title: Mode-locked fiber laser frequency-controlled with an intracavity electro-optic modulator.
abstract: We demonstrate a mode-locked, erbium-doped fiber laser with its repetition frequency synchronized to a second fiber laser via an intracavity electro-optic modulator (EOM). With servo control from the EOM (bandwidth approximately 230 kHz) and a slower speed intracavity piezoelectric transducer (resonance at approximately 20 kHz), we demonstrate stabilization of the repetition frequency with an in-loop rms timing jitter of 10 fs, integrated over a bandwidth from 1 Hz to 100 kHz. This represents what is to our knowledge the first time an EOM has been introduced inside a mode-locked laser cavity for fast servo action and the lowest timing jitter reported for a mode-locked fiber laser.
authors.affiliation: JILA, National Institute of Standards and Technology Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0440, USA. hudsond@jilau1.colorado.edu
authors.forename: Darren D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Hudson
authors.forename: Kevin W
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Holman
authors.forename: R Jason
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Steven T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Cundiff
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Jones