a laser cavity (which changes the laser frequency). Using a PZT element to drive the mirror directly is adequate at frequencies below 10 kHz. However, in high frequency applications (100 kHz and higher) PZT elements alone do not provide a sufficient change in the cavity length. The present invention utilizes an ultrasonic concentrator with a PZT element and mirror to provide modulation of the laser cavity. With an ultrasonic concentrator, the mirror element at the end of a laser cavity can move at larger amplitudes and higher frequencies.

High-Reliability Pump Module for Non-Planar Ring Oscillator Laser

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liu, Duncan T.; Qiu, Yueming; Wilson, Daniel W.; Dubovitsky, Serge; Forouhar, Siamak

2007-01-01

We propose and have demonstrated a prototype high-reliability pump module for pumping a Non-Planar Ring Oscillator (NPRO) laser suitable for space missions. The pump module consists of multiple fiber-coupled single-mode laser diodes and a fiber array micro-lens array based fiber combiner. The reported Single-Mode laser diode combiner laser pump module (LPM) provides a higher normalized brightness at the combined beam than multimode laser diode based LPMs. A higher brightness from the pump source is essential for efficient NPRO laser pumping and leads to higher reliability because higher efficiency requires a lower operating power for the laser diodes, which in turn increases the reliability and lifetime of the laser diodes. Single-mode laser diodes with Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) stabilized wavelength permit the pump module to be operated without a thermal electric cooler (TEC) and this further improves the overall reliability of the pump module. The single-mode laser diode LPM is scalable in terms of the number of pump diodes and is capable of combining hundreds of fiber-coupled laser diodes. In the proof-of-concept demonstration, an e-beam written diffractive micro lens array, a custom fiber array, commercial 808nm single mode laser diodes, and a custom NPRO laser head are used. The reliability of the proposed LPM is discussed.

Laser entertainment and light shows in education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sabaratnam, Andrew T.; Symons, Charles

2002-05-01

Laser shows and beam effects have been a source of entertainment since its first public performance May 9, 1969, at Mills College in Oakland, California. Since 1997, the Photonics Center, NgeeAnn Polytechnic, Singapore, has been using laser shows as a teaching tool. Students are able to exhibit their creative skills and learn at the same time how lasers are used in the entertainment industry. Students will acquire a number of skills including handling three- phase power supply, operation of cooling system, and laser alignment. Students also acquire an appreciation of the arts, learning about shapes and contours as they develop graphics for the shows. After holography, laser show animation provides a combination of the arts and technology. This paper aims to briefly describe how a krypton-argon laser, galvanometer scanners, a polychromatic acousto-optic modulator and related electronics are put together to develop a laser projector. The paper also describes how students are trained to make their own laser animation and beam effects with music, and at the same time have an appreciation of the operation of a Class IV laser and the handling of optical components.

Optical single side-band Nyquist PAM-4 transmission using dual-drive MZM modulation and direct detection.

PubMed

Zhu, Mingyue; Zhang, Jing; Yi, Xingwen; Ying, Hao; Li, Xiang; Luo, Ming; Song, Yingxiong; Huang, Xiatao; Qiu, Kun

2018-03-19

We present the design and optimization of the optical single side-band (SSB) Nyquist four-level pulse amplitude modulation (PAM-4) transmission using dual-drive Mach-Zehnder modulator (DDMZM)modulation and direct detection (DD), aiming at the C-band cost-effective, high-speed and long-distance transmission. At the transmitter, the laser line width should be small to avoid the phase noise to amplitude noise conversion and equalization-enhanced phase noise due to the large chromatic dispersion (CD). The optical SSB signal is generated after optimizing the optical modulation index (OMI) and hence the minimum phase condition which is required by the Kramers-Kronig (KK) receiver can also be satisfied. At the receiver, a simple AC-coupled photodiode (PD) is used and a virtual carrier is added for the KK operation to alleviate the signal-to-signal beating interference (SSBI).A Volterra filter (VF) is cascaded for remaining nonlinearities mitigation. When the fiber nonlinearity becomes significant, we elect to use an optical band-pass filter with offset filtering. It can suppress the simulated Brillouin scattering and the conjugated distortion by filtering out the imaging frequency components. With our design and optimization, we achieve single-channel, single polarization 102.4-Gb/s Nyquist PAM-4 over 800-km standard single-mode fiber (SSMF).

Integration of hybrid silicon lasers and electroabsorption modulators.

PubMed

Sysak, Matthew N; Anthes, Joel O; Bowers, John E; Raday, Omri; Jones, Richard

2008-08-18

We present an integration platform based on quantum well intermixing for multi-section hybrid silicon lasers and electroabsorption modulators. As a demonstration of the technology, we have fabricated discrete sampled grating DBR lasers and sampled grating DBR lasers integrated with InGaAsP/InP electroabsorption modulators. The integrated sampled grating DBR laser-modulators use the as-grown III-V bandgap for optical gain, a 50 nm blue shifted bandgap for the electrabosprtion modulators, and an 80 nm blue shifted bandgap for low loss mirrors. Laser continuous wave operation up to 45 ?C is achieved with output power >1.0 mW and threshold current of <50 mA. The modulator bandwidth is >2GHz with 5 dB DC extinction.

A novel post-weld-shift measurement and compensation technique in butterfly-type laser module packages

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsu, Yi-Cheng, Sr.; Tsai, Y. C.; Hung, Y. S.; Cheng, W. H.

2005-08-01

One of the greatest challenges in the packaging of laser modules using laser welding technique is to use a reliable and accurate joining process. However, during welding, due to the material property difference between welded components, the rapid solidification of the welded region and the associated material shrinkage often introduced a post-weld-shift (PWS) between welded components. For a typical single-mode fiber application, if the PWS induced fiber alignment shift by the laser welding joining process is even a few micrometers, up to 50 % or greater loss in the coupled power may occur. The fiber alignment shift of the PWS effect in the laser welding process has a significant impact on the laser module package yield. Therefore, a detailed understanding of the effects of PWS on the fiber alignment shifts in laser-welded laser module packages and then the compensation of the fiber alignment shifts due to PWS effects are the key research subjects in laser welding techniques for optoelectronic packaging applications. Previously, the power losses due to PWS in butterfly-type laser module packages have been qualitatively corrected by applying the laser hammering technique to the direction of the detected shift. Therefore, by applying an elastic deformation to the welded components and by observing the corresponding power variation, the direction and magnitude of the PWS may be predicted. Despite numerous studies on improving the fabrication yields of laser module packaging using the PWS correction in laser welding techniques by a qualitative estimate, limited information is available for the quantitative understanding of the PWS induced fiber alignment shift which can be useful in designing and fabricating high-yield and high-performance laser module packages. The purpose of this paper is to present a quantitative probing of the PWS induced fiber alignment shift in laser-welded butterfly-type laser module packaging by employing a novel technique of a high-magnification camera with image capture system (HMCICS). The benefit of using the HMCICS technique to determine the fiber alignment shift are quantitatively measure and compensate the PWS direction and magnitude during the laser-welded laser module packages. This study makes it possible to probe the nonlinear behavior of the PWS by using a novel HMCICS technique that results in a real time quantitative compensation of the PWS in butterfly-type laser module packages, when compared to the currently available qualitatively estimated techniques to correct the PWS2. Therefore, the reliable butterfly-type laser modules with high yield and high performance used in lightwave transmission systems may thus be developed and fabricated.

On-chip tunable dispersion in a ring laser gyroscope for enhanced rotation sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Hao; Liu, Jiaming; Lin, Jian; Li, Wenxiu; Xue, Xia; Huang, Anping; Xiao, Zhisong

2016-05-01

A gyroscope structure with tailored local dispersion profile to enhance sensitivity is proposed, which uses lithium niobate (LiNbO3) thin film as the on-chip material of gyroscope's resonator. A Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) structure as a coupler, which induces a different reference phase shift in each arm, is inserted into the position between ring resonator and output bus waveguide. Through modulating reference phase shift in MZI, theoretical rotation sensitivity enhancement as large as one order of magnitude is presented.

Initial High-Power-CW-Laser Testing of Liquid-Crystal Optical Phased Arrays

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-02-01

During testing, the pump was operated in its "turbo" mode. The temperature was monitored by one of two devices: an Omega HH82 digital...could be investigated. The bar was controlled by an Omega CN76000 temperature controller. The temperature was monitored by the same two devices used...increased. The traces in figure 6 show the phase modulation come back to life as the power was then lowered to 20 watts, 10 watts, and after

Laser modulator for LISA pathfinder

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voland, C.; Lund, G.; Coppoolse, W.; Crosby, P.; Stadler, M.; Kudielka, K.; Özkan, C.

2017-11-01

LISA Pathfinder is an ESA experiment to demonstrate the key technologies needed for the LISA mission to detect gravitational waves in space. The LISA Pathfinder spacecraft represents one arm of the LISA interferometer, containing an optical metrology system and two proof masses as inertial references for the drag-free control system. The LISA Pathfinder payload consists of two drag-free floating test masses located in the inertial sensors with their control electronics and an optical metrology subsystem. The optical metrology subsystem monitors the movement of both test masses relative to each other and to the spacecraft with very high sensitivity and resolution. This is achieved with a heterodyne Mach- Zehnder interferometer. This interferometer requires as input two coherent laser beams with a heterodyne frequency difference of a few kHz. To generate the two laser beams with a heterodyne frequency difference a Nd:YAG laser is used together with the Laser Modulator. The Nd:YAG laser generates a single coherent laser signal at a wavelength of 1064nm which is fibre coupled to the Laser Modulator. The Laser Modulator then generates the two optical beams with the required heterodyne frequency offset. In addition, the Laser Modulator is required to perform laser amplitude stabilization and optical path difference control for the two optical signals. The Laser Modulator consists of an optical unit - the LMU - and RF synthesiser, power amplification and control electronics. These electronics are all housed in the Laser Modulator Electronics (LME). The LMU has four primary functions: • Splitting of the input laser beam into two paths for later superposition in the interferometer. • Applying different frequency shifts to each of the beams. • Providing amplitude modulation control to each of the beams. • Providing active control of the optical path length difference between the two optical paths. The present paper describes the design and performance of the LMU together with a summary of the results of the Laser Modulator engineering model test campaign.

Calibration-free absolute frequency response measurement of directly modulated lasers based on additional modulation.

PubMed

Zhang, Shangjian; Zou, Xinhai; Wang, Heng; Zhang, Yali; Lu, Rongguo; Liu, Yong

2015-10-15

A calibration-free electrical method is proposed for measuring the absolute frequency response of directly modulated semiconductor lasers based on additional modulation. The method achieves the electrical domain measurement of the modulation index of directly modulated lasers without the need for correcting the responsivity fluctuation in the photodetection. Moreover, it doubles measuring frequency range by setting a specific frequency relationship between the direct and additional modulation. Both the absolute and relative frequency response of semiconductor lasers are experimentally measured from the electrical spectrum of the twice-modulated optical signal, and the measured results are compared to those obtained with conventional methods to check the consistency. The proposed method provides calibration-free and accurate measurement for high-speed semiconductor lasers with high-resolution electrical spectrum analysis.

