An optical cavity comprises a set of mirrors between which light can be reflected a number of times. The selectivity and stability of optical cavities make them extremely useful as frequency references or discri­mi­nators. With light coupled into the cavity, a sample placed inside a cavity will experience a significantly increased interaction length. Hence, they can be used also as amplifiers for sensing purposes. In the field of laser spectroscopy, some of the most sensitive techniques are therefore built upon optical cavities. In this work optical cavities are used to measure properties of gas samples, i.e. absorption, dispersion, and refractivity, with unprecedented precision. The most sensitive detection technique of all, Doppler-broadened noise-immune cavity enhanced optical heterodyne molecular spectrometry (Db NICE-OHMS), has in this work been developed to an ultra-sensitive spectroscopic technique with unprecedented detection sensitivity. By identifying limiting factors, realizing new experimental setups, and deter­mining optimal detection conditions, the sensitivity of the technique has been improved several orders of magnitude, from 8 × 10-11 to 9 × 10-14 cm-1. The pressure interval in which NICE-OHMS can be applied has been extended by deri­vation and verification of dispersions equations for so-called Dicke narrowing and speed dependent broadening effects. The theoretical description of NICE-OHMS has been expanded through the development of a formalism that can be applied to the situations when the cavity absorption cannot be considered to be small, which has expanded the dynamic range of the technique. In order to enable analysis of a large number of molecules at their most sensitive transitions (mainly their funda­mental CH vibrational transitions) NICE-OHMS instrumentation has also been developed for measurements in the mid-infrared (MIR) region. While it has been difficult to realize this in the past due to a lack of optical modulators in the MIR range, the system has been based on an optical para­metric oscillator, which can be modulated in the near-infrared (NIR) range. As the index of refraction can be related to density, it is possible to retrieve gas density from measurements of the index of refraction. Two such instru­men­tations have been realized. The first one is based on a laser locked to a measure­ment cavity whose frequency is measured by compassion with an optical frequency comb. The second one is based on two lasers locked to a dual-cavity (i.e. one reference and one measurement cavity). By these methods changes in gas density down to 1 × 10-9 kg/m3 can be detected. All instrumentations presented in this work have pushed forward the limits of what previously has been considered measurable. The knowledge acquired will be of great use for future ultrasensitive cavity-based detection methods.

Inconel 718 (IN 718) is widely used in applications, such as aircraft and power turbine components. Recently, fiber laser welding has become an attractive joining technique in industry for fabrication and repair of service-damaged components. However, a major limitation in the laser welding of IN 718 is that liquation cracking occurs. In the present work, autogenous fiber laser welding of IN 718 was used to study the effects of welding parameters and different pre-weld heat treatments on liquation cracking. Contrary to previous studies, a dual effect of heat input on cracking is observed. A rarely reported effect of heat input is attributed to process instability. Liquation cracking increases with pre-weld heat treatment temperatures that increase grain size and/or, possibly, intregranular boron segregation. The study shows that pre-weld heat treatment at 950oC can be used for repair welding of IN 718 without significant loss in cracking resistance.

X-ray diffraction and scattering, X-ray spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography are widely used in the life sciences, material science, and medical diagnosis. High-quality and high-brightness X-rays are a strong requirement to improve applications. Inverse Compton scattering (ICS) X-ray source has attracted great interests worldwide lately. To significantly enhance the average X-ray photon flux, a compact electron storage-ring combined with a high finesse optical enhancement cavity (OEC) can be utilized. In such a system, the collision rate between the electron beam and the laser pulse is greatly increased to the MHz range, enabling a photon flux up to 10¹³ph/s.In the first chapter, I describe the motivation behind the development of OEC based on ICS X-ray source. The characteristics of this kind of X-ray source are summarized, compared to those of the conventional low-repetition-rate Terawatt laser system based on ICS X-ray source. The latest progress and research status of OEC based on ICS X-ray source are presented. Pulsed-laser injected high-finesse OEC stacking theory and properties are discussed in Chapter 2. Not only does the OEC based on ICS X-ray source require the laser pulse repetition rate to be matched to the free spectral range (FSR) of the cavity, where both also have to match the electron storage-ring circulation frequency. In addition, we have to match the phase shift of the laser repetition rate to the phase offset introduced by the dispersion of the cavity mirrors, since our cavity finesse design value is quite high. The stacking theory is analyzed in the frequency domain. Cavity properties, including cavity mirror dispersion, finesse, and FSR, are discussed in detail. A laser frequency comb and OEC coupling is analyzed also. The laser source development is presented in Chapter 3. We constructed a mode-locked fiber laser based on nonlinear polarization rotation. The locking model, locking techniques, and the theory, simulations and experimental tests of tilt locking (TL) in the pulsed laser injected high-finesse OEC are discussed in Chapter 4. We succeeded in locking a pulsed laser to a high-finesse cavity with the TL technique. The experimental results show that the TL and the Pound-Drever-Hall techniques have the same performance: stable locking, high sensitivity, and the same power coupling rate for picosecond laser pulse case, while the test results for full spectrum TL locking show that it is uneasy to align the split-photodiode to the beam waist.Based on the above experimental study and tests, we design the OEC system for Tsinghua University X-ray project in Chapter 5. The expected X-ray flux is 10¹º to 10¹³ ph/s. We detail every subsystem requirement.

