Ultrafast electro-optic light with subcycle control
Abstract
The ability to generate coherent optical frequency combs has had a huge impact on precision metrology, imaging, and sensing applications. On closer inspection, the broadband “white light” generated through the interaction of femtosecond mode-locked laser pulses is composed of billions or trillions of precisely spaced wavelengths of light. Carlson et al. demonstrate an alternative to the mode-locked laser approach—the electro-optic modulation of a continuous-wave laser light source can also generate optical frequency combs (see the Perspective by Torres-Company). The electro-optic modulation techniques can operate at much higher repetition rates than mode-locked lasers, which means they could potentially yield even more precise measurements.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Sep 28, 2018
- Source ID
- 10.1126/science.aat6451
Entities
People
- Andrew J. Metcalf
- Daniel D Hickstein
- David R Carlson
- Franklyn Quinlan
- Scott A. Diddams
- Scott B. Papp
- Wei Zhang
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- National Institute of Standards and Technology
- University of Colorado