A phase-stable dual-comb interferometer

Chen, Zaijun; Yan, Ming; Hänsch, Theodor W.; Picqué, N.

doi:10.1038/s41467-018-05509-6

Cited by 108 publications

(65 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…As we will see in the following, the precision of the phase measurement is below 1 • , achieved thanks to the combination of an active stabilization of the sample FC spacing with an electronic cancellation of common-mode noise, significantly improving the phase stability. As a consequence, we have been able to monitor the phase coherence at a time-scale of seconds, while typical DCS setups do not average the signal for longer than tens of ms [33].…”

Section: Measurement Techniquementioning

confidence: 99%

Retrieval of phase relation and emission profile of quantum cascade laser frequency combs

et al. 2019

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The major development recently undergone by quantum cascade lasers has effectively extended frequency comb emission to longer-wavelength spectral regions, i.e. the mid and far infrared. Unlike classical pulsed frequency combs, their mode-locking mechanism relies on four-wave mixing nonlinear processes, with a temporal intensity profile different from conventional short-pulses trains. Measuring the absolute phase pattern of the modes in these combs enables a thorough characterization of the onset of mode-locking in absence of shortpulses emission, as well as of the coherence properties.Here, by combining dual-comb multi-heterodyne detection with Fourier-transform analysis, we show how to simultaneously acquire and monitor over a wide range of timescales the phase pattern of a generic frequency comb. The technique is applied to characterize a mid-infrared and a terahertz quantum cascade laser frequency comb, conclusively proving the high degree of coherence and the remarkable long-term stability of these sources. Moreover, the technique allows also the reconstruction of electric field, intensity profile and instantaneous frequency of the emission. IntroductionThe optical frequency comb (FC) is a peculiar multi-frequency coherent photonic state made of a series of evenly-spaced modes in the frequency domain, typically generated by frequency-stabilized and controlled femtoseconds mode-locked lasers [1][2][3][4]. In the visible and near infrared (IR) such technology is nowadays well established [5]. The miniaturization of these sources, together with the expansion of their operation range towards other spectral regions (e.g. mid and far IR), is crucial for broadening their application range.In this direction, the most interesting results have recently been achieved with quantum cascade lasers (QCLs), current-driven semiconductor lasers based on intersubband transitions in quantum wells, emitting high-power coherent radiation in the mid IR and terahertz (THz) [6][7][8][9][10][11]. In

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Section: Measurement Techniquementioning

confidence: 99%

Retrieval of phase relation and emission profile of quantum cascade laser frequency combs

et al. 2019

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“…We can extrapolate the Allan deviations of the phases at~1 s, as shown in Fig. 5a inset, and, except from these last two modes, they are all within 7°, which is a remarkable result if compared with the state-of-the-art in other spectral regions 30 .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 60%

Fully Phase Stabilized Quantum Cascade Laser Frequency Comb

Bartalini

Consolino

Nafa

et al. 2019

2019 Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics Europe &Amp; European Quantum Electronics Conference (CLEO/Europe-EQEC)

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Miniaturized frequency comb sources across hard-to-access spectral regions, i.e. mid-and far-infrared, have long been sought. Four-wave-mixing based Quantum Cascade Laser combs (QCL-combs) are ideal candidates, in this respect, due to the unique possibility to tailor their spectral emission by proper nanoscale design of the quantum wells. We demonstrate fullphase-stabilization of a QCL-comb against the primary frequency standard, proving independent and simultaneous control of the two comb degrees of freedom (modes spacing and frequency offset) at a metrological level. Each emitted mode exhibits a sub-Hz relative frequency stability, while a correlation analysis on the modal phases confirms the high degree of coherence in the device emission, over different power-cycles and over different days. The achievement of fully controlled, phase-stabilized QCL-comb emitters proves that this technology is mature for metrological-grade uses, as well as for an increasing number of scientific and technological applications.

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“…For instance, during the time of the measurement, the two combs must be kept coherent. With fiber-doped mode-locked laser systems, this has been experimentally achieved by locking the two combs to common continuous-wave lasers of very narrow line-widths [57] or by feed-forward control of the relative carrier-envelope offset [58,59]. Long coherence times have not yet been experimentally demonstrated with on-chip combs, as the technology is still emerging.…”

Section: Figure1 (A)mentioning

confidence: 99%

On-chip mid-infrared and THz frequency combs for spectroscopy

Scalari

Faist

Picqué

2019

Applied Physics Letters

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Frequency combs, spectra of phase-coherent equidistant lines often generated by mode-locked femtosecond lasers, have revolutionized time and frequency metrology [1,2]. In recent years, new frequency comb lasers, of a high compactness or even on-chip, have been demonstrated in the mid-infrared and THz regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. They include electrically pumped quantum cascade and interband cascade semiconductor devices, as well as highquality factor microresonators. These new comb generators open up novel opportunities for spectroscopy of molecular fingerprints over broad spectral bandwidths: their small form-factor promises chip-scale spectrometers, while their large line spacing simplifies the resolution of the individual comb lines with simple spectrometers and provides short measurement times, with an intriguing potential for time-resolved spectroscopy in the condensed phase. This Letter summarizes the recent advances in this rapidly developing domain of on-chip combs for broadband spectroscopy and discusses some of the challenges and prospects. While some review articles already provide a perspective into some aspects of chip-based frequency comb generators [3][4][5], of mid-infrared frequency comb synthesizers [6] and of the applications of frequency combs to spectroscopy [7], the growing and rapidly advancing interest in molecular sensing using quantum cascade and microresonator-based on-chip frequency combs motivates this Letter.

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A phase-stable dual-comb interferometer

Cited by 108 publications

References 46 publications

Retrieval of phase relation and emission profile of quantum cascade laser frequency combs

Retrieval of phase relation and emission profile of quantum cascade laser frequency combs

Fully Phase Stabilized Quantum Cascade Laser Frequency Comb

On-chip mid-infrared and THz frequency combs for spectroscopy

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