X-ray diffraction and scattering, X-ray spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography are widely used in the life sciences, material science, and medical diagnosis. High-quality and high-brightness X-rays are a strong requirement to improve applications. Inverse Compton scattering (ICS) X-ray source has attracted great interests worldwide lately. To significantly enhance the average X-ray photon flux, a compact electron storage-ring combined with a high finesse optical enhancement cavity (OEC) can be utilized. In such a system, the collision rate between the electron beam and the laser pulse is greatly increased to the MHz range, enabling a photon flux up to 10¹³ph/s.In the first chapter, I describe the motivation behind the development of OEC based on ICS X-ray source. The characteristics of this kind of X-ray source are summarized, compared to those of the conventional low-repetition-rate Terawatt laser system based on ICS X-ray source. The latest progress and research status of OEC based on ICS X-ray source are presented. Pulsed-laser injected high-finesse OEC stacking theory and properties are discussed in Chapter 2. Not only does the OEC based on ICS X-ray source require the laser pulse repetition rate to be matched to the free spectral range (FSR) of the cavity, where both also have to match the electron storage-ring circulation frequency. In addition, we have to match the phase shift of the laser repetition rate to the phase offset introduced by the dispersion of the cavity mirrors, since our cavity finesse design value is quite high. The stacking theory is analyzed in the frequency domain. Cavity properties, including cavity mirror dispersion, finesse, and FSR, are discussed in detail. A laser frequency comb and OEC coupling is analyzed also. The laser source development is presented in Chapter 3. We constructed a mode-locked fiber laser based on nonlinear polarization rotation. The locking model, locking techniques, and the theory, simulations and experimental tests of tilt locking (TL) in the pulsed laser injected high-finesse OEC are discussed in Chapter 4. We succeeded in locking a pulsed laser to a high-finesse cavity with the TL technique. The experimental results show that the TL and the Pound-Drever-Hall techniques have the same performance: stable locking, high sensitivity, and the same power coupling rate for picosecond laser pulse case, while the test results for full spectrum TL locking show that it is uneasy to align the split-photodiode to the beam waist.Based on the above experimental study and tests, we design the OEC system for Tsinghua University X-ray project in Chapter 5. The expected X-ray flux is 10¹º to 10¹³ ph/s. We detail every subsystem requirement.

Inconel 718 (IN 718) is widely used in applications, such as aircraft and power turbine components. Recently, fiber laser welding has become an attractive joining technique in industry for fabrication and repair of service-damaged components. However, a major limitation in the laser welding of IN 718 is that liquation cracking occurs. In the present work, autogenous fiber laser welding of IN 718 was used to study the effects of welding parameters and different pre-weld heat treatments on liquation cracking. Contrary to previous studies, a dual effect of heat input on cracking is observed. A rarely reported effect of heat input is attributed to process instability. Liquation cracking increases with pre-weld heat treatment temperatures that increase grain size and/or, possibly, intregranular boron segregation. The study shows that pre-weld heat treatment at 950oC can be used for repair welding of IN 718 without significant loss in cracking resistance.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:37:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Claudia Barros dos Santos.pdf: 3294972 bytes, checksum: b848d69d9c6a8c824e5142a4e3659d37 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-01-21 / In this work, we inserted two Arrayed Waveguide Gratings (AWGs), in an Erbium doped fiber ring cavity laser, where a single gain medium at room temperature can emit laser in multiples wavelengths, simultaneous and individualy controlled. The setup allowed us to check different functions in the ring cavity. Here we show emission in CW regime, Passive Mode-Locking, using Carbon Nanotubes as saturable absorbers and finally Active mode-locking at 7GHz, simultaneously. / Neste trabalho, fez-se a inserção de duas grades de difração matriciais com guias de onda, ou AWGs (Arrayed Waveguide Gratings) em uma cavidade laser de fibra dopada com Érbio, onde um único meio de ganho em temperatura ambiente pode gerar ação laser em múltiplos comprimentos de onda, com emissões simultâneas e controladas individualmente. A configuração utilizada permitiu o teste com diferentes regimes de operação simultâneos dentro da cavidade. Mostramos a possibilidade de emissão laser em regime CW, em regime de mode-locking passivo, com o uso de nanotubos de carbono como absorvedor saturável e, por último, em regime de modelocking ativo com uma freqüência de modulação de 7 GHz.