Radiation pressure excitation of Low Temperature Atomic Force & Magnetic Force Microscope (LT-AFM/MFM) for Imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karci, Ozgur; Celik, Umit; Oral, Ahmet; NanoMagnetics Instruments Ltd. Team; Middle East Tech Univ Team

2015-03-01

We describe a novel method for excitation of Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) cantilevers by means of radiation pressure for imaging in an AFM for the first time. Piezo excitation is the most common method for cantilever excitation, but it may cause spurious resonance peaks. A fiber optic interferometer with 1310 nm laser was used both to measure the deflection of cantilever and apply a force to the cantilever in a LT-AFM/MFM from NanoMagnetics Instruments. The laser power was modulated at the cantilever`s resonance frequency by a digital Phase Lock Loop (PLL). The force exerted by the radiation pressure on a perfectly reflecting surface by a laser beam of power P is F = 2P/c. We typically modulate the laser beam by ~ 800 μW and obtain 10nm oscillation amplitude with Q ~ 8,000 at 2.5x10-4 mbar. The cantilever's stiffness can be accurately calibrated by using the radiation pressure. We have demonstrated performance of the radiation pressure excitation in AFM/MFM by imaging a hard disk sample between 4-300K and Abrikosov vortex lattice in BSCCO single crystal at 4K to for the first time.

OPO-based compact laser projection display

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Dicky; Moulton, Peter F.; Bergstedt, Robert; Flint, Graham W.

2001-09-01

In this paper we discuss our red, green, and blue (RGB) optical parametric oscillator (OPO) based laser projection display. The complete project display consists of two subsystems, the RGB-OPO laser head and the light modulation unit. The RGB lights from rack-mounted laser head are fibers coupled to the projection unit for independent placement. The light source consists of a diode-pumped pump laser and a LBO-based OPO. Based on our Nd:YLF gain module design, the pump laser is frequency doubled to serve as the pump source for the OPO. The unconverted pump power is recycled as the green light for projection. The singly resonant, non- critically phase-matched (NCPM) OPO has, to date, generated 13 W of 898-nm signal power and an estimated 9.3 W of intra- cavity idler power at 1256 nm. With approximately 76% of pump depletion, the power of the residual green light for projection is about 5.8 W. We have extra-cavity doubled the signal to produce approximately 3.5 W of 449-nm blue light and intra-cavity doubled the idler to produce approximately 6 W of 628-nm red light. The OPO-based RGB source generates about 4000 lumens of D65-balanced white light. The overall electrical power on a commercially available JVC's three- panel D-ILA (reflective LCD) projector with the arc-lamp removed and extensive modifications. The projector has a native resolution of 1365 x 1024 and the expected on screen lumens from our laser display is about 1200 lumens.

Control of ultra-intense single attosecond pulse generation in laser-driven overdense plasmas.

PubMed

Liu, Qingcao; Xu, Yanxia; Qi, Xin; Zhao, Xiaoying; Ji, Liangliang; Yu, Tongpu; Wei, Luo; Yang, Lei; Hu, Bitao

2013-12-30

Ultra-intense single attosecond pulse (AP) can be obtained from circularly polarized (CP) laser interacting with overdense plasma. High harmonics are naturally generated in the reflected laser pulses due to the laser-induced one-time drastic oscillation of the plasma boundary. Using two-dimensional (2D) planar particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations and analytical model, we show that multi-dimensional effects have great influence on the generation of AP. Self-focusing and defocusing phenomena occur in front of the compressed plasma boundary, which lead to the dispersion of the generated AP in the far field. We propose to control the reflected high harmonics by employing a density-modulated foil target (DMFT). When the target density distribution fits the laser intensity profile, the intensity of the attosecond pulse generated from the center part of the plasma has a flatten profile within the center range in the transverse direction. It is shown that a single 300 attosecond (1 as = 10(-18)s) pulse with the intensity of 1.4 × 10(21) W cm(-2) can be naturally generated. Further simulations reveal that the reflected high harmonics properties are highly related to the modulated density distribution and the phase offset between laser field and the carrier envelope. The emission direction of the AP generated from the plasma boundary can be controlled in a very wide range in front of the plasma surface by combining the DMFT and a suitable driving laser.

Sampling modulation technique in radio-frequency helium glow discharge emission source by use of pulsed laser ablation.

PubMed

Naeem, Tariq Mahmood; Matsuta, Hideyuki; Wagatsuma, Kazuaki

2004-05-01

An emission excitation source comprising a high-frequency diode-pumped Q-switched Nd:YAG laser and a radio-frequency powered glow discharge lamp is proposed. In this system sample atoms ablated by the laser irradiation are introduced into the lamp chamber and subsequently excited by the helium glow discharge plasma. The pulsed operation of the laser can produce a cyclic variation in the emission intensities of the sample atoms whereas the plasma gas species emit the radiation continuously. The salient feature of the proposed technique is the selective detection of the laser modulation signal from the rest of the continuous background emissions, which can be achieved with the phase sensitive detection of the lock-in amplifier. The arrangement may be used to estimate the emission intensity of the laser ablated atom, free from the interference of other species present in the plasma. The experiments were conducted with a 13.56 MHz radio-frequency (rf) generator operated at 80 W power to produce plasma and the laser at a wavelength of 1064 nm (pulse duration:34 ns, repetition rate:7 kHz and average pulse energy of about 0.36 mJ) was employed for sample ablation. The measurements resulted in almost complete removal of nitrogen molecular bands (N(2)(+) 391.44 nm). Considerable reduction (about 75%) in the emission intensity of a carbon atomic line (C I 193.03 nm) was also observed.

Enhancing quantum effects via periodic modulations in optomechanical systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farace, Alessandro; Giovannetti, Vittorio

2012-07-01

Parametrically modulated optomechanical systems have been recently proposed as a simple and efficient setting for the quantum control of a micromechanical oscillator: relevant possibilities include the generation of squeezing in the oscillator position (or momentum) and the enhancement of entanglement between mechanical and radiation modes. In this paper we further investigate this modulation regime, considering an optomechanical system with one or more parameters being modulated over time. We first apply a sinusoidal modulation of the mechanical frequency and characterize the optimal regime in which the visibility of purely quantum effects is maximal. We then introduce a second modulation on the input laser intensity and analyze the interplay between the two. We find that an interference pattern shows up, so that different choices of the relative phase between the two modulations can either enhance or cancel the desired quantum effects, opening new possibilities for optimal quantum control strategies.

Laser confocal feedback tomography and nano-step height measurement

PubMed Central

Tan, Yidong; Wang, Weiping; Xu, Chunxin; Zhang, Shulian

2013-01-01

A promising method for tomography and step height measurement is proposed, which combines the high sensitivity of the frequency-shifted feedback laser and the axial positioning ability of confocal microscopy. By demodulating the feedback-induced intensity modulation signals, the obtained amplitude and phase information are used to respectively determine the coarse and fine measurement of the samples. Imaging the micro devices and biological samples by the demodulated amplitude, this approach is proved to be able to achieve the cross-sectional image in highly scattered mediums. And then the successful height measurement of nano-step on a glass-substrate grating by combination of both amplitude and phase information indicates its axial high resolution (better than 2 nm) in a non-ambiguous range of about ten microns. PMID:24145717

Arctic Gas Phase Water Vapor Measurements from the NASA DC-8 During SOLVE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Podolske, James; Sachse, Glen; Hipskind, R. Stephen (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

The NASA Langley / Ames Diode Laser Hygrometer (DLH) was flown aboard the NASA DC-8 during all three arctic deployments of the SOLVE campaign. The DLH measures gas phase H2O in the freestream air between the fuselage and the outer right engine cowling, essentially free from aircraft perturbations. It uses wavelength-modulated near-IR laser radiation at about 1.4 microns to detect the H2O absorption. Calibration is based on short path experiments in the laboratory using a NIST-traceable dewpoint hygrometer with carefully conditioned air at dewpoints between - 10 and + 10 degrees C. The theory of operation of the DLH instrument will be presented, along with a description of the calibration methodology. A simple climatology of H2O observations from SOLVE will be presented.

Non-linear optical crystal vibration sensing device

DOEpatents

Kalibjian, R.

1994-08-09

A non-linear optical crystal vibration sensing device including a photorefractive crystal and a laser is disclosed. The laser produces a coherent light beam which is split by a beam splitter into a first laser beam and a second laser beam. After passing through the crystal the first laser beam is counter-propagated back upon itself by a retro-mirror, creating a third laser beam. The laser beams are modulated, due to the mixing effect within the crystal by vibration of the crystal. In the third laser beam, modulation is stable and such modulation is converted by a photodetector into a usable electrical output, intensity modulated in accordance with vibration applied to the crystal. 3 figs.

Wavelength-preserving polarization-insensitive all-optical 3R regenerator based on self- and cross-phase modulation and offset filtering utilizing Raman amplification

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chung, Sung Han

Optical regeneration has the potential to significantly increase the reach of long-haul transmission systems. In this thesis, wavelength-preserving polarization-insensitive all-optical 3R regeneration is investigated and demonstrated for 10 and 40 Gb/s signals. The all-optical regenerator utilizes a self-pulsating laser for clock recovery, cross-phase modulation (XPM) based spectral broadening in a highly nonlinear fiber (HNLF) and offset filtering for retiming, and self-phase modulation based spectral broadening in a HNLF and offset filtering for reshaping. Raman amplification is used to increase the XPM-based spectral broadening and thus allow a design that meets the tradeoffs involved in simultaneously achieving good retiming and reshaping performance. The regenerator is shown to reduce amplitude noise and timing jitter while not causing a BER penalty. To fully validate the regeneration scheme, the cascadability is demonstrated using a recirculating loop. For a 10 Gb/s signal, with a regenerator spacing of 240 km, a return-to-zero, on-off-keyed (RZ-OOK) signal was transmitted over 18,000 km (75 loops) with a power penalty of 1.6 dB at a BER of 10 -9 compared to the back-to-back case. For a 40 Gb/s signal, with a regenerator spacing of 80 km, a RZ-OOK signal was transmitted over 8,000 km (100 loops) with a power penalty of 1.2 dB. In addition, all-optical 3R regeneration is demonstrated using a multimode quantum-dot Fabry Perot laser with ultra-low timing jitter.

Sub-μrad laser beam tracking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buske, Ivo; Riede, Wolfgang

2006-09-01

We compare active optical elements based on different technologies to accomplish the requirements of a 2-dim. fine tracking control system. A cascaded optically and electrically addressable spatial light modulator (OASLM) based on liquid crystals (LC) is used for refractive beam steering. Spatial light modulators provide a controllable phase wedge to generate a beam deflection. Additionally, a tip/tilt mirror approach operating with piezo-electric actuators is investigated. A digital PID controller is implemented for closed-loop control. Beam tracking with a root-mean-squared accuracy of Δα=30 nrad has been laboratory-confirmed.

Absolute Distance Measurement with the MSTAR Sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lay, Oliver P.; Dubovitsky, Serge; Peters, Robert; Burger, Johan; Ahn, Seh-Won; Steier, William H.; Fetterman, Harrold R.; Chang, Yian

2003-01-01

The MSTAR sensor (Modulation Sideband Technology for Absolute Ranging) is a new system for measuring absolute distance, capable of resolving the integer cycle ambiguity of standard interferometers, and making it possible to measure distance with sub-nanometer accuracy. The sensor uses a single laser in conjunction with fast phase modulators and low frequency detectors. We describe the design of the system - the principle of operation, the metrology source, beamlaunching optics, and signal processing - and show results for target distances up to 1 meter. We then demonstrate how the system can be scaled to kilometer-scale distances.

Hybrid III/V silicon photonic source with integrated 1D free-space beam steering.

PubMed

Doylend, J K; Heck, M J R; Bovington, J T; Peters, J D; Davenport, M L; Coldren, L A; Bowers, J E

2012-10-15

A chip-scale optical source with integrated beam steering is demonstrated. The chip was fabricated using the hybrid silicon platform and incorporates an on-chip laser, waveguide splitter, amplifiers, phase modulators, and surface gratings to comprise an optical phased array with beam steering across a 12° field of view in one axis. Tuning of the phased array is used to achieve 1.8°(steered axis)×0.6°(nonsteered axis) beam width with 7 dB background suppression for arbitrary beam direction within the field of view.

