D. J. Hayton

Hot electron bolometer heterodyne receiver with a 4.7-THz quantum cascade laser as a local oscillator

We report on a heterodyne receiver designed to observe the astrophysically important neutral atomic oxygen [OI] line at 4.7448 THz. The local oscillator is a third-order distributed feedback quantum cascade laser operating in continuous wave mode at 4.741 THz. A quasi-optical, superconducting NbN hot electron bolometer is used as the mixer. We recorded a double sideband receiver noise temperature (T-rec(DSB)) of 815 K, which is similar to 7 times the quantum noise limit (hv/2k(B)) and an Allan variance time of 15 s at an effective noise fluctuation bandwidth of 18 MHz. Heterodyne performance was confirmed by measuring a methanol line spectrum

Evaluating the coherence and time-domain profile of quantum cascade laser frequency combs

Recently, much attention has been focused on the generation of optical frequency combs from quantum cascade lasers. We discuss how fast detectors can be used to demonstrate the mutual coherence of such combs, and present an inequality that can be used to quantitatively evaluate their performance. We discuss several technical issues related to shifted wave interference Fourier Transform spectroscopy (SWIFTS), and show how such measurements can be used to elucidate the time-domain properties of such combs, showing that they can possess signatures of both frequency-modulation and amplitude-modulation.

Phase locking of a 3.4 THz third-order distributed feedback quantum cascade laser using a room-temperature superlattice harmonic mixer

We report on the phase locking of a 3.4 THz third-order distributed feedback quantum cascade laser (QCL) using a room temperature GaAs/AlAs superlattice diode as both a frequency multiplier and an internal harmonic mixer. A signal-to-noise level of 60 dB is observed in the intermediate frequency signal between the 18th harmonic of a 190.7 GHz reference source and the 3433 GHz QCL. A phase-lock loop with 7 MHz bandwidth results in QCL emission that is 96% locked to the reference source. We characterize the QCL temperature and electrical tuning mechanisms and show that frequency dependence of these mechanisms can prevent phase-locking under certain QCL bias conditions.

Frequency locking of single-mode 3.5-THz quantum cascade lasers using a gas cell

We report frequency locking of two 3.5-THz third-order distributed feedback (DFB) quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) by using methanol molecular absorption lines, a proportional-integral-derivative controller, and a NbN bolometer. We show that the free-running linewidths of the QCLs are dependent on the electrical and temperature tuning coefficients. For both lasers, the frequency locking induces a similar linewidth reduction factor, whereby the narrowest locked linewidth is below 18 kHz with a Gaussian-like shape. The linewidth reduction factor and the ultimate linewidth correspond to the measured frequency noise power spectral density.

Stabilized hot electron bolometer heterodyne receiver at 2.5 THz

We report on a method to stabilize a hot electron bolometer (HEB) mixer at 2.5 THz. The technique utilizes feedback control of the local oscillator (LO) laser power by means of a swing-arm actuator placed in the optical beam path. We demonstrate that this technique yields a factor of 50 improvement in the spectroscopic Allan variance time which is shown to be over 30 s in a 12 MHz noise fluctuation bandwidth. Furthermore, broadband signal direct detection effects may be minimized by this technique. The technique is versatile and can be applied to practically any local oscillator at any frequency.

A 4.7THz heterodyne receiver for a balloon borne telescope

We report on the performance of a high sensitivity 4.7 THz heterodyne receiver based on a NbN hot electron bolometer mixer and a quantum cascade laser (QCL) as local oscillator. The receiver is developed to observe the astronomically important neutral atomic oxygen [OI] line at 4.7448 THz on a balloon based telescope. The single-line frequency control and improved beam pattern of QCL have taken advantage of a third-order distributed feedback structure. We measured a double sideband receiver noise temperature (Trec(DSB)) of 815 K, which is ~ 7 times the quantum noise limit (hν/2kB). An Allan time of 15 s at an effective noise fluctuation bandwidth of 18 MHz is demonstrated. Heterodyne performance was further supported by a measured methanol line spectrum around 4.7 THz.

8-beam local oscillator array at 4.7 THz generated by a phase grating and a quantum cascade laser

We present an 8-beam local oscillator (LO) for the astronomically significant [OI] line at 4.7 THz. The beams are generated using a quantum cascade laser (QCL) in combination with a Fourier phase grating. The grating is fully characterized using a third order distributed feedback (DFB) QCL with a single mode emission at 4.7 THz as the input. The measured diffraction efficiency of 74.3% is in an excellent agreement with the calculated result of 75.4% using a 3D simulation. We show that the power distribution among the diffracted beams is uniform enough for pumping an array receiver. To validate the grating bandwidth, we apply a far-infrared (FIR) gas laser emission at 5.3 THz as the input and find a very similar performance in terms of efficiency, power distribution, and spatial configuration of the diffracted beams. Both results represent the highest operating frequencies of THz phase gratings reported in the literature. By injecting one of the eight diffracted 4.7 THz beams into a superconducting hot electron bolometer (HEB) mixer, we find that the coupled power, taking the optical loss into account, is in consistency with the QCL power value.

Efficiency of multi-beam Fourier phase gratings at 1.4 THz

We compare the results of simulated and measured power efficiency and far-field beam pattern, for two reflective Fourier phase gratings, designed to generate 2 × 2 and 2 × 4 beams respectively from a single-beam, coherent source at 1.4 THz. The designed surface structures were manufactured on aluminum plates by a computer numerical control (CNC) micro-milling machine. Despite small differences between the designed and fabricated gratings, we measured power efficiencies of both gratings to be around 70%, which is in a good agreement with the simulated values. We also find a good agreement between the simulated and measured diffracted beam size and spatial distribution. We demonstrate the application of both gratings as multiple beam local oscillators to simultaneously pump (or operate) a 4-pixel array of superconducting heterodyne mixers.

Frequency Tuning of Third-Order Distributed Feedback Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers by SiO2 and PMMA

We report an extensive study of the effect of an additional dielectric layer on the frequency of terahertz quantum cascade lasers (QCLs). QCLs with third-order distributed feedback structure at frequencies of 3.5 and 4.7 THz are used in our experiment. The applied dielectric layer is either Silicon dioxide (SiO2) or Polymethylmethacrylaat (PMMA). We find that both dielectric layers can shift the lasing frequency by up to -6 GHz on a 3.5-THz QCL, and up to -13 GHz for a 4.7-THz QCL. Full 3-D FEM simulations suggest that the effect is dominated by the effective thickness of the dielectric on the side walls of the laser structure, and also confirm that for a given dielectric layer, the effect is stronger in the 4.7-THz QCL due to its different extension of the electromagnetic field to the free space. This study provides a guideline for shifting the frequency of an existing QCL for frequency critical applications such as spectroscopy or use as a local oscillator.

Stabilized HEB-QCL heterodyne spectrometer at super-terahertz

We report a new experiment on a high-resolution heterodyne spectrometer using a 3.5 THz quantum cascade laser (QCL) as local oscillator (LO) and a superconducting hot electron bolometer (HEB) as mixer by stabilizing both frequency and amplitude of the QCL. The frequency locking of the QCL is demonstrated by using a methanol molecular absorption line, a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller, and a direct power detector. We show that the LO locked linewidth can be as narrow as 35 KHz. The LO power to the HEB is also stabilized by means of swing-arm actuator placed in the beam path in combination of a second PID controller.