title: Focused ion beam engineered whispering gallery mode resonators with open cavity structure.
abstract: We report the realization of an open cavity whispering gallery mode optical resonator, in which the circulating light traverses a free space gap. We utilize focused ion beam microfabrication to precisely cut a 10 μm wide notch into the perimeter of a crystalline disc. We have shown that this modified resonator structure supports high quality modes, and demonstrated qualify factor, Q ~/= 10(6), limited by the notch surface roughness due to the ion milling process. Furthermore, we investigated the spatial profile of the modes inside the open cavity with a microfabricated probe mechanism. This new type of resonator structure facilitates interaction of the cavity's optical field with mechanical resonators as well as individual atoms or molecules.
authors.affiliation: Quantum Sciences and Technology, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Dr. Pasadena 91109, California, USA. daveline@jpl.nasa.gov
authors.forename: David C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Aveline
authors.forename: Lukas
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Baumgartel
authors.forename: Byungmin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yu