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:37:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Claudia Barros dos Santos.pdf: 3294972 bytes, checksum: b848d69d9c6a8c824e5142a4e3659d37 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-01-21 / In this work, we inserted two Arrayed Waveguide Gratings (AWGs), in an Erbium doped fiber ring cavity laser, where a single gain medium at room temperature can emit laser in multiples wavelengths, simultaneous and individualy controlled. The setup allowed us to check different functions in the ring cavity. Here we show emission in CW regime, Passive Mode-Locking, using Carbon Nanotubes as saturable absorbers and finally Active mode-locking at 7GHz, simultaneously. / Neste trabalho, fez-se a inserção de duas grades de difração matriciais com guias de onda, ou AWGs (Arrayed Waveguide Gratings) em uma cavidade laser de fibra dopada com Érbio, onde um único meio de ganho em temperatura ambiente pode gerar ação laser em múltiplos comprimentos de onda, com emissões simultâneas e controladas individualmente. A configuração utilizada permitiu o teste com diferentes regimes de operação simultâneos dentro da cavidade. Mostramos a possibilidade de emissão laser em regime CW, em regime de mode-locking passivo, com o uso de nanotubos de carbono como absorvedor saturável e, por último, em regime de modelocking ativo com uma freqüência de modulação de 7 GHz.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:38:55Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DAVID STEINBERG.pdf: 3031041 bytes, checksum: e320f0c21b75ca5bdd5a63f93fa6dd1d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-08-27 / Fundo Mackenzie de Pesquisa / In this thesis, for the first time we present results of passively-mode-locking O-band Raman fiber laser operating at 1310 nm by using carbon nanotubes as saturable absorber. The first results were obtained for an experimental setup based on single mode fiber (SMF) with laser operating near zero fiber dispersion at 1310 nm at anomalous regime. In this same configuration, a study of pulse duration shortening in terms of intracavity dispersion management with dispersion shifted fiber lengths (DSF) was performed. Replacing the SMF by a highly doped germanium fiber as gain medium of Raman fiber laser, operation was shifted to normal dispersion regime and passive mode-locking was also generated. In this laser, a study of pulse duration shortening in terms of gain medium length reduction was performed and the picosecond pulse regime of the laser could be estimated. We also present a brief comparison between the two dispersion regimes of the Raman fiber laser and passive mode-locking results obtained with different diameters of carbon nanotubes as saturable absorbers. / Nesta tese, apresentamos pela primeira vez resultados do acoplamento passivo de modos em um laser Raman à fibra operando em 1310 nm na banda O, utilizando nanotubos de carbono como absorvedor saturável. Os primeiros resultados foram obtidos de uma configuração experimental baseada totalmente em fibra monomodo padrão (SMF) com o laser operando próximo ao zero de dispersão da fibra em 1310 nm, porém em regime anômalo. Nesta mesma configuração, um estudo do encurtamento da duração do pulso em função do gerenciamento da dispersão intracavidade com comprimentos de fibra de dispersão deslocada (DSF) foi realizado. Substituindo a SMF por uma fibra altamente dopada com germânio como meio do ganho do laser Raman, a operação do laser foi deslocada para o regime de dispersão normal e o regime de acoplamento passivo de modos também foi gerado. Neste laser, um estudo do encurtamento da duração do pulso em função da redução do comprimento do meio de ganho foi realizado e a operação do acoplamento passivo de modos do laser em regime de picossegundos pôde ser estimada. Também apresentamos uma breve comparação entre os dois regimes de dispersão do laser Raman à fibra e resultados do acoplamento passivo de modos obtidos com diferentes diâmetros de nanotubos de carbono como absorvedores saturáveis.

