Advances in hardware, system diagnostics software, and acquisition procedures for high performance airborne tunable diode laser measurements of formaldehyde

A tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) instrument was deployed onboard a DC-8 aircraft as part of the International Chemical Transport Experiment – North America (INTEX-NA) during the summer of 2004 to quantify atmospheric formaldehyde (CH₂O) concentrations. A number of improvements, both software and hardware, are discussed and include the laser tuning waveform, spectral wavelength centering, and optical stabilization. In addition, the impact of perturbations to the instrument in flight is reviewed and a number of advanced TDLASdata-acquisition and processing concepts are introduced to identify the presence of optical perturbations in flight to objectively eliminate such perturbed data, assess the validity of the fitting routine in the presence of perturbed data, provide various diagnostic measures to elucidate system behavior, and assess the efficacy of various opto-mechanical improvements implemented to reduce the magnitude of such perturbations. The concepts specific to our TDLASmeasurements of CH₂O should have broader and more universal applicability to measurement of other trace gases and possibly other methods of detection.     

A novel tunable dual-wavelength external-cavity laser diode array and its applications

We review the principles and characteristics of a novel tunable external-cavity laser diode source. It can operate as either a continuous wave (CW) single-wavelength, a CW dual-wavelength, a single-wavelength mode-locked, or a tunable dual-wavelength mode-locked laser. The gain medium is a commercial laser diode array. The telescopic external cavity consists of a grazing-incidence grating, a lens and a stripe-mirror. The external cavity provides functions of wavelength selection, dispersion compensation and spatial mode control. The characteristics of the laser under CW or mode-locked operation are described. The dual-wavelength laser output exhibits beat note beyond 7 THz. The tunable multi-terahertz beat frequency is characterized by a non-collinear intensity autocorrelation technique. A dual-wavelength interferometer that uses a tunable dual-wavelength laser as the light source is demonstrated. Finally, theoretical analysis is presented, which demonstrates that the dual-wavelength output of the laser is stable if the modes at the two wavelengths correspond to different array lateral modes.     

Tunable infrared laser instruments for airborne atmospheric studies

Tunable infrared laser-based instruments on airborne platforms have provided invaluable contributions to atmospheric studies over the past several decades. This paper presents an overview of some recent studies and developments using this approach that were presented at the 2007 Field Laser Applications in Industry and Research (FLAIR, http://www.inoa.it/flair/) conference in Florence, Italy. The present overview only covers select in situ absorption-based instruments that were presented in the airborne session at this conference. In no case are comprehensive details presented. These details can be found in the numerous references given. Additional approaches based upon cavity-enhanced and photoacoustic measurements, which are also making invaluable contributions in airborne atmospheric studies, are not discussed in this brief overview. PACS  07.88.+y; 07.57.Ty; 42.60.-v; 42.60.By; 42.62.Fi     

Low-noise, tunable diode laser for ultra-high-resolution spectroscopy

We demonstrate the excellent spectral properties of a diode laser setup that combines good tunability with superb short-term frequency stability and controllability. It is based on merging two concepts, the diode laser with resonant optical feedback and the grating stabilized diode laser. To characterize the short-term performance we beat two essentially identical diode lasers and find a short-term linewidth of ~11 kHz. Phase locking between these lasers is achieved with a servo bandwidth as small as 46 kHz, although an analog phase detector is used that requires subradian residual phase error. Despite small phase error detection range and small servo bandwidth, cycle-slip-free phase locking is accomplished for typically many 10 min, and the optical power is essentially contained in a spectral window of less than 20 mHz relative to the optical reference. Due to the excellent performance this laser concept is well suited for atomic or molecular coherence experiments, which require phase locking of different lasers to each other, and as part of a flywheel for optical clocks.     

