Thesis (MSc (Physics))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / In the presented study a diode laser was characterised and used for spec-
troscopy, measuring the resonance lines of atomic rubidium. The characteristics
of diode lasers and external cavity diode lasers (ECDL) for the purposes of ab-
sorption spectroscopy were investigated and an experimental setup for tunable
diode laser spectroscopy using an ECDL was developed. In external cavity diode
lasers, the advantages of low cost, small size and e ciency of a diode laser is
combined with tunability and a narrow frequency bandwidth. The ECDL was
applied in experimental setups for absorption spectroscopy and saturated ab-
sorption spectroscopy. Measurement of the absorption of atomic rubidium's D2
line near 780 nm is discussed. The Doppler broadened, as well as the Doppler
free spectrum of the ne and hyper ne structure of the D2 line were measured
and is discussed. Finer control of the ECDL's stability and frequency, using a
servo circuit, were investigated and tested. An overview is given of laser cool-
ing and trapping of neutral rubidium atoms, which is the main application the
ECDL were developed for.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:sun/oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/2307 |
| Date | 03 1900 |
| Creators | Botha, G. N. |
| Contributors | Steenkamp, Christene, Rohwer, Erich, University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Science. Dept. of Physics. |
| Publisher | Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | University of Stellenbosch |
Page generated in 0.0019 seconds