Attosecond control of electrons emitted from a nanoscale metal tip.

PubMed

Krüger, Michael; Schenk, Markus; Hommelhoff, Peter

2011-07-06

Attosecond science is based on steering electrons with the electric field of well controlled femtosecond laser pulses. It has led to the generation of extreme-ultraviolet pulses with a duration of less than 100 attoseconds (ref. 3; 1 as = 10(-18) s), to the measurement of intramolecular dynamics (by diffraction of an electron taken from the molecule under scrutiny) and to ultrafast electron holography. All these effects have been observed with atoms or molecules in the gas phase. Electrons liberated from solids by few-cycle laser pulses are also predicted to show a strong light-phase sensitivity, but only very small effects have been observed. Here we report that the spectra of electrons undergoing photoemission from a nanometre-scale tungsten tip show a dependence on the carrier-envelope phase of the laser, with a current modulation of up to 100 per cent. Depending on the carrier-envelope phase, electrons are emitted either from a single sub-500-attosecond interval of the 6-femtosecond laser pulse, or from two such intervals; the latter case leads to spectral interference. We also show that coherent elastic re-scattering of liberated electrons takes place at the metal surface. Owing to field enhancement at the tip, a simple laser oscillator reaches the peak electric field strengths required for attosecond experiments at 100-megahertz repetition rates, rendering complex amplified laser systems dispensable. Practically, this work represents a simple, extremely sensitive carrier-envelope phase sensor, which could be shrunk in volume to about one cubic centimetre. Our results indicate that the attosecond techniques developed with (and for) atoms and molecules can also be used with solids. In particular, we foresee subfemtosecond, subnanometre probing of collective electron dynamics (such as plasmon polaritons) in solid-state systems ranging in scale from mesoscopic solids to clusters and to single protruding atoms. ©2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved

Optical phase-locked loop (OPLL) for free-space laser communications with heterodyne detection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Win, Moe Z.; Chen, Chien-Chung; Scholtz, Robert A.

1991-01-01

Several advantages of coherent free-space optical communications are outlined. Theoretical analysis is formulated for an OPLL disturbed by shot noise, modulation noise, and frequency noise consisting of a white component, a 1/f component, and a 1/f-squared component. Each of the noise components is characterized by its associated power spectral density. It is shown that the effect of modulation depends only on the ratio of loop bandwidth and data rate, and is negligible for an OPLL with loop bandwidth smaller than one fourth the data rate. Total phase error variance as a function of loop bandwidth is displayed for several values of carrier signal to noise ratio. Optimal loop bandwidth is also calculated as a function of carrier signal to noise ratio. An OPLL experiment is performed, where it is shown that the measured phase error variance closely matches the theoretical predictions.

Frequency response control of semiconductor laser by using hybrid modulation scheme.

PubMed

Mieda, Shigeru; Yokota, Nobuhide; Isshiki, Ryuto; Kobayashi, Wataru; Yasaka, Hiroshi

2016-10-31

A hybrid modulation scheme that simultaneously applies the direct current modulation and intra-cavity loss modulation to a semiconductor laser is proposed. Both numerical calculations using rate equations and experiments using a fabricated laser show that the hybrid modulation scheme can control the frequency response of the laser by changing a modulation ratio and time delay between the two modulations. The modulation ratio and time delay provide the degree of signal mixing of the two modulations and an optimum condition is found when a non-flat frequency response for the intra-cavity loss modulation is compensated by that for the direct current modulation. We experimentally confirm a 8.64-dB improvement of the modulation sensitivity at 20 GHz compared with the pure direct current modulation with a 0.7-dB relaxation oscillation peak.

Metrology Arrangement for Measuring the Positions of Mirrors of a Submillimeter Telescope

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abramovici, Alex; Bartman, Randall K.

2011-01-01

The position of the secondary mirror of a submillimeter telescope with respect to the primary mirror needs to be known .0.03 mm in three dimensions. At the time of this reporting, no convenient, reasonably priced arrangement that offers this capability exists. The solution proposed here relies on measurement devices developed and deployed for the GeoSAR mission, and later adapted for the ISAT (Innovative Space Based Radar Antenna Technology) demonstration. The measurement arrangement consists of four metrology heads, located on an optical bench, attached to the secondary mirror. Each metrology head has a dedicated target located at the edge of the primary mirror. One laser beam, launched from the head and returned by the target, is used to measure distance. Another beam, launched from a beacon on the target, is monitored by the metrology head and generates a measurement of the target position in the plane perpendicular to the laser beam. A 100-MHz modulation is carried by a collimated laser beam. The relevant wavelength is the RF one, 3 m, divided by two, because the light carries it to the target and back. The phase change due to travel to the target and back is measured by timing the zero-crossing of the RF modulation, using a 100-MHz clock. In order to obtain good resolution, the 100-MHz modulation signal is down-converted to 1 kHz. Then, the phase change corresponding to the round-trip to the target is carried by a 1-kHz signal. Since the 100-MHz clock beats 100,000 times during one period of the 1-kHz signal, the least-significant-bit (LSB) resolution is LSB = 0.015 mm.

Spectral dynamics of THz pulses generated by two-color laser filaments in air: the role of Kerr nonlinearities and pump wavelength.

PubMed

Nguyen, A; González de Alaiza Martínez, P; Déchard, J; Thiele, I; Babushkin, I; Skupin, S; Bergé, L

2017-03-06

We theoretically and numerically study the influence of both instantaneous and Raman-delayed Kerr nonlinearities as well as a long-wavelength pump in the terahertz (THz) emissions produced by two-color femtosecond filaments in air. Although the Raman-delayed nonlinearity induced by air molecules weakens THz generation, four-wave mixing is found to impact the THz spectra accumulated upon propagation via self-, cross-phase modulations and self-steepening. Besides, using the local current theory, we show that the scaling of laser-to-THz conversion efficiency with the fundamental laser wavelength strongly depends on the relative phase between the two colors, the pulse duration and shape, rendering a universal scaling law impossible. Scaling laws in powers of the pump wavelength may only provide a rough estimate of the increase in the THz yield. We confront these results with comprehensive numerical simulations of strongly focused pulses and of filaments propagating over meter-range distances.

Development of thermally controlled HALNA DPSSL for inertial fusion energy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matsumoto, Osamu; Yasuhara, Ryo; Kurita, Takashi; Ikegawa, Tadashi; Sekine, Takashi; Kawashima, Toshiyuki; Kawanaka, Junji; Norimatsu, Takayoshi; Miyanaga, Noriaki; Izawa, Yasukazu; Nakatsuka, Masahiro; Miyamoto, Masahiro; Kan, Hirofumi; Furukawa, Hiroyuki; Motokoshi, Shinji

2006-02-01

We have been developing a high average-power laser system for science and industry applications that can generate an output of 20 J per pulse at 10-Hz operation. Water-cooled Nd:glass zig-zag slab is pumped with 803-nm AlGaAs laser-diode modules. To efficiently extract energy from the laser medium, the laser beam alternately passes through dual zig-zag slab amplifier modules. Twin LD modules equipped on each slab amplifier module pump the laser medium with a peak power density of 2.5 kW/cm2. In high power laser system, thermal load in the laser medium causes serious thermal effects. We arranged cladding glasses on the top and bottom of the laser slab to reduce thermal effects.

High-order above-threshold photoemission from nanotips controlled with two-color laser fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seiffert, Lennart; Paschen, Timo; Hommelhoff, Peter; Fennel, Thomas

2018-07-01

We investigate the process of phase-controlled high-order above-threshold photoemission from metallic nanotips under bichromatic laser fields. Experimental photoelectron spectra resulting from two-color excitation with a moderately intense near-infrared fundamental field (1560 nm) and its weak second harmonic show a strong sensitivity on the relative phase and clear indications for a plateau-like structure that is attributed to elastic backscattering. To explore the relevant control mechanisms, characteristic features, and particular signatures from the near-field inhomogeneity, we performed systematic quantum simulations employing a one-dimensional nanotip model. Besides rich phase-dependent structures in the simulated above-threshold ionization photoelectron spectra we find ponderomotive shifts as well as substantial modifications of the rescattering cutoff as function of the decay length of the near-field. To explore the quantum or classical nature of the observed features and to discriminate the two-color effects stemming from electron propagation and from the ionization rate we compare the quantum results to classical trajectory simulations. We show that signatures from direct electrons as well as the modulations in the plateau region mainly stem from control of the ionization probability, while the modulation in the cutoff region can only be explained by the impact of the two-color field on the electron trajectory. Despite the complexity of the phase-dependent features that render two-color strong-field photoemission from nanotips intriguing for sub-cycle strong-field control, our findings support that the recollision features in the cutoff region provide a robust and reliable method to calibrate the relative two-color phase.

Polydyne displacement interferometer using frequency-modulated light

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arablu, Masoud; Smith, Stuart T.

2018-05-01

A radio-frequency Frequency-Modulated (FM) signal is used to diffract a He-Ne laser beam through an Acousto-Optic Modulator (AOM). Due to the modulation of the FM signal, the measured spectra of the diffracted beams comprise a series of phase-synchronized harmonics that have exact integer frequency separation. The first diffraction side-beam emerging from the AOM is selected by a slit to be used in a polydyne displacement interferometer in a Michelson interferometer topology. The displacement measurement is derived from the phase measurement of selected modulation harmonic pairs. Individual harmonic frequency amplitudes are measured using discrete Fourier transform applied to the signal from a single photodetector. Phase signals are derived from the changes in the amplitudes of different harmonic pairs (typically odd-even pairs) with the phase being extracted using a standard quadrature method. In this study, two different modulation frequencies of 5 and 10 kHz are used at different modulation depths. The measured displacements by different harmonic pairs are compared with a commercial heterodyne interferometer being used as a reference for these studies. Measurements obtained from five different harmonic pairs when the moving mirror of the interferometer is scanned over ranges up to 10 μm all show differences of less than 50 nm from the reference interferometer measurements. A drift test was also used to evaluate the differences between the polydyne interferometer and reference measurements that had different optical path lengths of approximately 25 mm and 50 mm, respectively. The drift test results indicate that about half of the differences can be attributed to temperature, pressure, and humidity variations. Other influences include Abbe and thermal expansion effects. Rough magnitude estimates using simple models for these two effects can account for remaining observed deviations.

The 1.06 micrometer wideband laser modulator: Fabrication and life testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Teague, J. R.

1975-01-01

The design, fabrication, testing and delivery of an optical modulator which will operate with a mode-locked Nd:YAG laser at 1.06 micrometers were performed. The system transfers data at a nominal rate of 400 Mbps. This wideband laser modulator can transmit either Pulse Gated Binary Modulation (PGBM) or Pulse Polarization Binary Modulation (PPBM) formats. The laser beam enters the modulator and passes through both crystals; approximately 1% of the transmitted beam is split from the main beam and analyzed for the AEC signal; the remaining part of the beam exits the modulator. The delivered modulator when initially aligned and integrated with laser and electronics performed very well. The optical transmission was 69.5%. The static extinction ratio was 69:1. A 1000 hour life test was conducted with the delivered modulator. A 63 bit pseudorandom code signal was used as a driver input. At the conclusion of the life test the modulator optical transmission was 71.5% and the static extinction ratio 65:1.

