A lensed fiber Bragg grating-based membrane-in-the-middle optomechanical cavity

Abstract

Optomechanical systems benefit from the coupling between an optical field and mechanical vibrations. Fiber-based devices are well suited to easily exploit this interaction. We report an alternative approach of a silicon nitride membrane-in-the-middle of a high quality factor ($$10^6$$ 10 6 –$$10^7$$ 10 7 ) Fabry–Perot, formed by a grating inscribed within a fiber core as an input mirror in front of a dielectric back mirror. The Pound–Drever–Hall technique used to stabilize the laser frequency on the optical resonance frequency allows us to reduce the low frequency noise down to $${4}\,{{\mathrm{kHz}}/\sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}}}$$ 4 kHz / Hz . We present a detailed methodology for the characterization of the optical and optomechanical properties of this stabilized system, using various membrane geometries, with corresponding resonance frequencies in the range of several hundred of $${\mathrm{kHz}}$$ kHz . The excellent long-term stability is illustrated by continuous measurements of the thermomechanical noise spectrum over several days, with the laser source maintained at optical resonance. This major result makes this system an ideal candidate for optomechanical sensing.