Infrasonic performance of a passively stabilized, all-fiber, optical frequency reference

Abstract

We report the infrasonic performance of a fiber optic laser frequency reference with potential application to space-based gravitational wave detectors, such as the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna. We determine the optimum cross-over frequency between an optical frequency comb stabilized to a Rubidium atomic reference and two passive, all-fiber interferometers interrogated using digitally enhanced homodyne interferometery. By measuring the relative stability between the three independent optical frequency references, we find the optimum cross-over frequency to occur at 1.5 mHz, indicating that our passive fiber frequency reference is superior to the optical frequency comb at all higher frequencies. In addition, we find our fiber interferometers achieve a stability of 20 kHz/√Hz at 1.5 mHz, improving to a stability of 4 Hz/√Hz above 3 Hz. These results represent an independent characterization of digitally enhanced fiber references over long time scales and provide an estimate of thermal effects on these passively isolated systems, informing future reference architectures. Show more