Compact 2100 nm laser diode module for next-generation DIRCM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dvinelis, Edgaras; Greibus, Mindaugas; TrinkÅ«nas, Augustinas; NaujokaitÄ--, Greta; Vizbaras, Augustinas; Vizbaras, Dominykas; Vizbaras, Kristijonas

2017-10-01

Compact high-power 2100 nm laser diode module for next-generation directional infrared countermeasure (DIRCM) systems is presented. Next-generation DIRCM systems require compact, light-weight and robust laser modules which could provide intense IR light emission capable of disrupting the tracking sensor of heat-seeking missile. Currently used solid-state and fiber laser solutions for mid-IR band are bulky and heavy making them difficult to implement in smaller form-factor DIRCM systems. Recent development of GaSb laser diode technology greatly improved optical output powers and efficiencies of laser diodes working in 1900 - 2450 nm band [1] while also maintaining very attractive size, weight, power consumption and cost characteristics. 2100 nm laser diode module presented in this work performance is based on high-efficiency broad emitting area GaSb laser diode technology. Each laser diode emitter is able to provide 1 W of CW output optical power with working point efficiency up to 20% at temperature of 20 °C. For output beam collimation custom designed fast-axis collimator and slow-axis collimator lenses were used. These lenses were actively aligned and attached using UV epoxy curing. Total 2 emitters stacked vertically were used in 2100 nm laser diode module. Final optical output power of the module goes up to 2 W at temperature of 20 °C. Total dimensions of the laser diode module are 35 x 25 x 16 mm (L x W x H) with a weight of 28 grams. Finally output beam is bore-sighted to mechanical axes of the module housing allowing for easy integration into next-generation DIRCM systems.

Researching the 915 nm high-power and high-brightness semiconductor laser single chip coupling module

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xin; Wang, Cuiluan; Wu, Xia; Zhu, Lingni; Jing, Hongqi; Ma, Xiaoyu; Liu, Suping

2017-02-01

Based on the high-speed development of the fiber laser in recent years, the development of researching 915 nm semiconductor laser as main pumping sources of the fiber laser is at a high speed. Because the beam quality of the laser diode is very poor, the 915 nm laser diode is generally based on optical fiber coupling module to output the laser. Using the beam-shaping and fiber-coupling technology to improve the quality of output beam light, we present a kind of high-power and high-brightness semiconductor laser module, which can output 13.22 W through the optical fiber. Based on 915 nm GaAs semiconductor laser diode which has output power of 13.91 W, we describe a thoroughly detailed procedure for reshaping the beam output from the semiconductor laser diode and coupling the beam into the optical fiber of which the core diameter is 105 μm and the numerical aperture is 0.18. We get 13.22 W from the output fiber of the module at 14.5 A, the coupling efficiency of the whole module is 95.03% and the brightness is 1.5 MW/cm2 -str. The output power of the single chip semiconductor laser module achieves the advanced level in the domestic use.

Enhanced dielectric-wall linear accelerator

DOEpatents

Sampayan, S.E.; Caporaso, G.J.; Kirbie, H.C.

1998-09-22

A dielectric-wall linear accelerator is enhanced by a high-voltage, fast e-time switch that includes a pair of electrodes between which are laminated alternating layers of isolated conductors and insulators. A high voltage is placed between the electrodes sufficient to stress the voltage breakdown of the insulator on command. A light trigger, such as a laser, is focused along at least one line along the edge surface of the laminated alternating layers of isolated conductors and insulators extending between the electrodes. The laser is energized to initiate a surface breakdown by a fluence of photons, thus causing the electrical switch to close very promptly. Such insulators and lasers are incorporated in a dielectric wall linear accelerator with Blumlein modules, and phasing is controlled by adjusting the length of fiber optic cables that carry the laser light to the insulator surface. 6 figs.

Enhanced dielectric-wall linear accelerator

DOEpatents

Sampayan, Stephen E.; Caporaso, George J.; Kirbie, Hugh C.

1998-01-01

A dielectric-wall linear accelerator is enhanced by a high-voltage, fast e-time switch that includes a pair of electrodes between which are laminated alternating layers of isolated conductors and insulators. A high voltage is placed between the electrodes sufficient to stress the voltage breakdown of the insulator on command. A light trigger, such as a laser, is focused along at least one line along the edge surface of the laminated alternating layers of isolated conductors and insulators extending between the electrodes. The laser is energized to initiate a surface breakdown by a fluence of photons, thus causing the electrical switch to close very promptly. Such insulators and lasers are incorporated in a dielectric wall linear accelerator with Blumlein modules, and phasing is controlled by adjusting the length of fiber optic cables that carry the laser light to the insulator surface.

Vacuum-surface flashover switch with cantilever conductors

DOEpatents

Caporaso, George J.; Sampayan, Stephen E.; Kirbie, Hugh C.

2001-01-01

A dielectric-wall linear accelerator is improved by a high-voltage, fast rise-time switch that includes a pair of electrodes between which are laminated alternating layers of isolated conductors and insulators. A high voltage is placed between the electrodes sufficient to stress the voltage breakdown of the insulator on command. A light trigger, such as a laser, is focused along at least one line along the edge surface of the laminated alternating layers of isolated conductors and insulators extending between the electrodes. The laser is energized to initiate a surface breakdown by a fluence of photons, thus causing the electrical switch to close very promptly. Such insulators and lasers are incorporated in a dielectric wall linear accelerator with Blumlein modules, and phasing is controlled by adjusting the length of fiber optic cables that carry the laser light to the insulator surface.

Theoretical Investigation of Tunable Goos-Hänchen Shifts in a Four-Level Quantum System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jafarzadeh, Hossein; Payravi, Mohammad

2018-05-01

Goos-Hänchen (GH) shifts in the reflected and transmitted light have been discussed in a cavity with four-level quantum system. It is realized that the refraction index of intracavity medium can be negative by manipulating the external coherent laser fields. For the negative refraction index of intracavity medium, the GH shifts of reflected and transmitted light beams have been analyzed in a parametric condition. It is found that due to modulation of laser signals and relative phase between applied fields, large and tunable GH shifts in reflected and transmitted light beams can be obtained.

Method and apparatus for laser-controlled proton beam radiology

DOEpatents

Johnstone, Carol J.

1998-01-01

A proton beam radiology system provides cancer treatment and proton radiography. The system includes an accelerator for producing an H.sup.- beam and a laser source for generating a laser beam. A photodetachment module is located proximate the periphery of the accelerator. The photodetachment module combines the H.sup.- beam and laser beam to produce a neutral beam therefrom within a subsection of the H.sup.- beam. The photodetachment module emits the neutral beam along a trajectory defined by the laser beam. The photodetachment module includes a stripping foil which forms a proton beam from the neutral beam. The proton beam is delivered to a conveyance segment which transports the proton beam to a patient treatment station. The photodetachment module further includes a laser scanner which moves the laser beam along a path transverse to the cross-section of the H.sup.- beam in order to form the neutral beam in subsections of the H.sup.- beam. As the scanning laser moves across the H.sup.- beam, it similarly varies the trajectory of the proton beam emitted from the photodetachment module and in turn varies the target location of the proton beam upon the patient. Intensity modulation of the proton beam can also be achieved by controlling the output of the laser.

Modulated and continuous-wave operations of low-power thulium (Tm:YAP) laser in tissue welding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilici, Temel; Tabakoğlu, Haşim Özgür; Topaloğlu, Nermin; Kalaycıoğlu, Hamit; Kurt, Adnan; Sennaroglu, Alphan; Gülsoy, Murat

2010-05-01

Our aim is to explore the welding capabilities of a thulium (Tm:YAP) laser in modulated and continuous-wave (CW) modes of operation. The Tm:YAP laser system developed for this study includes a Tm:YAP laser resonator, diode laser driver, water chiller, modulation controller unit, and acquisition/control software. Full-thickness incisions on Wistar rat skin were welded by the Tm:YAP laser system at 100 mW and 5 s in both modulated and CW modes of operation (34.66 W/cm2). The skin samples were examined during a 21-day healing period by histology and tensile tests. The results were compared with the samples closed by conventional suture technique. For the laser groups, immediate closure at the surface layers of the incisions was observed. Full closures were observed for both modulated and CW modes of operation at day 4. The tensile forces for both modulated and CW modes of operation were found to be significantly higher than the values found by conventional suture technique. The 1980-nm Tm:YAP laser system operating in both modulated and CW modes maximizes the therapeutic effect while minimizing undesired side effects of laser tissue welding. Hence, it is a potentially important alternative tool to the conventional suturing technique.

Method and apparatus for laser-controlled proton beam radiology

DOEpatents

Johnstone, C.J.

1998-06-02

A proton beam radiology system provides cancer treatment and proton radiography. The system includes an accelerator for producing an H{sup {minus}} beam and a laser source for generating a laser beam. A photodetachment module is located proximate the periphery of the accelerator. The photodetachment module combines the H{sup {minus}} beam and laser beam to produce a neutral beam therefrom within a subsection of the H{sup {minus}} beam. The photodetachment module emits the neutral beam along a trajectory defined by the laser beam. The photodetachment module includes a stripping foil which forms a proton beam from the neutral beam. The proton beam is delivered to a conveyance segment which transports the proton beam to a patient treatment station. The photodetachment module further includes a laser scanner which moves the laser beam along a path transverse to the cross-section of the H{sup {minus}} beam in order to form the neutral beam in subsections of the H{sup {minus}} beam. As the scanning laser moves across the H{sup {minus}} beam, it similarly varies the trajectory of the proton beam emitted from the photodetachment module and in turn varies the target location of the proton beam upon the patient. Intensity modulation of the proton beam can also be achieved by controlling the output of the laser. 9 figs.

A high-stability non-contact dilatometer for low-amplitude temperature-modulated measurements

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Luckabauer, Martin; Sprengel, Wolfgang; Würschum, Roland

2016-07-15

Temperature modulated thermophysical measurements can deliver valuable insights into the phase transformation behavior of many different materials. While especially for non-metallic systems at low temperatures numerous powerful methods exist, no high-temperature device suitable for modulated measurements of bulk metallic alloy samples is available for routine use. In this work a dilatometer for temperature modulated isothermal and non-isothermal measurements in the temperature range from room temperature to 1300 K is presented. The length measuring system is based on a two-beam Michelson laser interferometer with an incremental resolution of 20 pm. The non-contact measurement principle allows for resolving sinusoidal length change signalsmore » with amplitudes in the sub-500 nm range and physically decouples the length measuring system from the temperature modulation and heating control. To demonstrate the low-amplitude capabilities, results for the thermal expansion of nickel for two different modulation frequencies are presented. These results prove that the novel method can be used to routinely resolve length-change signals of metallic samples with temperature amplitudes well below 1 K. This high resolution in combination with the non-contact measurement principle significantly extends the application range of modulated dilatometry towards high-stability phase transformation measurements on complex alloys.« less

Generation of Raman lasers from nitrogen molecular ions driven by ultraintense laser fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, Jinping; Chu, Wei; Liu, Zhaoxiang; Xu, Bo; Chen, Jinming; Cheng, Ya

2018-03-01

Atmospheric lasing has aroused much interest in the past few years. The ‘air–laser’ opens promising potential for remote chemical sensing of trace gases with high sensitivity and specificity. At present, several approaches have been successfully implemented for generating highly coherent laser beams in atmospheric condition, including both amplified-spontaneous emission, and narrow-bandwidth stimulated emission in the forward direction in the presence of self-generated or externally injected seed pulses. Here, we report on generation of multiple-wavelength Raman lasers from nitrogen molecular ions ({{{N}}}2+), driven by intense mid-infrared laser fields. Intuitively, the approach appears problematic for the small nonlinear susceptibility of {{{N}}}2+ ions, whereas the efficiency of Raman laser can be significantly promoted in near-resonant condition. More surprisingly, a Raman laser consisting of a supercontinuum spanning from ∼310 to ∼392 nm has been observed resulting from a series near-resonant nonlinear processes including four-wave mixing, stimulated Raman scattering and cross phase modulation. To date, extreme nonlinear optics in molecular ions remains largely unexplored, which provides an alternative means for air–laser-based remote sensing applications.

