Subpicosecond timing stabilization of solid-state pumped Ti:sapphire lasers

Authors

William C. Wells ⋅ US Spectra-Physics Lasers, Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA
Kevin K. Holsinger ⋅ US Spectra-Physics Lasers, Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA
Patrick R. Carden ⋅ US Spectra-Physics Lasers, Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA
Bruce B. Craig ⋅ US Spectra-Physics Lasers, Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA
James D. Kafka ⋅ US Spectra-Physics Lasers, Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA

Abstract

Mode-locked Ti:sapphire lasers with low timing jitter (phase noise) are necessary for a variety of applications such as phase fluorimetry and electro-optic sampling as well as for pump-probe experiments where the Ti:sapphire laser needs to be synchronized to another source.
Our stabilization system consists of a phase-locked loop and active cavity length control with a motor-controlled mirror for coarse and a PZT for fine adjustment. Previously, an Argon ion laser with an amplitude noise of 0.3% rms was used as the pump source. The stabilization system can typically reduce the timing jitter of an Argon ion pumped Ti:sapphire laser to a few picoseconds.
Recently, intracavity frequency-doubled diode-pumped solid-state (DPSS) lasers have become available for pumping Ti:sapphire lasers. These sources have less than 0.1% rms noise and reduced phase noise has already been reported from unstabilized lasers. Using this low noise DPSS pump source, we have reduced the jitter between two mode-locked Ti:sapphire lasers to less than one picosecond.

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Issue

1997: Proceedings of the 15th National Physics Congress of the Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas

Article ID

SPP-1997-OP-05

Section

Optics and Photonics

Published

1997-10-27

How to Cite

[1]

WC Wells, KK Holsinger, PR Carden, BB Craig, and JD Kafka, Subpicosecond timing stabilization of solid-state pumped Ti:sapphire lasers, Proceedings of the Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas 15, SPP-1997-OP-05 (1997). URL: https://proceedings.spp-online.org/article/view/SPP-1997-OP-05.