Stabilized Brillouin laser with sub-Hz fundamental linewidth aided by frequency shifted optical injection locking

Abstract

Stable laser emission with ultra-narrow linewidth plays an important role in making fundamental scientific breakthroughs. Here, we propose and demonstrate a new technique for the generation of an ultra-narrow linewidth and highly stable laser based on stimulated Brillouin scattering in combination with a frequency-shifted optical injection locking mechanism. The laser performance is characterized via a delayed self-heterodyne interference system, where the white frequency noise floor is ∼20 mHz2/Hz, corresponding to a fundamental linewidth of about 63 mHz. The maximum deviation in the output power is less than 1.5% over more than 10 min. The operation of the laser can be stabilized without the need for active optoelectronic feedback. The scheme presented in this work enables narrow linewidth and stable single-frequency fiber lasers in a robust and efficient way, which has shown promising potential for many applications.