18-THz-wide optical frequency comb emitted from monolithic passively mode-locked semiconductor quantum-well laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lo, Mu-Chieh; Guzmán, Robinson; Ali, Muhsin; Santos, Rui; Augustin, Luc; Carpintero, Guillermo

2017-10-01

We report on an optical frequency comb with 14nm (~1.8 THz) spectral bandwidth at -3 dB level that is generated using a passively mode-locked quantum-well (QW) laser in photonic integrated circuits (PICs) fabricated through an InP generic photonic integration technology platform. This 21.5-GHz colliding-pulse mode-locked laser cavity is defined by on-chip reflectors incorporating intracavity phase modulators followed by an extra-cavity SOA as booster amplifier. A 1.8-THz-wide optical comb spectrum is presented with ultrafast pulse that is 0.35-ps-wide. The radio frequency beat note has a 3-dB linewidth of 450 kHz and 35-dB SNR.

The integration of laser communication and ranging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Mengmeng; Sun, Jianfeng; Zhou, Yu; Zhang, Bo; Zhang, Guo; Li, Guangyuan; He, Hongyu; Lao, Chenzhe

2017-08-01

The method to realize the integration of laser communication and ranging is proposed in this paper. In the transmitter of two places, the ranging codes with uniqueness, good autocorrelation and cross-correlation properties are embed in the communication data and the encoded with the communication data to realize serial communication. And then the encoded data are modulated and send to each other, which can realize high speed two one-way laser communication. At the receiver, we can get the received ranging code after the demodulation, decoding and clock recovery. The received ranging codes and the local ranging codes do the autocorrelation to get a roughly range, while the phase difference between the local clock and the recovery clock to achieve the precision of the distance.

Equalization enhanced phase noise in Nyquist-spaced superchannel transmission systems using multi-channel digital back-propagation

PubMed Central

Xu, Tianhua; Liga, Gabriele; Lavery, Domaniç; Thomsen, Benn C.; Savory, Seb J.; Killey, Robert I.; Bayvel, Polina

2015-01-01

Superchannel transmission spaced at the symbol rate, known as Nyquist spacing, has been demonstrated for effectively maximizing the optical communication channel capacity and spectral efficiency. However, the achievable capacity and reach of transmission systems using advanced modulation formats are affected by fibre nonlinearities and equalization enhanced phase noise (EEPN). Fibre nonlinearities can be effectively compensated using digital back-propagation (DBP). However EEPN which arises from the interaction between laser phase noise and dispersion cannot be efficiently mitigated, and can significantly degrade the performance of transmission systems. Here we report the first investigation of the origin and the impact of EEPN in Nyquist-spaced superchannel system, employing electronic dispersion compensation (EDC) and multi-channel DBP (MC-DBP). Analysis was carried out in a Nyquist-spaced 9-channel 32-Gbaud DP-64QAM transmission system. Results confirm that EEPN significantly degrades the performance of all sub-channels of the superchannel system and that the distortions are more severe for the outer sub-channels, both using EDC and MC-DBP. It is also found that the origin of EEPN depends on the relative position between the carrier phase recovery module and the EDC (or MC-DBP) module. Considering EEPN, diverse coding techniques and modulation formats have to be applied for optimizing different sub-channels in superchannel systems. PMID:26365422

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Argence, B.; Halloin, H.; Jeannin, O.

We have developed a 532 nm iodine stabilized laser system that may be suitable for the LISA mission (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna) or other future spaceborne missions. This system is based on an externally frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser source and uses the molecular transfer spectroscopy technique for the frequency stabilization. This technique has been optimized for LISA: compactness (less than 1.1x1.1 m{sup 2}), vacuum compatibility, ease of use and initialization, minimization of the number of active components (acousto-optic modulators are both used for frequency shifting and phase modulating the pump beam). By locking on the a{sub 10} hyperfine component of themore » R(56)32-0 transition, we find an Allan standard deviation ({sigma}) of 3x10{sup -14} at 1 s and {sigma}<2x10{sup -14} for 20 s{<=}{tau}{<=}10{sup 3} s. In terms of linear spectral density, this roughly corresponds to a stability better than 30 Hz/{radical}(Hz) between 10{sup -2} and 1 Hz with a stability decrease close to 1/f below 10 mHz.« less

Dynamics of modulated beams in spectral domain

DOE PAGES

Yampolsky, Nikolai A.

2017-07-16

General formalism for describing dynamics of modulated beams along linear beamlines is developed. We describe modulated beams with spectral distribution function which represents Fourier transform of the conventional beam distribution function in the 6-dimensional phase space. The introduced spectral distribution function is localized in some region of the spectral domain for nearly monochromatic modulations. It can be characterized with a small number of typical parameters such as the lowest order moments of the spectral distribution. We study evolution of the modulated beams in linear beamlines and find that characteristic spectral parameters transform linearly. The developed approach significantly simplifies analysis ofmore » various schemes proposed for seeding X-ray free electron lasers. We use this approach to study several recently proposed schemes and find the bandwidth of the output bunching in each case.« less

Study of SPM tolerances of electronically compensated DML based systems.

PubMed

Papagiannakis, I; Klonidis, D; Birbas, Alexios N; Kikidis, J; Tomkos, I

2009-05-25

This paper experimentally investigates the effectiveness of electronic dispersion compensation (EDC) for signals limited by self phase modulation (SPM) and various dispersion levels. The sources considered are low-cost conventional directly modulated lasers (DMLs), fabricated for operation at 2.5 Gb/s but modulated at 10 Gb/s. Performance improvement is achieved by means of electronic feed-forward and decision-feedback equalization (FFE/DFE) at the receiver end. Experimental studies consider both transient and adiabatic chirp dominated DMLs sources. The improvement is evaluated in terms of required optical signal-to-noise ratio (ROSNR) for bit-error-rate (BER) values of 10(-3) versus launch power over uncompensated links of standard single mode fiber (SSMF).

Bit-rate transparent DPSK demodulation scheme based on injection locking FP-LD

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feng, Hanlin; Xiao, Shilin; Yi, Lilin; Zhou, Zhao; Yang, Pei; Shi, Jie

2013-05-01

We propose and demonstrate a bit-rate transparent differential phase shift-keying (DPSK) demodulation scheme based on injection locking multiple-quantum-well (MQW) strained InGaAsP FP-LD. By utilizing frequency deviation generated by phase modulation and unstable injection locking state with Fabry-Perot laser diode (FP-LD), DPSK to polarization shift-keying (PolSK) and PolSK to intensity modulation (IM) format conversions are realized. We analyze bit error rate (BER) performance of this demodulation scheme. Experimental results show that different longitude modes, bit rates and seeding power have influences on demodulation performance. We achieve error free DPSK signal demodulation under various bit rates of 10 Gbit/s, 5 Gbit/s, 2.5 Gbit/s and 1.25 Gbit/s with the same demodulation setting.

Measurements of Mode Converted Ion Cyclotron Wave with Phase Contrast Imaging in Alcator C-Mod and Comparisons with Synthetic PCI Simulations in TORIC

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tsujii, N.; Porkolab, M.; Edlund, E. M.

2009-11-26

Mode converted ion cyclotron wave (ICW) has been observed with phase contrast imaging (PCI) in D-{sup 3}He plasmas in Alcator C-Mod. The measurements were carried out with the optical heterodyne technique using acousto-optic modulators which modulate the CO2 laser beam intensity near the ion cyclotron frequency. With recently improved calibration of the PCI system using a calibrated sound wave source, the measurements have been compared with the full-wave code TORIC, as interpreted by a synthetic diagnostic. Because of the line-integrated nature of the PCI signal, the predictions are sensitive to the exact wave field pattern. The simulations are found tomore » be in qualitative agreement with the measurements.« less

High-speed photonically assisted analog-to-digital conversion using a continuous wave multiwavelength source and phase modulation.

PubMed

Bortnik, Bartosz J; Fetterman, Harold R

2008-10-01

A more simple photonically assisted analog-to-digital conversion system utilizing a cw multiwavelength source and phase modulation instead of a mode-locked laser is presented. The output of the cw multiwavelength source is launched into a dispersive device (such as a single-mode fiber). This fiber creates a pulse train, where the central wavelength of each pulse corresponds to a spectral line of the optical source. The pulses can then be either dispersed again to perform discrete wavelength time stretching or demultiplexed for continuous time analog-to-digital conversion. We experimentally demonstrate the operation of both time stretched and interleaved systems at 38 GHz. The potential of integrating this type of system on a monolithic chip is discussed.

Phase error statistics of a phase-locked loop synchronized direct detection optical PPM communication system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Natarajan, Suresh; Gardner, C. S.

1987-01-01

Receiver timing synchronization of an optical Pulse-Position Modulation (PPM) communication system can be achieved using a phased-locked loop (PLL), provided the photodetector output is suitably processed. The magnitude of the PLL phase error is a good indicator of the timing error at the receiver decoder. The statistics of the phase error are investigated while varying several key system parameters such as PPM order, signal and background strengths, and PPL bandwidth. A practical optical communication system utilizing a laser diode transmitter and an avalanche photodiode in the receiver is described, and the sampled phase error data are presented. A linear regression analysis is applied to the data to obtain estimates of the relational constants involving the phase error variance and incident signal power.

Automated aberration compensation in high numerical aperture systems for arbitrary laser modes (Conference Presentation)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hering, Julian; Waller, Erik H.; von Freymann, Georg

2017-02-01

Since a large number of optical systems and devices are based on differently shaped focal intensity distributions (point-spread-functions, PSF), the PSF's quality is crucial for the application's performance. E.g., optical tweezers, optical potentials for trapping of ultracold atoms as well as stimulated-emission-depletion (STED) based microscopy and lithography rely on precisely controlled intensity distributions. However, especially in high numerical aperture (NA) systems, such complex laser modes are easily distorted by aberrations leading to performance losses. Although different approaches addressing phase retrieval algorithms have been recently presented[1-3], fast and automated aberration compensation for a broad variety of complex shaped PSFs in high NA systems is still missing. Here, we report on a Gerchberg-Saxton[4] based algorithm (GSA) for automated aberration correction of arbitrary PSFs, especially for high NA systems. Deviations between the desired target intensity distribution and the three-dimensionally (3D) scanned experimental focal intensity distribution are used to calculate a correction phase pattern. The target phase distribution plus the correction pattern are displayed on a phase-only spatial-light-modulator (SLM). Focused by a high NA objective, experimental 3D scans of several intensity distributions allow for characterization of the algorithms performance: aberrations are reliably identified and compensated within less than 10 iterations. References 1. B. M. Hanser, M. G. L. Gustafsson, D. A. Agard, and J. W. Sedat, "Phase-retrieved pupil functions in wide-field fluorescence microscopy," J. of Microscopy 216(1), 32-48 (2004). 2. A. Jesacher, A. Schwaighofer, S. Frhapter, C. Maurer, S. Bernet, and M. Ritsch-Marte, "Wavefront correction of spatial light modulators using an optical vortex image," Opt. Express 15(9), 5801-5808 (2007). 3. A. Jesacher and M. J. Booth, "Parallel direct laser writing in three dimensions with spatially dependent aberration correction," Opt. Express 18(20), 21090-21099 (2010). 4. R. W. Gerchberg and W. O. Saxton, "A practical algorithm for the determination of the phase from image and diffraction plane pictures," Optik 35(2), 237-246 (1972).

