Yoon-Soo Jang

Testing of a femtosecond pulse laser in outer space

We report a test operation of an Er-doped fibre femtosecond laser which was conducted for the first time in outer space. The fibre-based ultrashort pulse laser payload was designed to meet space-use requirements, undergone through ground qualification tests and finally launched into a low-earth orbit early in 2013. Test results obtained during a one-year mission lifetime confirmed stable mode-locking all the way through although the radiation induced attenuation (RIA) in the Er-doped gain fibre caused an 8.6% reduction in the output power. This successful test operation would help facilitate diverse scientific and technological applications of femtosecond lasers in space and earth atmosphere in the near future.

Absolute positioning by multi-wavelength interferometry referenced to the frequency comb of a femtosecond laser.

A multi-wavelength interferometer utilizing the frequency comb of a femtosecond laser as the wavelength ruler is tested for its capability of ultra-precision positioning for machine axis control. The interferometer uses four different wavelengths phase-locked to the frequency comb and then determines the absolute position through a multi-channel scheme of detecting interference phases in parallel so as to enable fast, precise and stable measurements continuously over a few meters of axis-travel. Test results show that the proposed interferometer proves itself as a potential candidate of absolute-type position transducer needed for next-generation ultra-precision machine axis control, demonstrating linear errors of less than 61.9 nm in peak-to-valley over a 1-meter travel with an update rate of 100 Hz when compared to an incremental-type He-Ne laser interferometer.

Absolute distance measurement with extension of nonambiguity range using the frequency comb of a femtosecond laser

Abstract. We revisit the method of synthetic wavelength interferometry (SWI) for absolute measurement of long distances using the radio-frequency harmonics of the pulse repetition rate of a mode-locked femtosecond laser. Our intention here is to extend the nonambiguity range (NAR) of the SWI method using a coarse virtual wavelength synthesized by shifting the pulse repetition rate. The proposed concept of NAR extension is experimentally verified by measuring a ∼13-m distance with repeatability of 9.5 μm (root-mean-square). The measurement precision is estimated to be 31.2 μm in comparison with an incremental He–Ne laser interferometer. This extended SWI method is found to be well suited for long-distance measurements demanded in the fields of large-scale precision engineering, geodetic survey, and future space missions.

Real-time compensation of the refractive index of air in distance measurement

A two-color scheme of heterodyne laser interferometer is devised for distance measurements with the capability of real-time compensation of the refractive index of the ambient air. A fundamental wavelength of 1555 nm and its second harmonic wavelength of 777.5 nm are generated, with stabilization to the frequency comb of a femtosecond laser, to provide fractional stability of the order of 3.0 × 10(-12) at 1 s averaging. Achieved uncertainty is of the order of 10(-8) in measuring distances of 2.5 m without sensing the refractive index of air in adverse environmental conditions.

Fourier-transform spectroscopy using an Er-doped fiber femtosecond laser by sweeping the pulse repetition rate

Femtosecond lasers allow for simultaneous detection of multiple absorption lines of a specimen over a broad spectral range of infrared or visible light with a single spectroscopic measurement. Here, we present an 8-THz bandwidth, 0.5-GHz resolution scheme of Fourier-transform spectroscopy using an Er-doped fiber femtosecond laser. A resolving power of 1.6 × 104 about a 1560-nm center wavelength is achieved by sweeping the pulse repetition rate of the light source on a fiber Mach-Zehnder interferometer configured to capture interferograms with a 0.02-fs temporal sampling accuracy through a well-stabilized 60-m unbalance arm length. A dual-servo mechanism is realized by combining a mechanical linear stage with an electro-optic modulator (EOM) within the fiber laser cavity, enabling stable sweeping control of the pulse repetition rate over a 1.0-MHz scan range with 0.4-Hz steps with reference to the Rb clock. Experimental results demonstrate that the P-branch lines of the H13CN reference cell can be observed with a signal-to-noise ratio reaching 350 for the most intense line.

Comb-referenced laser distance interferometer for industrial nanotechnology

A prototype laser distance interferometer is demonstrated by incorporating the frequency comb of a femtosecond laser for mass-production of optoelectronic devices such as flat panel displays and solar cell devices. This comb-referenced interferometer uses four different wavelengths simultaneously to enable absolute distance measurement with the capability of comprehensive evaluation of the measurement stability and uncertainty. The measurement result reveals that the stability reaches 3.4 nm for a 3.8 m distance at 1.0 s averaging, which further reduces to 0.57 nm at 100 s averaging with a fractional stability of 1.5 × 10−10. The uncertainty is estimated to be in a 10−8 level when distance is measured in air due to the inevitable ambiguity in estimating the refractive index, but it can be enhanced to a 10−10 level in vacuum.

Space radiation test of saturable absorber for femtosecond laser

We report a space radiation test performed on a semiconductor-type saturable absorber (SA) for its use in outer space as a key mode-locking component of fiber-based femtosecond pulse lasers. Gamma-ray effects on the nonlinear transmission behavior of the SA were evaluated by configuring a pump-probe experiment with femtosecond light pulses. Test results revealed that when the total ionizing dose of gamma-ray exposure reaches 120 krad, the SA encounters a sudden failure with its modulation depth and saturation fluence deteriorating from 11% to 6% and 40 to 110  μJ/cm2, respectively. On the other hand, no notable degradation was observed in its temporal response of absorption recovery.

Polarization maintaining linear cavity Er-doped fiber femtosecond laser

We present a polarization-maintaining (PM) type of Er-doped fiber linear oscillator designed to produce femtosecond laser pulses with high operational stability. Mode locking is activated using a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror (SESAM) attached to one end of the linear PM oscillator. To avoid heat damage, the SESAM is mounted on a copper-silicon-layered heat sink and connected to the linear oscillator through a fiber buffer dissipating the residual pump power. A long-term stability test is performed to prove that the proposed oscillator design maintains a soliton-mode single-pulse operation without breakdown of mode locking over a week period. With addition of an Er-doped fiber amplifier, the output power is raised to 180 mW with 60 fs pulse duration, from which an octave-spanning supercontinuum is produced.

Real-Time Determination of Relative Position Between Satellites Using Laser Ranging

We made a study on real-time determination method for relative position using the laser-measured distance data between satellites. We numerically performed the determination of relative position in accordance with extended Kalman filter algorithm using the vectors obtained through nonlinear equation of relative motion, laser simulator for distance measurement, and attitude determination of chief satellite. Because the spherical parameters of relative distance and direction are used, there occur some changes in precision depending on changes in relative distance when determining the relative position. As a result of simulation, it was possible to determine the relative position with several millimeter-level errors at a distance of 10 km, and sub-millimeter level errors at a distance of 1 km. In addition, we performed the determination of relative position assuming the case that global positioning system data was not received for long hours to see the impact of determination of chief satellite orbit on the determination of relative position. The determination of precise relative position at a long distance carried out in this study can be used for scientific mission using the satellite formation flying.

Development of fiber femtosecond lasers for advanced metrological space missions

Femtosecond pulse lasers offer breakthroughs in precision metrology particularly in the fields of time, distance and spectroscopy. This advance attracts much attention to extend todays space missions by improving the precision of remote sensing and control capabilities. In this presentation, we introduce how femtosecond lasers are being investigated for space explorations in the near future. Special emphasis is given to address the noble methods for absolute distance measurements and multi-functional spectroscopy, which are expected to be soon available with enhanced resolutions and ranges for the next generation space missions.