Light propagation in porous ceramics: porosity and optical property studies using tunable diode laser spectroscopy

By integrating gas in scattering media absorption spectroscopy and frequency domain photon migration a new method is developed for the study of optical porosity and optical properties of porous media, in our case ceramics. The optical porosity is defined as the ratio of the path length through the gas-filled pores and the physical path length through the whole medium. The effective refractive index of the porous ceramics is also retrieved based on the optical porosity, which is then used to evaluate the reduced scattering coefficients of the porous ceramics. The combined method provides a new way to study light propagation in porous media. A modified Looyenga model is proposed to study the relationship between the physical porosity and the effective refractive index of the porous medium, which also connects the optical and physical porosities, and provides the possibility to use the present method for porosimetry analysis.     

High repetition rate, tunable, Q-switched diode pumped Tm:YLF laser

The aim of work was to characterize a simple oscillator consisted of Tm:YLF crystal end-pumped by a fiber coupled diode laser and active Q-switch with tunability option. About 7 W with near 35% slope efficiency was demonstrated in a free-running mode. The divergence angle was about 4.3 mrad and estimated parameter M² < 1.3. Continuous tuning by means of Lyot’s filter, consisted of 2 quartz plates in the range of 1879.0–1939.4 nm with less than 1-nm linewidth, was achieved. For the best case (10-ms pump pulse duration, 42-A pump current corresponding to 266 mJ of pump energy), the Q-switched energy was 10.5 mJ with pulse duration of 22 ns corresponding to near 0.5 MW peak power. The 2.5 W of average power with 12.6-kW peak power and 2000-Hz repetition rate was demonstrated for cw pumping regime.     

Modeling and control of tunable vertical cavity laser diode

Micromachined tunable vertical cavity laser diodes (VCLDs) are advantageous for wavelength division multiplexing applications due to their substantial and continuous wavelength tuning range. The present paper reports the effects of closed loop control on these devices. Such use substantially improves the performance of VCLDs. Results from several simulation studies showed that the overshoot was eliminated, the tuning range significantly increased and voltage displacement function linearized. The deformation of the mirror surface was calculated using the Finite Element method and a mathematical model was computed using the Multiple Model approach.     

Integrated wavelength monitoring in a photonic-crystal tunable laser diode

A photonic-crystal tunable 1.55 μm laser diode is fitted with a wavelength monitor on its rear side. The 250-μm long laser based on a coupled-cavity design has approximately 15 nm tunability. The wavelength monitor collects and differentially feeds two-photodetecting areas, thanks to a mode conversion to a higher-order mode (a mini-stopband), followed by tunneling through a thin clad. The layout is numerically optimized to minimize unwanted reflections. Electrical cross-talk was prevented through guard rings and trenches. The correlation between wavelength and the monitor photocurrent ratio demonstrates a 10–20 GHz stabilization capability, or a 15 nm monitoring range.     

Self-mixing interference effects in tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy

We report the effects of self-mixing interference on gas detection using tunable diode laser spectroscopy. For very weak feedback, the laser diode output intensity gains a sinusoidal modulation analogous to that caused by low finesse etalons in the optical path. Our experiments show that self-mixing interference can arise from both specular reflections (e.g. cell windows) and diffuse reflections (e.g. Spectralon^™ and retroreflective tape), potentially in a wider range of circumstances than etalon-induced interference. The form and magnitude of the modulation is shown to agree with theory. We have quantified the effect of these spurious signals on methane detection using wavelength modulation spectroscopy and discuss the implications for real gas detectors.     

Numerical simulations to improve the performance of tunable diode laser absorption tomography in a harsh combustion environment

The impact of measurement noise and tomographic methods on reconstruction quality are investigated via simulation studies under a hypothesis harsh flow field environment. Computer tomographic methods based on direct absorption spectroscopy and wavelength modulation spectroscopy are conducted under different measurement noise levels to assess the noise effect quantitatively. It turns out that the wavelength modulation spectroscopy-based tomographic method shows efficient immunity to measurement noise. However, the direct absorption spectroscopy-based tomographic method is found to be susceptible to the measurement noise, which makes the reconstruction quality decline with the increasing noise level. In addition, two kinds of tomographic methods including linear and nonlinear method are investigated under a complex multimodal temperature distribution environment with limited projection data. The reconstructed distribution for the nonlinear tomographic method reveals great fidelity to the original value with a maximum deviation of 51.9?K, while the reconstructed distribution for the linear tomographic method under parallel beam arrangement shows an obvious distortion.     