Advanced Wavefront Control Techniques

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Olivier, S S; Brase, J M; Avicola, K

2001-02-21

Programs at LLNL that involve large laser systems--ranging from the National Ignition Facility to new tactical laser weapons--depend on the maintenance of laser beam quality through precise control of the optical wavefront. This can be accomplished using adaptive optics, which compensate for time-varying aberrations that are often caused by heating in a high-power laser system. Over the past two decades, LLNL has developed a broad capability in adaptive optics technology for both laser beam control and high-resolution imaging. This adaptive optics capability has been based on thin deformable glass mirrors with individual ceramic actuators bonded to the back. In themore » case of high-power lasers, these adaptive optics systems have successfully improved beam quality. However, as we continue to extend our applications requirements, the existing technology base for wavefront control cannot satisfy them. To address this issue, this project studied improved modeling tools to increase our detailed understanding of the performance of these systems, and evaluated novel approaches to low-order wavefront control that offer the possibility of reduced cost and complexity. We also investigated improved beam control technology for high-resolution wavefront control. Many high-power laser systems suffer from high-spatial-frequency aberrations that require control of hundreds or thousands of phase points to provide adequate correction. However, the cost and size of current deformable mirrors can become prohibitive for applications requiring more than a few tens of phase control points. New phase control technologies are becoming available which offer control of many phase points with small low-cost devices. The goal of this project was to expand our wavefront control capabilities with improved modeling tools, new devices that reduce system cost and complexity, and extensions to high spatial and temporal frequencies using new adaptive optics technologies. In FY 99, the second year of this project, work was performed in four areas (1) advanced modeling tools for deformable mirrors (2) low-order wavefront correctors with Alvarez lenses, (3) a direct phase measuring heterdyne wavefront sensor, and (4) high-spatial-frequency wavefront control using spatial light modulators.« less

Semiconducter Optical Amplifier as a Phase Modulator for Coherent Laser Radar (Preprint)

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-01-01

AIR FORCE RESEARCH LABORATORY SENSORS DIRECTORATE WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, OH 45433-7320 AIR FORCE MATERIEL COMMAND UNITED STATES... AIR FORCE NOTICE AND SIGNATURE PAGE Using Government drawings, specifications, or other data included in this document for any purpose other...NUMBER Multispectral Sensing and Detection Division LADAR Technology Branch (AFRL/RYMM) Air Force Research Laboratory, Sensors Directorate Wright

Electron distribution function in a laser plasma

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kalal, M.; Stoll, I.

1983-01-01

An accurate analytic solution of the Vlasov equation in the one-dimensional case is given for plasma electrons in the potential electric field of a monochromatic high-frequency wave of arbitrary amplitude and spatial modulation allowing for a self-consistent field. The phase velocity of the plasma waves is assumed to be appreciably higher than the electron thermal velocity (the case of nonresonant diffusion).

Development of a Multi-Point Microwave Interferometry (MPMI) Method

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Specht, Paul Elliott; Cooper, Marcia A.; Jilek, Brook Anton

2015-09-01

A multi-point microwave interferometer (MPMI) concept was developed for non-invasively tracking a shock, reaction, or detonation front in energetic media. Initially, a single-point, heterodyne microwave interferometry capability was established. The design, construction, and verification of the single-point interferometer provided a knowledge base for the creation of the MPMI concept. The MPMI concept uses an electro-optic (EO) crystal to impart a time-varying phase lag onto a laser at the microwave frequency. Polarization optics converts this phase lag into an amplitude modulation, which is analyzed in a heterodyne interfer- ometer to detect Doppler shifts in the microwave frequency. A version of themore » MPMI was constructed to experimentally measure the frequency of a microwave source through the EO modulation of a laser. The successful extraction of the microwave frequency proved the underlying physical concept of the MPMI design, and highlighted the challenges associated with the longer microwave wavelength. The frequency measurements made with the current equipment contained too much uncertainty for an accurate velocity measurement. Potential alterations to the current construction are presented to improve the quality of the measured signal and enable multiple accurate velocity measurements.« less

High brightness diode laser module development at nLIGHT Photonics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Price, Kirk; Karlsen, Scott; Brown, Aaron; Reynolds, Mitch; Mehl, Ron; Leisher, Paul; Patterson, Steve; Bell, Jake; Martinsen, Rob

2009-05-01

We report on the development of ultra-high brightness laser diode modules at nLIGHT Photonics. This paper demonstrates a laser diode module capable of coupling over 100W at 976 nm into a 105 μm, 0.15 NA fiber with fiber coupling efficiency greater than 85%. The high brightness module has an optical excitation under 0.13 NA, is virtually free of cladding modes, and has been wavelength stabilized with the use of volume holographic gratings for narrow-band operation. Utilizing nLIGHT's Pearl product architecture, these modules are based on hard soldered single emitters packaged into a compact and passively-cooled package. These modules are designed to be compatible with high power 7:1 fused fiber combiners, enabling over 500W power coupled into a 220 μm, 0.22 NA fiber. These modules address the need in the market for high brightness and wavelength stabilized diode lasers for pumping fiber lasers and solid-state laser systems.

Research on Debonding Defects in Thermal Barrier Coatings Structure by Thermal-Wave Radar Imaging (TWRI)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Fei; Liu, Junyan; Mohummad, Oliullah; Wang, Yang

2018-06-01

In this paper, thermal-wave radar imaging (TWRI) is introduced to detect debonding defects in SiC-coated Ni-based superalloy plates. Linear frequency modulation signal (chirp) is used as the excitation signal which has a large time-bandwidth product. Artificial debonding defects in SiC coating are excited by the laser beam with the light intensity modulated by a chirp signal. Cross-correlation algorithm and chirp lock-in algorithm are introduced to extract the thermal-wave signal characteristic. The comparative experiment between TWRI reflection mode and transmission mode was carried out. Experiments are conducted to investigate the influence of laser power density, chirp period, and excitation frequency. Experimental results illustrate that chirp lock-in phase has a better detection capability than other characteristic parameters. TWRI can effectively detect simulated debonding defects of SiC-coated Ni-based superalloy plates.

Non-linear optical crystal vibration sensing device

DOEpatents

Kalibjian, Ralph

1994-01-11

A non-linear optical crystal vibration sensing device (10) including a photorefractive crystal (26) and a laser (12). The laser (12 ) produces a coherent light beam (14) which is split by a beam splitter (18) into a first laser beam (20) and a second laser beam (22). After passing through the crystal (26) the first laser beam (20) is counter-propagated back upon itself by a retro-mirror (32), creating a third laser beam (30). The laser beams (20, 22, 30) are modulated, due to the mixing effect within the crystal (26) by vibration of the crystal (30). In the third laser beam (30), modulation is stable and such modulation is converted by a photodetector (34) into a usable electrical output, intensity modulated in accordance with vibration applied to the crystal (26).

Method and system for modulation of gain suppression in high average power laser systems

DOEpatents

Bayramian, Andrew James [Manteca, CA

2012-07-31

A high average power laser system with modulated gain suppression includes an input aperture associated with a first laser beam extraction path and an output aperture associated with the first laser beam extraction path. The system also includes a pinhole creation laser having an optical output directed along a pinhole creation path and an absorbing material positioned along both the first laser beam extraction path and the pinhole creation path. The system further includes a mechanism operable to translate the absorbing material in a direction crossing the first laser beam extraction laser path and a controller operable to modulate the second laser beam.

Study on THz wave generation from air plasma induced by quasi-square Airy beam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Shijing; Zhang, Liangliang; Jiang, Guangtong; Zhang, Cunlin; Zhao, Yuejin

2018-01-01

Terahertz (THz) wave has attracted considerable attention in recent years because of its potential applications. The intense THz waves generated from air plasma induced by two-color femtosecond laser are widely used due to its high generation efficiency and broad frequency bandwidth. The parameters of the laser change the distribution of the air plasma, and then affect the generation of THz wave. In this research, we investigate the THz wave generation from air plasma induced by quasi-square Airy beam. Unlike the common Gauss beam, the quasi-square Airy beam has ability to autofocus and to increase the maximum intensity at the focus. By using the spatial light modulator (SLM), we can change the parameters of phase map to control the shape of the Airy beam. We obtain the two-color laser field by a 100-um-thick BBO crystal, then use a Golay detector to record THz wave energy. By comparing terahertz generation at different modulation depths, we find that terahertz energy produced by quasi-square Airy beam is up to 3.1 times stronger than that of Gauss beam with identical laser energy. In order to understand the influence of quasi-square Airy beam on the BBO crystal, we record THz wave energy by changing the azimuthal angle of BBO crystal with Gauss beam and Airy beam at different modulation depths. We find that the trend of terahertz energy with respect to the azimuthal angle of the BBO crystal keeps the same for different laser beams. We believe that the quasi-square Airy beam or other auto focusing beam can significantly improve the efficiency of terahertz wave generation and pave the way for its applications.

Laser frequency modulation with electron plasma

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burgess, T. J.; Latorre, V. R.

1972-01-01

When laser beam passes through electron plasma its frequency shifts by amount proportional to plasma density. This density varies with modulating signal resulting in corresponding modulation of laser beam frequency. Necessary apparatus is relatively inexpensive since crystals are not required.

Short-pulse lasers for weather control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wolf, J. P.

2018-02-01

Filamentation of ultra-short TW-class lasers recently opened new perspectives in atmospheric research. Laser filaments are self-sustained light structures of 0.1–1 mm in diameter, spanning over hundreds of meters in length, and producing a low density plasma (1015–1017 cm‑3) along their path. They stem from the dynamic balance between Kerr self-focusing and defocusing by the self-generated plasma and/or non-linear polarization saturation. While non-linearly propagating in air, these filamentary structures produce a coherent supercontinuum (from 230 nm to 4 µm, for a 800 nm laser wavelength) by self-phase modulation (SPM), which can be used for remote 3D-monitoring of atmospheric components by Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging). However, due to their high intensity (1013–1014 W cm‑2), they also modify the chemical composition of the air via photo-ionization and photo-dissociation of the molecules and aerosols present in the laser path. These unique properties were recently exploited for investigating the capability of modulating some key atmospheric processes, like lightning from thunderclouds, water vapor condensation, fog formation and dissipation, and light scattering (albedo) from high altitude clouds for radiative forcing management. Here we review recent spectacular advances in this context, achieved both in the laboratory and in the field, reveal their underlying mechanisms, and discuss the applicability of using these new non-linear photonic catalysts for real scale weather control.

Multiharmonic Frequency-Chirped Transducers for Surface-Acoustic-Wave Optomechanics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weiß, Matthias; Hörner, Andreas L.; Zallo, Eugenio; Atkinson, Paola; Rastelli, Armando; Schmidt, Oliver G.; Wixforth, Achim; Krenner, Hubert J.

2018-01-01

Wide-passband interdigital transducers are employed to establish a stable phase lock between a train of laser pulses emitted by a mode-locked laser and a surface acoustic wave generated electrically by the transducer. The transducer design is based on a multiharmonic split-finger architecture for the excitation of a fundamental surface acoustic wave and a discrete number of its overtones. Simply by introducing a variation of the transducer's periodicity p , a frequency chirp is added. This combination results in wide frequency bands for each harmonic. The transducer's conversion efficiency from the electrical to the acoustic domain is characterized optomechanically using single quantum dots acting as nanoscale pressure sensors. The ability to generate surface acoustic waves over a wide band of frequencies enables advanced acousto-optic spectroscopy using mode-locked lasers with fixed repetition rate. Stable phase locking between the electrically generated acoustic wave and the train of laser pulses is confirmed by performing stroboscopic spectroscopy on a single quantum dot at a frequency of 320 MHz. Finally, the dynamic spectral modulation of the quantum dot is directly monitored in the time domain combining stable phase-locked optical excitation and time-correlated single-photon counting. The demonstrated scheme will be particularly useful for the experimental implementation of surface-acoustic-wave-driven quantum gates of optically addressable qubits or collective quantum states or for multicomponent Fourier synthesis of tailored nanomechanical waveforms.

