Disclosed is a system for generating a spatially localized, high-intensity laser beam, including: a laser source designed to generate a burst of N laser pulses with a duration of less than or equal to one picosecond, the N laser pulses having a first repetition frequency greater than or equal to 0.5 gigahertz; a resonant optical cavity designed to receive and store the burst of N laser pulses, the resonant optical cavity being designed to focus the burst of N laser pulses in an interaction region of the resonant optical cavity; and a servo control system designed to control the first repetition frequency relative to the roundtrip distance in the resonant optical cavity, such that the N pulses of the burst are superimposed temporally and spatially by constructive interferences in the interaction region so as to form one giant ultra-short and high-energy pulse.

A laser calibration scheme comprising a tunable laser and a means of generating wavelength fiducial markers such as a gas absorption reference cell. The output wavelengths of the laser can be described by a set of one or more continuous functions of its tuning signals. The tuning signals across continous wavelength regions of the laser are measured and stored in a lookup table in memory. To target a desired wavelength, the laser first stabilizes to a gas absorption line in close proximity to the desired wavelength. A correction factor is generated by comparing the resulting tuning signals to those previously derived and stored on the lookup table. For the desired wavelength, a set of tuning signals is interpolated from the lookup table and the correction factor is applied to achieve a calibrated output.

A THz laser source includes a first generator suitable for emitting at least one first light emission and one second light emission of frequencies that are multiples of a first reference frequency; a second generator suitable for emitting at least one first light emission and one second light emission of frequencies that are multiples of a second reference frequency different from the first reference frequency; the THz laser source furthermore comprises a nonlinear crystal suitable for forming, from the first light emissions emitted by each of the first and second generators, a THz light emission generated by difference-frequency generation, of frequency comprised between 0.3 THz and 10 THz; and at least one first frequency-stabilizing module allowing the frequency of one of the second emissions emitted by one of the first and second generators to be stabilized to an atomic transition.

An optical atomic clock includes a fiber-coupled electro-optic modulator to phase modulate and suppress residual amplitude modulation of a frequency-doubled laser; a rubidium-enriched vapor cell configured to perform a two-photon transition of rubidium atoms to generate a fluorescence signal from the laser; and a differential lock mechanism to stabilize a frequency of the fluorescence signal to a resonance frequency of the two-photon transition of the rubidium atoms.

A tunable laser system includes a tunable laser to be scanned over a range of frequencies and an interferometer having a plurality of interferometer outputs. At least two interferometer outputs of the plurality of interferometer outputs have a phase difference. A wavelength reference has a spectral feature within the range of frequencies, and the spectral feature does not change in an expected operating environment of the tunable laser. Processing circuitry uses the spectral feature and the plurality of interferometer outputs to produce an absolute measurement of a wavelength of the tunable laser and controls the tunable laser based on a comparison of the absolute measurement of the wavelength of the tunable laser with a setpoint wavelength.

A laser light adjusting method includes detecting a pair of mode hops and a comparison saturated absorption line group of the pair of mode hops based on an intensity of a light output signal in response to a change applied to an actuator, comparing a mode center voltage value with a comparison voltage value which is the voltage value at which the comparison saturated absorption line group was generated; a control temperature adjustment process that increases a control temperature when the comparison voltage value is lower than the mode center voltage value, and that decreases the control temperature of the temperature adjuster when the comparison voltage value is greater than the mode center voltage value; and a laser light stabilization step that stabilizes an emission frequency of the laser light to a specific saturated absorption line after the control temperature adjustment process.

A THz laser source includes a first generator suitable for emitting at least one first light emission and one second light emission of frequencies that are multiples of a first reference frequency; a second generator suitable for emitting at least one first light emission and one second light emission of frequencies that are multiples of a second reference frequency different from the first reference frequency; the THz laser source furthermore comprises a nonlinear crystal suitable for forming, from the first light emissions emitted by each of the first and second generators, a THz light emission generated by difference-frequency generation, of frequency comprised between 0.3 THz and 10 THz; and at least one first frequency-stabilizing module allowing the frequency of one of the second emissions emitted by one of the first and second generators to be stabilized to an atomic transition.

An ultrafast electro-optic laser makes a stabilized comb and includes: a comb generator that produces a frequency comb; a dielectric resonant oscillator; a phase modulator in communication with the dielectric resonant oscillator; an intensity modulator in communication with the phase modulator; an optical tailor in communication with the comb generator and that produces tailored light; a filter cavity in communication with the intensity modulator; a pulse shaper in communication with the filter cavity; a highly nonlinear fiber and compressor in communication with the pulse shaper; an interferometer in communication with the optical tailor and that produces a difference frequency from the tailored light; and an electrical stabilizer in communication with the interferometer and the comb generator and that produces the stabilization signal with a stabilized local oscillator cavity that produces a stabilized local oscillator signal that is converted into the stabilization signal and communicated to the dielectric resonant oscillator.

A laser device includes an excitation light source, a resonator which receives excitation light from the excitation light source and generates laser light, an absorption cell to which the laser light is emitted, a light converter which converts the laser light passing through the absorption cell to a light output signal, a third order differential lock-in amplifier which generates a third order differential signal of the light output signal, and a controller. When a predetermined waveform of the third order differential signal is detected, the controller includes a return controller that determines a return direction of a resonator length based on the predetermined waveform and a resonator length controller that changes the resonator length to the return direction.

A voltage-controlled oscillator generates a VCO output signal at frequency f.sub.M. A dual optical-frequency source generates optical signals at frequencies v.sub.1S and v.sub.2S. An electro-optic frequency divider (EOFD) generates multiple optical sidebands spaced by f.sub.M, and from two sidebands generates a beat signal at beat frequency f. A first control circuit generates an error signal from the beat signal and a first reference signal at frequency f.sub.REF1, and couples the VCO and the EOFD in a negative feedback arrangement that stabilizes the output frequency f.sub.M. A second control circuit generates an error signal from the frequency-divided output signal and a second reference signal at frequency f.sub.REF2, and couples the VCO and one or both of the dual source or the first reference signal in a negative feedback arrangement that stabilizes, or compensates for fluctuations of, a difference frequency v.sub.2Sv.sub.1S.