Related papers: High sensitivity optomechanical reference accelero…
A novel and simple approach to optical wavelength measurement is presented in this paper. The working principle is demonstrated using a tunable waveguide micro ring resonator and single photodiode. The initial calibration is done with a set…
Optical beam deflection is a popular method to measure the deformation of micromechanical devices. As it measures mostly a local slope, its sensitivity depends on the location and size of the optical spot. We present a method to evaluate…
We present a heterodyne stabilized cavity-based interferometer scheme that can serve as a compact and high-sensitivity displacement sensor with a fringe-scale operating range. The technique, in principle, can reach a sub-femtometer noise…
Highly sensitive terahertz (THz) sensors for a myriad of applications are rapidly evolving. A widespread sensor concept is based on the detection of minute resonance frequency shifts due to a targeted specimen in the sensors environment.…
We present an interferometric sensor for investigating macroscopic quantum mechanics on a table-top scale. The sensor consists of pair of suspended optical cavities with a finesse in excess of 100,000 comprising 10 g fused-silica mirrors.…
Optical interferometers with suspended mirrors are the archetype of all current audio-frequency gravitational-wave detectors. The radiation pressure interaction between the motion of the mirror and the circulating optical field in such…
We propose using THz frequency selective surfaces interrogated with THz subwavelength optical fibers as sensors for monitoring of the optical properties of thick films that are brought in contact with such surfaces. Changes in the test film…
The LISA Pathfinder mission to space employs an optical metrology system (OMS) at its core to measure the distance and attitude between two freely floating test-masses to picometer and nanorad accuracy, respectively, within the measurement…
We present a compact heterodyne laser interferometer developed for high-sensitivity displacement sensing applications. This interferometer consists of customized prisms and waveplates assembled as a quasi-monolithic unit to realize a…
We present a compact and robust transportable ultra-stable laser system with minimum fractional frequency instability of $1\times10^{-15}$ at integration times between 1 to 10 s. The system was conceived as a prototype of a subsystem of a…
Compact, ultra-high-speed self-bearing permanent-magnet motors enable a wide scope of applications including an increasing number of optical ones. For implementation in an optical setup the rotors have to satisfy high demands regarding…
Millimetre-wave observations represent an important tool for Cosmology studies. The Line Intensity Mapping (LIM) technique has been proposed to map in three dimensions the specific intensity due to line (e.g. [CII], CO) emission, for…
GRAVITY is a new instrument to coherently combine the light of the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope Interferometer to form a telescope with an equivalent 130 m diameter angular resolution and a collecting area of 200…
Optical spectroscopic sensors are powerful tools for analysing gas mixtures in industrial and scientific applications. Whilst highly sensitive spectrometers tend to have a large footprint, miniaturized optical devices usually lack…
We describe an autocollimating optical angle sensor with a dynamic range of 9 mrad and nrad/sqrt(Hz) sensitivity at frequencies from 5 mHz to 3 kHz. This work improves the standard multi-slit autocollimator design by adding two optical…
Free space optical communication systems with extremely high detector sensitivities are attractive for various applications with low size, weight and power requirements. For these practical systems, integrated hardware elements with small…
This work presents a quantum-limited optomechanical sensing platform for real-time detection and discrimination of chiral molecules, based on a multilayer hybrid plasmonic-mechanical resonator. Leveraging quantum zero-point motion and…
Measurements of optical range and time-of-flight are crucial for a variety of high-precision technologies. Competitive optical measurement techniques have been developed that balance precision with accuracy and system complexity. Here, we…
Cavity optomechanical systems can be used for sensitive detection of mechanical motion and to control mechanical resonators, down to the quantum level. The strength with which optical and mechanical degrees of freedom interact is defined by…
We describe an ultra-sensitive atomic magnetometer using optically-pumped potassium atoms operating in spin-exchange relaxation free (SERF) regime. We demonstrate magnetic field sensitivity of 160 aT/Hz$^{1/2}$ in a gradiometer arrangement…