All-optical liquid crystal spatial light modulators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabiryan, Nelson; Grozhik, Vladimir; Khoo, Iam Choon; Nersisyan, Sarik R.; Serak, Svetlana

2003-12-01

Nonlinear optical processes in liquid crystals (LC) can be used for construction of all-optical spatial light modulators (SLM) where the photosensitivity and phase modulating functions are integrated into a single layer of an LC-material. Such spatial light integrated modulators (SLIMs) cost only a fraction of the conventional LC-SLM and can be used with high power laser radiation due to high transparency of LC materials and absence of light absorbing electrodes on the substrates of the LC-cell constituting the SLIM. Recent development of LC materials the photosensitivity of which is comparable to that of semiconductors has led to using SLIM in schemes of optical anti-jamming, sensor protection, and image processing. All-optical processes add remarkable versatility to the operation of SLIM harnessing the wealth inherent to light-matter interaction phenomena.

Sideband pump-probe technique resolves nonlinear modulation response of PbS/CdS quantum dots on a silicon nitride waveguide

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kolarczik, Mirco; Ulbrich, Christian; Geiregat, Pieter; Zhu, Yunpeng; Sagar, Laxmi Kishore; Singh, Akshay; Herzog, Bastian; Achtstein, Alexander W.; Li, Xiaoqin; van Thourhout, Dries; Hens, Zeger; Owschimikow, Nina; Woggon, Ulrike

2018-01-01

For possible applications of colloidal nanocrystals in optoelectronics and nanophotonics, it is of high interest to study their response at low excitation intensity with high repetition rates, as switching energies in the pJ/bit to sub-pJ/bit range are targeted. We develop a sensitive pump-probe method to study the carrier dynamics in colloidal PbS/CdS quantum dots deposited on a silicon nitride waveguide after excitation by laser pulses with an average energy of few pJ/pulse. We combine an amplitude modulation of the pump pulse with phase-sensitive heterodyne detection. This approach permits to use co-linearly propagating co-polarized pulses. The method allows resolving transmission changes of the order of 10-5 and phase changes of arcseconds. We find a modulation on a sub-nanosecond time scale caused by Auger processes and biexciton decay in the quantum dots. With ground state lifetimes exceeding 1 μs, these processes become important for possible realizations of opto-electronic switching and modulation based on colloidal quantum dots emitting in the telecommunication wavelength regime.

Temporal analysis of nonresonant two-photon coherent control involving bound and dissociative molecular states

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Su Jing; Chen Shaohao; Jaron-Becker, Agnieszka

We theoretically study the control of two-photon excitation to bound and dissociative states in a molecule induced by trains of laser pulses, which are equivalent to certain sets of spectral phase modulated pulses. To this end, we solve the time-dependent Schroedinger equation for the interaction of molecular model systems with an external intense laser field. Our numerical results for the temporal evolution of the population in the excited states show that, in the case of an excited dissociative state, control schemes, previously validated for the atomic case, fail due to the coupling of electronic and nuclear motion. In contrast, formore » excitation to bound states the two-photon excitation probability is controlled via the time delay and the carrier-envelope phase difference between two consecutive pulses in the train.« less

Quasi-CW 110 kW AlGaAs Laser Diode Array Module for Inertial Fusion Energy Laser Driver

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawashima, Toshiyuki; Kanzaki, Takeshi; Matsui, Ken; Kato, Yoshinori; Matsui, Hiroki; Kanabe, Tadashi; Yamanaka, Masanobu; Nakatsuka, Masahiro; Izawa, Yasukazu; Nakai, Sadao; Miyamoto, Masahiro; Kan, Hirofumi; Hiruma, Teruo

2001-12-01

We have successfully demonstrated a large aperture 803 nm AlGaAs diode laser module as a pump source for a 1053 nm, 10 J output Nd:glass slab laser amplifier for diode-pumped solid-state laser (DPSSL) fusion driver. Detailed performance results of the laser diode module are presented, including bar package and stack configuration, and their thermal design and analysis. A sufficiently low thermal impedance of the stack was realized by combining backplane liquid cooling configuration with modular bar package architecture. Total peak power of 110 kW and electrical to optical conversion efficiency of 46% were obtained from the module consisting of a total of 1000 laser diode bars. A peak intensity of 2.6 kW/cm2 was accomplished across an emitting area of 418 mm× 10 mm. Currently, this laser diode array module with a large two-dimensional aperture is, to our knowledge, the only operational pump source for the high output energy DPSSL.

Spin polarization of {sup 87}Rb atoms with ultranarrow linewidth diode laser: Numerical simulation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wang, Z. G.; Interdisciplinary Center of Quantum Information, National University of Defense Technology, Changsha, 410073; College of Science, National University of Defense Technology, Changsha, 410073

2016-08-15

In order to polarize {sup 87}Rb vapor effectively with ultranarrow linewidth diode laser, we studied the polarization as a function of some parameters including buffer gas pressure and laser power. Moreover, we also discussed the methods which split or modulate the diode laser frequency so as to pump the two ground hyperfine levels efficiently. We obtained some useful results through numerical simulation. If the buffer gas pressure is so high that the hyperfine structure is unresolved, the polarization is insensitive to laser frequency at peak absorption point so frequency splitting and frequency modulation methods do not show improvement. At lowmore » pressure and laser power large enough, where the hyperfine structure is clearly resolved, frequency splitting and frequency modulation methods can increase polarization effectively. For laser diodes, frequency modulation is easily realized with current modulation, so this method is attractive since it does not add any other components in the pumping laser system.« less

An Overview of Communications Technology and Development Efforts for 2015 SBIR Phase I

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nguyen, Hung D.; Steele, Gynelle C.

2017-01-01

This report highlights innovative SBIR 2015 Phase I projects specifically addressing areas in Communications Technology and Development which is one of six core competencies at NASA Glenn Research Center. There are fifteen technologies featured with emphasis on a wide spectrum of applications such as novel solid state lasers for space-based water vapor dial; wide temperature, high voltage and energy density capacitors for aerospace exploration; instrument for airborne measurement of carbonyl sulfide; high-power tunable seed laser for methane Lidar transmitter; ROC-rib deployable ka-band antenna for nanosatellites; a SIC-based microcontroller for high-temperature in-situ instruments and systems; improved yield, performance and reliability of high-actuator-count deformable mirrors; embedded multifunctional optical sensor system; switching electronics for space-based telescopes with advanced AO systems; integrated miniature DBR laser module for Lidar instruments; and much more. Each article in this booklet describes an innovation, technical objective, and highlights NASA commercial and industrial applications. space-based water vapor dial; wide temperature, high voltage and energy density capacitors foraerospace exploration; instrument for airborne measurement of carbonyl sulfide; high-power tunable seed laser formethane Lidar transmitter; ROC-rib deployable ka-band antenna for nanosatellites.

Receiver performance of laser ranging measurements between the Lunar Observer and a subsatellite for lunar gravity studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davidson, Frederic M.; Sun, Xiaoli

1992-01-01

The optimal receiver for a direct detection laser ranging system for slow Doppler frequency shift measurement is shown to consist of a phase tracking loop which can be implemented approximately as a phase lock loop with a 2nd or 3rd order loop filter. The laser transmitter consists of an AlGaAs laser diode at a wavelength of about 800 nm and is intensity modulated by a sinewave. The receiver performance is shown to be limited mainly by the preamplifier thermal noise when a silicon avalanche photodiode is used. A high speed microchannel plate photomultiplier tube is shown to outperform a silicon APD despite its relatively low quantum efficiency at wavelengths near 800 nm. The maximum range between the Lunar Observer and the subsatellite for lunar gravity studies is shown to be about 620 km when using a state-of-the-art silicon APD and about 1000 km when using a microchannel plate photomultiplier tube in order to achieve a relative velocity measurement accuracy of 1 millimeter per second. Other parameters such as the receiver time base jitter and drift also limit performance and have to be considered in the design of an actual system.

Optically stabilized Erbium fiber frequency comb with hybrid mode-locking and a broad tunable range of repetition rate.

PubMed

Yang, Honglei; Wu, Xuejian; Zhang, Hongyuan; Zhao, Shijie; Yang, Lijun; Wei, Haoyun; Li, Yan

2016-12-01

We present an optically stabilized Erbium fiber frequency comb with a broad repetition rate tuning range based on a hybrid mode-locked oscillator. We lock two comb modes to narrow-linewidth reference lasers in turn to investigate the best performance of control loops. The control bandwidth of fast and slow piezoelectric transducers reaches 70 kHz, while that of pump current modulation with phase-lead compensation is extended to 32 kHz, exceeding laser intrinsic response. Eventually, simultaneous lock of both loops is realized to totally phase-stabilize the comb, which will facilitate precision dual-comb spectroscopy, laser ranging, and timing distribution. In addition, a 1.8-MHz span of the repetition rate is achieved by an automatic optical delay line that is helpful in manufacturing a secondary comb with a similar repetition rate. The oscillator is housed in a homemade temperature-controlled box with an accuracy of ±0.02  K, which not only keeps high signal-to-noise ratio of the beat notes with reference lasers, but also guarantees self-starting at the same mode-locking every time.

Enhanced tunable narrow-band THz emission from laser-modulated electron beams

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Xiang, D.; Stupakov, G.; /SLAC

2009-06-19

We propose and analyze a scheme to generate enhanced narrow-band terahertz (THz) radiation through down-conversion of the frequency of optical lasers using laser-modulated electron beams. In the scheme the electron beam is first energy modulated by two lasers with wave numbers k{sub 1} and k2, respectively. After passing through a dispersion section, the energy modulation is converted to density modulation. Due to the nonlinear conversion process, the beam will have density modulation at wave number k = nk{sub 1} + mk{sub 2}, where n and m are positive or negative integers. By properly choosing the parameters for the lasers andmore » dispersion section, one can generate density modulation at THz frequency in the beam using optical lasers. This density-modulated beam can be used to generate powerful narrow-band THz radiation. Since the THz radiation is in tight synchronization with the lasers, it should provide a high temporal resolution for the optical-pump THz-probe experiments. The central frequency of the THz radiation can be easily tuned by varying the wavelength of the two lasers and the energy chirp of the electron beam. The proposed scheme is in principle able to generate intense narrow-band THz radiation covering the whole THz range and offers a promising way towards the tunable intense narrow-band THz sources.« less

Modulated FT- Raman Fiber-Optic Spectroscopy: A technique for Remotely Monitoring High-Temperature Reactions in Real-Time

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cooper, John B.; Wise, Kent L.; Jensen, Brian J.

1997-01-01

A modification to a commercial FT-Raman spectrometer is presented for the elimination of thermal backgrounds in FT-Raman spectra. The modification involves the use of a mechanical chopper to modulate the CW laser, remote collection of the signal via fiber optics, and connection of a dual-phase digital signal processor lock-in amplifier between the detector and the spectrometer's collection electronics to demodulate and filter the optical signals. The resulting modulated FT-Raman fiber-optic spectrometer is capable of completely eliminating thermal backgrounds at temperatures exceeding 370 C. In addition, the signal/noise of generated Raman spectra is greater than for spectra collected with the conventional FT-Raman under identical conditions and incident laser power. This is true for both room-temperature and hot samples. The method allows collection of data using preexisting spectrometer software. The total cost of the modification (excluding fiber optics) is approximately $3000 and requires less than 2 h to implement. This is the first report of Fr-Raman spectra collected at temperatures in excess of 300 C in the absence of thermal backgrounds.

