Kaiyong Yang

Temperature-controlled autocollimator with ultrahigh angular measuring precision

A temperature-controlled autocollimator with ultrahigh angular measuring precision is proposed in this article, which is different from our previous publication [J. Yuan and X. W. Long, Rev. Sci. Instrum. 74, 1362 (2003)]. The autocollimator consists of a zoom lens illuminating a charge-coupled device (CCD). This design provides a compact size and increased stability without compromising precision. Moreover, this design makes it possible to detect a target mirror with either plane reflectors or spherical reflectors. Devices for shock absorption and heat insulation were implemented to diminish external interferences. A special temperature-control system for the autocollimator is designed to control the temperature of the autocollimator. The temperature of the autocollimator fluctuates less than ±0.01°C. The CCD camera’s noise is a fatal obstacle that prevents us from achieving an ultrahigh angular measuring precision. In this article, the influence of the CCD camera’s noise on the measuring resolution is a...

Design of a superluminal ring laser gyroscope using multilayer optical coatings with huge group delay

We propose and analyze a superluminal ring laser gyroscope (RLG) using multilayer optical coatings with huge group delay (GD). This GD assisted superluminal RLG can measure the absolute rotation with a giant sensitivity-enhancement factor of ~103; while, the broadband FWHM of the enhancement factor can reach 20 MHz. This superluminal RLG is based on a traditional RLG with minimal re-engineering, and beneficial for miniaturization according to theoretical calculation. The idea of using GD coatings as a fast-light medium will shed lights on the design and application of fast-light sensors.

Transverse spin relaxation and diffusion-constant measurements of spin-polarized 129Xe nuclei in the presence of a magnetic field gradient.

The presence of a magnetic field gradient in a sample cell containing spin-polarized 129Xe atoms will cause an increased relaxation rate. We measured the transverse spin relaxation time of 129Xe verse the applied magnetic field gradient and the cell temperature. We then compared the different transverse spin relaxation behavior of dual isotopes of xenon (129Xe and 131Xe) due to magnetic field gradient in the same cell. The experiment results show the residual magnetic field gradient can be measured and compensated by applying a negative magnetic gradient in the sample cell. The transverse spin relaxation time of 129Xe could be increased 2–7 times longer when applying an appropriate magnetic field gradient. The experiment results can also be used to determine the diffusion constant of 129Xe in H2 and N2 to be 0.4 ± 0.26 cm2/sec and 0.12 ± 0.02 cm2/sec. The results are close with theoretical calculation.

Monolithic Cylindrical Fused Silica Resonators with High Q Factors

The cylindrical resonator gyroscope (CRG) is a typical Coriolis vibratory gyroscope whose performance is determined by the Q factor and frequency mismatch of the cylindrical resonator. Enhancing the Q factor is crucial for improving the rate sensitivity and noise performance of the CRG. In this paper, for the first time, a monolithic cylindrical fused silica resonator with a Q factor approaching 8 × 105 (ring-down time over 1 min) is reported. The resonator is made of fused silica with low internal friction and high isotropy, with a diameter of 25 mm and a center frequency of 3974.35 Hz. The structure of the resonator is first briefly introduced, and then the experimental non-contact characterization method is presented. In addition, the post-fabrication experimental procedure of Q factor improvement, including chemical and thermal treatment, is demonstrated. The Q factor improvement by both treatments is compared and the primary loss mechanism is analyzed. To the best of our knowledge, the work presented in this paper represents the highest reported Q factor for a cylindrical resonator. The proposed monolithic cylindrical fused silica resonator may enable high performance inertial sensing with standard manufacturing process and simple post-fabrication treatment.

Measuring the spin polarization of alkali-metal atoms using nuclear magnetic resonance frequency shifts of noble gases

We report a novel method of measuring the spin polarization of alkali-metal atoms by detecting the NMR frequency shifts of noble gases. We calculated the profile of 87Rb D1 line absorption cross sections. We then measured the absorption profile of the sample cell, from which we calculated the 87Rb number densities at different temperatures. Then we measured the frequency shifts resulted from the spin polarization of the 87Rb atoms and calculated its polarization degrees at different temperatures. The behavior of frequency shifts versus temperature in experiment was consistent with theoretical calculation, which may be used as compensative signal for the NMRG closed-loop control system.

Design and test of miniaturized glass ceramics HeNe laser with frequency and intensity simultaneously stabilized

A miniaturized HeNe laser with intensity and frequency simultaneously stabilized is described. The laser uses a monoblock glass ceramics as its tube to construct an improved steady structure. The closed loop cavity length control system stabilizes its frequency and the discharge current regulating system stabilizes its intensity. The electronic system integrating power supply and stabilization system is designed within two small circuit boards. The laser tube and circuit boards are assembled into a small package with dimensions of 180 mm×100 mm×150 mm. The laser outputs s-polarized light at wavelength of 632.99 nm with power of 0.44 mW. Test results show that its frequency stability can reach 8.4×10(-11) (1s Allan variance over 3 h) and frequency reproducibility at 1.3×10(-8). The lasers intensity stability is 0.011% over 9 h.

Qualification of superpolished substrates for laser-gyro by surface integrated scatter measurement

Integrated scatterometer for qualification of superpolished substrates for laser-gyro by surface scatter loss measurement is constructed. Different from the qualification of substrate by surface roughness, the scatterometer measures the forward surface scatter loss to check whether the mirror made of the substrate will be suitable for the required laser-gyro lock-in specification. The scatterometer utilizes convex lens instead of integrating sphere to collect scatter light. Special sample support and baffle are designed to block unwanted light. The result of stability test is given, which is about 0.4% over 10 h.

Frequency stabilization based on high finesse glass-ceramic Fabry-Perot cavity for a 632.8-nm He-Ne laser

A frequency stabilization technique for a 632.8nm He-Ne laser with a high finesse Fabry-Perot cavity is introduced in this paper. The resonant frequency of the cavity is taken as the frequency standard .In this system the Fabry-Perot cavity is composed of a glass-ceramic spacer, with thermal expansion coefficient smaller than 2×10-8/°C ， which means an excellent thermal stabilization which greatly decreases the thermal impacts on the cavity length in the desired constant-temperature environment.The intra-cavity spherical mirror is specially designed, which makes the Fabry-cavity a sensor element in our subsequent experiments for a new practical optical accelerometer .Both cavity mirrors were custom made in our laboratory which have reflectivities greater than 99.995% at 632.8nm, so the Fabry–Perot cavity has a finesse of about 62830. The half-maximum transmission line width is about 55.48 KHz and the free spectral range is 3.5GHz .In the experimental setup, we adopt the frequency stabilization circuit with small dithering .With proper dithering voltage, the laser can be precisely locked to the Fabry-Perot cavity minimum reflection point. Theoretically the frequency stability can reach 10-10 order.

Interference effect of surface scatter at folded-mirror coating of V-shaped resonance cavity

Scatter property of folded-mirror coating in V-shaped cavity is studied with Kirchhoff diffraction theory. The interference effect of scatter lights can be used to explain the ripple effect existing in optical-feedback cavity ring-down spectroscopy.