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Applied Physics Letters

Laser frequency stabilizations using electromagnetically induced transparency

Han Seb Moon, Lim Lee, Kyoung-Dae Kim, Jung Bog Kim

Published Apr 12, 2004• 48 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We present two techniques to lock a laser frequency on an atomic transition line by using an electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) signals, which give optical and electric feedback. We employed these methods to the D2 line of Rb87 atoms. Spectral characteristics of subnatural linewidth EIT allow us to improve frequency stability. By optical feedback of EIT signals, we were able to obtain locking bandwidths of 12 MHz, while frequency stability was 5×10−13 at best after 100 s of integration using a frequency modulation technique.

DOI
10.1063/1.1713050

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arXiv:2407.11323•Review of Scientific Instruments•Nov 1, 2024•5 citations
We present two techniques to lock a laser frequency on an atomic transition line by using an electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) signals, which give optical and electric feedback. We employed these methods to the D2 line of Rb87 atoms. Spectral characteristics of subnatural linewidth EIT allow us to improve frequency stability. By optical feedback of EIT signals, we were able to obtain locking bandwidths of 12 MHz, while frequency stability was 5×10−13 at best after 100 s of integration using a frequency modulation technique.
Frequency locking to reference atomic lines using Rydberg electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) has been recently introduced as an inexpensive and reliable technique for laser frequency stabilization. In this work, we carry out a systematic study of this technique using heterodyne beat spectroscopy. Two different commercial semi-conductor lasers are locked to the same reference frequency using EIT locking, and their relative frequency stability is analyzed and continuously monitored in real time. A substantial improvement in the laser frequency stability is achieved through searching for the optimal proportional–integral settings and EIT probe laser powers. The results show that the cutoff frequency of the beat signal can be lowered to less than 500 kHz. We also compare the frequencies of free running lasers with that of a locked laser and characterize their frequency drifts. This study is important in assessing the use of Rydberg EIT locking in atomic electrometers.
The authors have used an electromagnetically induced transparency resonance in rubidium as a dispersive reference to lock the relative frequency of two lasers to the atomic ground-state hyperfine splitting. The beat frequency between the two lasers directly generates a microwave signal at 3.036GHz (Rb85) or 6.835GHz (Rb87). High bandwidth (600kHz) feedback was achieved with only low-frequency (10MHz) electronics using the frequency modulation sideband method. The spectral width of the microwave beat frequency was reduced to less than 1kHz. The technique offers a convenient and low-cost method suitable for many topical two-frequency experiments, including coherent population trapping, slow light, lasing without inversion, and Raman sideband cooling.
We present a laser frequency locking to Rydberg transition with electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) spectra in a room-temperature cesium vapor cell. Cesium levels 6S 1/2 , 6P 3/2 , and the n D 5/2 state, compose a cascade three-level system, where a coupling laser drives Rydberg transition, and probe laser detects the EIT signal. The error signal, obtained by demodulating the EIT signal, is used to lock the coupling laser frequency to Rydberg transition. The laser frequency fluctuation, ∼0.7 MHz, is obtained after locking on, with the minimum Allan variance to be 8.9 × 10 −11 . This kind of locking method can be used to stabilize the laser frequency to the excited transition.
An electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) signal is observed in a V-type energy level scheme in a cesium vapor cell at room temperature. The effects of frequency detuning and the intensity of the pump laser on the EIT signal have been investigated. The performance of the probe-diode laser system, which is frequency stabilized on the EIT signal by using electrical feedback, is explored. The first derivative of the EIT signal offers a steeper slope and better S/N ratio for laser frequency stabilization than that of the Doppler-free hyperfine and crossover resonances. A comparative study of the frequency stability of an external-cavity diode laser stabilized at EIT and at the crossover resonance is presented. The square root of the Allan variance (σ) vs. integration time (τ) plot shows about a tenfold improvement in the frequency stability of the EIT-locked laser (σ ∼ 2.043 × 10 −13 τ −1/2 ) over that of the crossover-locked laser under a short integration time (1–10 ms), whereas a twofold improvement is found under a long integration time (∼1 s).
We propose a technique for frequency locking a laser to the Zeeman sublevel transitions between the 5P3/2 intermediate and 32D5/2 Rydberg states in 87Rb. This method allows for continuous frequency tuning over 0.6 GHz by varying an applied external magnetic field. In the presence of the applied field, the electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) spectrum of an atomic vapor splits via the Zeeman effect according to the strength of the magnetic field and the polarization of the pump and probe lasers. We show that the 480 nm pump laser, responsible for transitions between the Zeeman sublevels of the intermediate state and the Rydberg state, can be locked to the Zeeman-split EIT peaks. The short-term frequency stability of the laser lock is 0.15 MHz, and the long-term stability is within 0.5 MHz. The linewidth of the laser lock is ∼0.8 and ∼1.8 MHz in the presence and absence of the external magnetic field, respectively. In addition, we show that in the absence of an applied magnetic field and adequate shielding, the frequency shift of the lock point has a peak-to-peak variation of 1.6 MHz depending on the polarization of the pump field, while when locked to Zeeman sublevels, this variation is reduced to 0.6 MHz. The proposed technique is useful for research involving Rydberg atoms, where large continuous tuning of the laser frequency with stable locking is required.