可调谐二极管激光吸收光谱技术参数选择及优化

可调谐二极管激光吸收光谱技术(TDLAS)系统性能受调制参数,如调制度、调制频率、扫描幅度及扫描频率影响,实际测量中各参数不存在明确的选择依据。针对此问题,文章在一定的理论基础上通过实验分别观察各调制参数对二次谐波信号的影响,通过分析检测信号的特征,如幅值、信噪比、对称性及峰宽得出其变化规律,总结出在不同系统功能和需求下系统各调制参数的优化依据及方法。系统在计算浓度和温度时应优先考虑幅值和信噪比,从而使调制度达到最佳值,调制频率和扫描频率取较小值;在线形推导压强时优先考虑信号的对称性和峰宽,根据计算的具体要求确定调制参数;扫描幅度的确定以得到完整谐波信号为准;再根据系统的速度和精度需求调整扫描频率。该研究为此类系统工作状态的确定提供了实验依据。     

Widely tunable continuous-wave Raman laser in diatomic hydrogen pumped by an external-cavity diode laser

What is to the authors' knowledge the first experimental demonstration of a nonresonant cw Raman laser pumped by a tunable external-cavity diode laser (ECDL) is presented. The ECDL is phase-frequency locked to a high-finesse Raman laser cavity containing diatomic hydrogen (H(2)) by the Pound-Drever-Hall locking technique. The Stokes lasing threshold occurs at a pump power of 400 +/- 30 muW, and a maximum photon conversion efficiency of 12.0 +/- 1.3% is achieved at 1.6 mW of pump power. A 40-nm tuning range of the cw Stokes emission, 1174-1214 nm, is obtained by tuning of the wavelength of the ECDL pump source.     

Influence of laser intensity in second-harmonic detection with tunable diode laser multi-pass absorption spectroscopy

Tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy （TDLAS） has been widely employed in atmospheric trace gases detection. The ratio of the second-harmonic signal to the intensity of laser beam incident to the multi-pass cell is proved to be proportional to the product of the path length and the gas concentration under any condition. A new calibration method based on this relation in TDLAS system for the measurement of trace gas concentration is proposed for the first time. The detection limit and the sensitivity of the system are below 110 and 31ppbv （parts-per-billion in volume）, respectively.     

Modeling, measuring, and minimizing the instrument response function of a tunable diode laser spectrometer

The instrument response function (IRF) of a spectrometer limits the accuracy of measured spectroscopic parameters by broadening recorded spectral lines/features. We describe methods to model the effects of the IRF on spectral data, to minimize the IRF widths, and to measure the resulting width of the spectrometer IRF. We have modeled the IRF of our Tunable Diode Laser Spectrometer as a Voigt function. A real-time method of eliminating the effects of low-frequency spectrometer drift has been implemented and has resulted in a substantial reduction in the width of the IRF, its residual Gaussian component reduced from about to about . An accurate measurement of the IRF Gaussian width utilizes a computationally simple method making use of the spectral dependence of the RMS noise of each signal-averaged data point. Various noise sources affecting the spectrometer (preamp/detector noise, laser AM noise, and laser FM noise) are identified and separately quantified by use of the same method. The IRF Gaussian-width measurement can be automatically applied to each measured spectrum of an experimental data set. A related method is discussed which allows accurate determination of the spectral dependence of statistical noise appropriate for use in quantitative Chi-square fitting of absorption spectra. We explore simple, efficient numerical processes which can dramatically enhance the quality and usefulness of acquired spectral data, improving the ability to apply TDL spectroscopy to high-precision, quantitative measurements and the determination of detailed spectroscopic lineshape parameters. This paper provides a guide for interested readers to implement these developments in their own spectrometers.     

