title: Linewidth reduction by 6 orders of magnitude of a broad-area 729-nm diode laser.
abstract: Diode lasers with a power output superior to 100 mW are in widespread use in medical as well as research applications. However, for such diodes lasing oscillation generally occurs simultaneously in several longitudinal and transverse modes that are unsuitable for high-resolution spectroscopy. We spectrally narrow a 100-mW broad-area diode laser by first using an extended cavity and then an electrical feedback produced by a Pound-Drever-Hall stabilization on a low-finesse reference cavity. Reduction of the linewidth by more than 6 orders of magnitude is achieved (the output linewidth is narrowed from 1 THz to less than 500 kHz), making possible its use for high-resolution spectroscopy. The power and the spectral qualities of this diode laser allow us to induce quantum jumps toward the D5/2 metastable level of single Ca+ ions.
authors.affiliation: Physique des Interactions Ioniques et Moléculaires, Unite Mixte de Recherche 6633, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université d'Aix-Marseille 1, Centre de St. Jérôme, Case C21, F-13397 Marseille, France. mhoussin@up.univ-mrs.fr
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Houssin
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Courteille
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Champenois
authors.forename: Mustapha
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Herbane
authors.forename: Martina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Knoop
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vedel
authors.forename: Fernande
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vedel