Design and study of deep laser acupuncture stimulator of modulation and multibeam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mao, Haitao; Wang, Qingguo; Xing, Qian; Li, Fangzheng; Cheng, Dongan

2002-04-01

The laser acupuncture stimulation has been applied extensively to replace the acupuncture needles. But the laser is transmitted to the acupoint through the skin, so the curative effect of the laser irradiation on an acupoint from cuticle is limited. We have developed the deep laser acupuncture stimulator of modulation and multibeam. The laser beam (such as He-Ne, LD, etc.) is turned into the modulated waveform. The modulated laser beam can simulate the customary acupuncture way such as twirling and rotating, etc. The laser beam is split into 3-8 beams by the means of optical shunt. After that they enter into laser acupuncture pins separately through the optical fiber joiners. The laser beam and pins can give simultaneously the stimulation in the depths of 3-8 acupoints. It has been proved by the clinical practice that the deep laser acupuncture has the notable efficiency for the apoplexy and sequelae of apoplexy, sciatica, rheumatoid arthritis, etc.

Full-Duplex Digital Communication on a Single Laser Beam

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hazzard, D. A.; MacCannell, J. A.; Lee, G.; Selves, E. R.; Moore, D.; Payne, J. A.; Garrett, C. D.; Dahlstrom, N.; Shay, T. M.

2006-01-01

A proposed free-space optical communication system would operate in a full-duplex mode, using a single constant-power laser beam for transmission and reception of binary signals at both ends of the free-space optical path. The system was conceived for two-way data communication between a ground station and a spacecraft in a low orbit around the Earth. It has been estimated that in this application, a data rate of 10 kb/s could be achieved at a ground-station-to-spacecraft distance of 320 km, using a laser power of only 100 mW. The basic system concept is also applicable to terrestrial free-space optical communications. The system (see figure) would include a diode laser at one end of the link (originally, the ground station) and a liquid-crystal- based retroreflecting modulator at the other end of the link (originally, the spacecraft). At the laser end, the beam to be transmitted would be made to pass through a quarter-wave plate, which would convert its linear polarization to right circular polarization. For transmission of data from the laser end to the retroreflector end, the laser beam would be modulated with subcarrier phase-shift keying (SC-PSK). The transmitted beam would then pass through an aperture- sharing element (ASE) - basically, a mirror with a hole in it, used to separate the paths of the transmitted and received light beams. The transmitted beam would continue outward through a telescope (which, in the original application, would be equipped with a spacecraft-tracking system) that would launch the transmitted beam along the free-space optical path to the retroreflector end.

Optoelectronic Infrastructure for Radio Frequency and Optical Phased Arrays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cai, Jianhong

2015-01-01

Optoelectronic integrated circuits offer radiation-hardened solutions for satellite systems in addition to improved size, weight, power, and bandwidth characteristics. ODIS, Inc., has developed optoelectronic integrated circuit technology for sensing and data transfer in phased arrays. The technology applies integrated components (lasers, amplifiers, modulators, detectors, and optical waveguide switches) to a radio frequency (RF) array with true time delay for beamsteering. Optical beamsteering is achieved by controlling the current in a two-dimensional (2D) array. In this project, ODIS integrated key components to produce common RF-optical aperture operation.

Super-contrast photoacoustic resonance imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Fei; Zhang, Ruochong; Feng, Xiaohua; Liu, Siyu; Zheng, Yuanjin

2018-02-01

In this paper, a new imaging modality, named photoacoustic resonance imaging (PARI), is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. Being distinct from conventional single nanosecond laser pulse induced wideband PA signal, the proposed PARI method utilizes multi-burst modulated laser source to induce PA resonant signal with enhanced signal strength and narrower bandwidth. Moreover, imaging contrast could be clearly improved than conventional single-pulse laser based PA imaging by selecting optimum modulation frequency of the laser source, which originates from physical properties of different materials beyond the optical absorption coefficient. Specifically, the imaging steps is as follows: 1: Perform conventional PA imaging by modulating the laser source as a short pulse to identify the location of the target and the background. 2: Shine modulated laser beam on the background and target respectively to characterize their individual resonance frequency by sweeping the modulation frequency of the CW laser source. 3: Select the resonance frequency of the target as the modulation frequency of the laser source, perform imaging and get the first PARI image. Then choose the resonance frequency of the background as the modulation frequency of the laser source, perform imaging and get the second PARI image. 4: subtract the first PARI image from the second PARI image, then we get the contrast-enhanced PARI results over the conventional PA imaging in step 1. Experimental validation on phantoms have been performed to show the merits of the proposed PARI method with much improved image contrast.

Optoelectronic System Measures Distances to Multiple Targets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liebe, Carl Christian; Abramovici, Alexander; Bartman, Randall; Chapsky, Jacob; Schmalz, John; Coste, Keith; Litty, Edward; Lam, Raymond; Jerebets, Sergei

2007-01-01

An optoelectronic metrology apparatus now at the laboratory-prototype stage of development is intended to repeatedly determine distances of as much as several hundred meters, at submillimeter accuracy, to multiple targets in rapid succession. The underlying concept of optoelectronic apparatuses that can measure distances to targets is not new; such apparatuses are commonly used in general surveying and machining. However, until now such apparatuses have been, variously, constrained to (1) a single target or (2) multiple targets with a low update rate and a requirement for some a priori knowledge of target geometry. When fully developed, the present apparatus would enable measurement of distances to more than 50 targets at an update rate greater than 10 Hz, without a requirement for a priori knowledge of target geometry. The apparatus (see figure) includes a laser ranging unit (LRU) that includes an electronic camera (photo receiver), the field of view of which contains all relevant targets. Each target, mounted at a fiducial position on an object of interest, consists of a small lens at the output end of an optical fiber that extends from the object of interest back to the LRU. For each target and its optical fiber, there is a dedicated laser that is used to illuminate the target via the optical fiber. The targets are illuminated, one at a time, with laser light that is modulated at a frequency of 10.01 MHz. The modulated laser light is emitted by the target, from where it returns to the camera (photodetector), where it is detected. Both the outgoing and incoming 10.01-MHz laser signals are mixed with a 10-MHz local-oscillator to obtain beat notes at 10 kHz, and the difference between the phases of the beat notes is measured by a phase meter. This phase difference serves as a measure of the total length of the path traveled by light going out through the optical fiber and returning to the camera (photodetector) through free space. Because the portion of the path length inside the optical fiber is not ordinarily known and can change with temperature, it is also necessary to measure the phase difference associated with this portion and subtract it from the aforementioned overall phase difference to obtain the phase difference proportional to only the free-space path length, which is the distance that one seeks to measure. Therefore, the apparatus includes a photodiode and a circulator that enable measurement of the phase difference associated with propagation from the LRU inside the fiber to the target, reflection from the fiber end, and propagation back inside the fiber to the LRU. Because this phase difference represents twice the optical path length of the fiber, this phase difference is divided in two before subtraction from the aforementioned total-path-length phase difference. Radiation-induced changes in the photodetectors in this apparatus can affect the measurements. To enable calibration for the purpose of compensation for these changes, the apparatus includes an additional target at a known short distance, located inside the camera. If the measured distance to this target changes, then the change is applied to the other targets.

Reliability study of high-brightness multiple single emitter diode lasers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Jing; Yang, Thomas; Zhang, Cuipeng; Lang, Chao; Jiang, Xiaochen; Liu, Rui; Gao, Yanyan; Guo, Weirong; Jiang, Yuhua; Liu, Yang; Zhang, Luyan; Chen, Louisa

2015-03-01

In this study the chip bonding processes for various chips from various chip suppliers around the world have been optimized to achieve reliable chip on sub-mount for high performance. These chip on sub-mounts, for examples, includes three types of bonding, 8xx nm-1.2W/10.0W Indium bonded lasers, 9xx nm 10W-20W AuSn bonded lasers and 1470 nm 6W Indium bonded lasers will be reported below. The MTTF@25 of 9xx nm chip on sub-mount (COS) is calculated to be more than 203,896 hours. These chips from various chip suppliers are packaged into many multiple single emitter laser modules, using similar packaging techniques from 2 emitters per module to up to 7 emitters per module. A reliability study including aging test is performed on those multiple single emitter laser modules. With research team's 12 years' experienced packaging design and techniques, precise optical and fiber alignment processes and superior chip bonding capability, we have achieved a total MTTF exceeding 177,710 hours of life time with 60% confidence level for those multiple single emitter laser modules. Furthermore, a separated reliability study on wavelength stabilized laser modules have shown this wavelength stabilized module packaging process is reliable as well.

New phase method of measuring particle size with laser Doppler radar

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zemlianskii, Vladimir M.

1996-06-01

A vast field of non-contact metrology, vibrometry, dynamics and microdynamics problems solved on the basis of laser Doppler method resulted in the development of great variety of laser Doppler radar (LDR). In coherent LDR few beams with various polarization are generally adopted, that are directed at the zone of measurement, through which the probing air stream moves. Studies of various coherent LDR demonstrated that polarization-phase effects of scattering can in some cases considerably effect on the signal-to-noise ratio of the Doppler signal. On the other side using phase effects can simultaneous measurement of size and velocity of spherical particles. New possibilities for improving the accuracy of measuring spherical particles' sizes come to light when application is made in coherent LDR of two waves- probing and one out of the types of symmetrical reception of scattered radiation, during which phase-conjugate signals are formed. The theoretical analysis on the basis of the scattering theory showed, that in symmetrical reception of scattered radiation with respect to the planes OXZ and OYZ output signal of the photoreceiver contains two high- frequency signal components, which in relation to parameters of the probing and size, can either be in phase or antiphase. Results of numerical modeling are presented: amplitude of high frequency signal, coefficient of phase and polarization matching of mixed waves, the depths of photocurrent modulation and also signal's phase in relation to the angle between the probing beams. Phase method of determining particle's sizes based on the use of two wavelengths probing and symmetrical reception of scattered radiation in which conditions for the formation of phase conjugated high-frequency signals are satisfied is presented.

AlGaAs phased array laser for optical communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carlson, N. W.

1989-01-01

Phased locked arrays of multiple AlGaAs diode laser emitters were investigated both in edge emitting and surface emitting configurations. CSP edge emitter structures, coupled by either evanescent waves or Y-guides, could not achieve the required powers (greater than or similar to 500 mW) while maintaining a diffraction limited, single lobed output beam. Indeed, although the diffraction limit was achieved in this type of device, it was at low powers and in the double lobed radiation pattern characteristic of out-of-phase coupling. Grating surface emitting (GSE) arrays were, therefore, investigated with more promising results. The incorporation of second order gratings in distribute Bragg reflector (DBR) structures allows surface emission, and can be configured to allow injection locking and lateral coupling to populate 2-D arrays that should be able to reach power levels commensurate with the needs of high performance, free space optical communications levels. Also, a new amplitude modulation scheme was developed for GSE array operation.

Optical arbitrary waveform generation based on multi-wavelength semiconductor fiber ring laser

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Peili; Ma, Xiaolu; Shi, Weihua; Xu, Enming

2017-09-01

A new scheme of generating optical arbitrary waveforms based on multi-wavelength semiconductor fiber ring laser (SFRL) is proposed. In this novel scheme, a wide and flat optical frequency comb (OFC) is provided directly by multi-wavelength SFRL, whose central frequency and comb spacing are tunable. OFC generation, de-multiplexing, amplitude and phase modulation, and multiplexing are implementing in an intensity and phase tunable comb filter, as induces the merits of high spectral coherence, satisfactory waveform control and low system loss. By using the mode couple theory and the transfer matrix method, the theoretical model of the scheme is established. The impacts of amplitude control, phase control, number of spectral line, and injection current of semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) on the waveform similarity are studied using the theoretical model. The results show that, amplitude control and phase control error should be smaller than 1% and 0.64% respectively to achieve high similarity. The similarity of the waveform is improved with the increase of the number of spectral line. When the injection current of SOA is in a certain range, the optical arbitrary waveform reaches a high similarity.