Design, construction and characterization of a single unit external cavity diode laser coupled tapered amplifier system for atomic physics

摘要

In atomic physics experiments, external cavity diode lasers (ECDLs) are often coupled with tapered amplifiers (TPAs) to provide a highly tunable laser source that also has relatively high output power. Usually these systems are mounted on separate baseplates in separate housings, and when the coupling optics are taken into account, the entire system can take up a large amount of optical table space. Here we report the design, construction, coupling and characterization of an ECDL-TPA system where the ECDL, TPA and coupling optics are mounted on a single, enclosable baseplate. During design and construction, thermal management had a strong influence on the final design, therefore thermal measurements and discussion is emphasized. We report that the output power and frequency was stable over the measurement period. The system is composed of commercially available optical components, and readily machined mounting parts. The system exhibits the possibility of further miniaturization for space-limited applications, and portability.