Cette thèse décrit le développement de deux outils originaux pour l’interférométrie atomique. Le premier est une cavité optique à haute finesse pour la manipulation d’atomes ultra-froids de 87Rb. Cette cavité est d’abord utilisée pour augmenter l’intensité d’un piège dipolaire optique qui permet de piéger et refroidir les atomes. Ainsi, en procédant à un refroidissement par évaporation de l’échantillon atomique, nous avons atteint le régime de condensation de Bose-Einstein. La cavité étant non dégénérée, elle permet également l’injection de différents modes transverses électromagnétiques. Nous avons alors démontré la création et la manipulation de réseau d’ensembles atomiques en utilisant ces modes. La mesure successive de ces ensembles atomiques au cours d’une séquence d’interférométrie atomique permettrait d’augmenter le temps de mesure et ainsi d‘améliorer la sensibilité de l’instrument. Deuxièmement, l’utilisation d’une mesure faible non destructive sur les atomes permet de soutirer de l’information du système sans le perturber. En appliquant une rétroaction après ces mesures, l’état quantique peut être contrôlé. Par l’utilisation d’une séquence de Ramsey adaptée avec des mesures faibles et des corrections de phase, nous avons ainsi démontré la réalisation d’une boucle à verrouillage de phase entre un oscillateur local et l’état atomique. Nous avons ensuite démontré que ce protocole améliore la stabilité d’une horloge atomique en surpassant la limite de stabilité de l’oscillateur local. Nous avons également validé l’utilisation de la plate-forme laser commercial EYLSA de Quantel sur deux expériences de refroidissement d’atomes par laser. / This thesis reports the development of two original tools for atom interferometry.The first is a high finesse optical cavity for the manipulation of 87Rb cold atoms. This cavity isfirstly used to enhance the intensity of an optical dipole trap. Thus, by realizing an evaporativecooling on the atomic sample, we reached Bose-Einstein condensation. Furthermore, the nondegeneratecavity allows the injection of different transverse electromagnetic modes. In thisway, we have demonstrated the generation and the manipulation of arrays of atomic ensemblesusing these modes. Successive measurements of these atomic ensembles in an atominterferometric sequence would increase the interrogation time and thus the sensitivity of thesensor.Secondly, the use of weak nondestructive measurements on the atoms allows to extractinformation from the system with negligible perturbation of the ensemble. Applying feedbackafter the measurement, we were able to control the quantum state of the system. Using amodified Ramsey sequence with weak nondestructive measurements and phase corrections, werealized a phase lock loop between a local oscillator and the atomic state. We have thendemonstrated that this protocol leads to a stability enhancement of an atomic clock byovercoming the limit set by the local oscillator.We also contributed to the development of the commercial laser platform EYLSA fromQuantel, testing its performances on two laser cooling experiments.

Virgo est un interféromètre de Michelson dont les bras contiennent des cavités Fabry-Perot. Il a été construit pour détecter directement les ondes gravitationnelles. Le projet Advanced Virgo est une amélioration majeure de Virgo pour atteindre une sensibilité encore plus élevée avec laquelle la détection des ondes gravitationnelles deviendra probable. On prévoit un système laser mono-fréquence de 175 Watts de puissance optique présentant des stabilités accrues pour le bruit relatif de puissance et pour le bruit de fréquence. Ce travail de thèse a pour objet la réalisation de ce système laser de haute-puissance et de haute-stabilité basée sur l'utilisation d'amplificateurs à fibre combinés de façon cohérente. Des amplificateurs à fibre disponibles dans le commerce sont caractérisés en termes de qualité de faisceau, de bruit de puissance, de bruit de fréquence, de stabilité de pointé du faisceau, et également en terme de stabilité à long terme sur quelques milliers d'heures. On implémente l'interférométrie de Mach-Zehnder pour la combinaison cohérente de faisceaux. Les techniques de caractérisation de faisceaux laser sont aussi développées en considérant leurs limites ultimes. Hormis un déficit de puissance optique, le système laser développé dans cette étude sur la base de la combinaison cohérente de Master Oscillator Fiber Power Amplifiers, remplit les conditions posées par Advanced Virgo. / Virgo is a cavity-enhanced Michelson interferometer built for the direct detection of gravitational waves. The Advanced Virgo project consists of major upgrades to the Virgo gravitational wave detector for an order of magnitude improvement in differential strain sensitivity, one of which is the tenfold increase in injected laser power to 175 Watts. The use of fiber laser amplifiers and their coherent combination are foreseen to deliver the required high-power low-noise beam. In this thesis work, we review the laser requirements for gravitational wave detectors, introduce the design of the laser system for Advanced Virgo, and develop the means for laser characterization in accordance with the stringent noise specifications. We then present the results to date, notably the quasi-continuous long-term operation of two 40-Watt fiber laser amplifiers over thousands of hours and their coherent combination with Mach-Zehnder interferometry. Although the targeted power for Advanced Virgo is not yet attained, the developed system shows decent noise performance and is promising for further power-scaling efforts.