Infrared hole burning in matrix-isolated 1,2-difluoroethane with a tunable diode laser

Infrared hole burning within the absorption profile of the ν₁₇ vibrational transition of 1,2-difluoroethane matrix-isolated in solid Ar, Kr, and N₂ was observed. These measurements allowed the determination of the homogeneous and inhomogeneous linewidth ($\text{Δ}\text{ν}\text{?}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>h</mtext>}}\text{= 0.002}\text{cm}{}^{\mathrm{?1}}$ at 2.5 K in Kr, $\text{Δ}\text{ν}\text{?}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>i</mtext>}}\text{= 0.25}\text{cm}{}^{\mathrm{?1}}$). The temperature dependence of the homogeneous linewidth is explained in terms of vibrational relaxation as well as dephasing processes. A detailed analysis of the changes in the absorption profile with irradiation and calculation of the potential energy surface for rotation of the molecule in the matrix cage suggest a reorientation of the molecules in the matrix to be the cause of the observed hole burning.     

Conductively-cooled,high-energy,single-frequency diode pumped slab laser for space applications

A laser-diode-pumped high efficiency, high pulse energy and single-frequency oscillator and amplifier for potential space environment applications have been developed and demonstrated using conductively-cooled heat removal. A diode-pumped injection seeded single-frequency oscillator was achieved by using the resonance-detection technique in Q-Switching operation, and Nd: YAG zigzag slabs based on “pump on bounce” are used in power amplifier stage for high-efficiency pulse energy extraction. Output pulse energy of 800 mJ with 11 ns pulse duration is obtained at a repetition rate of 100 Hz, with a near 3× diffraction-limit beam and an optical-to-optical efficiency of 18%. The experimental result shows that the laser has compact structure, high efficiency, reliability, conductive cooling and can be used for space environments.     

Use of diffuse reflections in tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy: implications of laser speckle for gas absorption measurements

The use of diffusely scattering materials as a means of eliminating interference fringes has been investigated. Their use introduces laser speckle that can contribute a random, rather than periodic, uncertainty to gas measurements. We have established a method for quantifying the uncertainty due to speckle and investigated ways of reducing it. We characterised the speckle at 823 nm allowing the use of low-cost CCD cameras. We have tested the principle of the model by making gas absorption measurements on the 1650-nm methane absorption line using wavelength-modulation spectroscopy, for which preliminary results are presented. PACS 42.62.Fi; 42.25.Hz; 42.30.Ms     

连续和准连续激光调制谱分析技术的比对研究

为了在面对不同检测需求时,能够选取适合的调谐激光吸收光谱技术方案,对直接吸收光谱、连续调制谱和准连续调制谱三种方法进行了理论分析和实验比较。在相同实验条件下,通过同一激光器测量不同浓度CO2气体,比较了这三种方法的技术特点、信号特征、检测灵敏度。结果表明,准连续调制谱技术具有与连续调制谱相当的检测灵敏度,但是受激光能量间断和较大的寄生幅度调制影响,检测信号相对于气体吸收谱的线形失真较大,因此不太适合依赖光谱线形和线宽的压力、流速测量。为选取更加适用的激光调制谱技术,提供了参考依据。     

可调谐激光二极管吸收光谱系统信号分析及谱线畸变校正技术研究

利用可调谐激光二极管吸收光谱技术进行气体检测时,波长调制伴随的光强幅度调制,会使解调出的谐波谱线发生畸变.在傅里叶分析的基础上对可调谐激光二极管吸收光谱任意调制幅度的波长调制光谱信号进行了分析,给出了光强幅度调制引起吸收谱线畸变的理论解释.提出了在波长调制过程中进行旧步平抑幅度调制的方法来消除谱线畸变,设计了实验方案并...