基于室温脉冲工作量子级联激光器的脉间光谱技术研究

量子级联(QC)激光器是唯一能在室温产生中红外辐射的半导体激光器。它的宽调谐范围、高输出功率和单模工作的特性,使得它非常适用于高分辨率光谱分析。结合中红外光谱区是气体分子的基频强吸收特性,基于室温脉冲工作的量子级联激光器的吸收光谱检测技术以其灵敏度高、选择性强及响应快速等特点,成为痕量气体探测的有效方法。介绍了基于分布式量子级联激光器的脉间光谱技术,通过分析比较不同工作参数下的激光光谱信号,寻求最佳的激光器工作参数,并且在选定的工作参数下对目标气体的吸收谱线进行测量,得到了中心在2178.2cm-1附近的N2O的吸收谱线。     

Water-vapor isotope ratio measurements in air with a quantum-cascade laser spectrometer

A spectrometer was used in the laboratory to study water-vapor isotope ratio measurements in air: H2 18O/H2 16O and HDO/H2 16O near 6.7 microm. The spectral region ranging from 1483 to 1487 cm(-1), which is suitable for the in situ laser sensing of major water-vapor isotopologues in the middle atmosphere from airborne or balloonborne platforms, was investigated by use of a continuous-wave distributed feedback quantum-cascade laser. The concentrations obtained were compared with the concentrations obtained with a hygrometer. The sigma(18O) values were found to be in excellent agreement with the standard value for two individual lines. The sigma(D) value was slightly higher than the standard value.     

Sensitive detection of acrolein and acrylonitrile with a pulsed quantum-cascade laser

We report on spectroscopic measurements of acrolein and acrylonitrile at atmospheric pressure using a pulsed distributed feedback quantum-cascade laser in combination with intra- and inter-pulse techniques and compare the results. The measurements were done in the frequency region around 957 cm^?1. In the inter-pulse technique, the laser is excited with short current pulses (5–10 ns), and the pulse amplitude is modulated with an external current ramp resulting in a ～2.3 cm^?1 frequency scan. In the intra-pulse technique, a linear frequency down-chirp during the pulse is used for sweeping across the absorption line. Long current pulses up to 500 ns were used for these measurements which resulted in a spectral window of ～2.2 cm^?1 during the down-chirp. These comparatively wide spectral windows facilitated the measurements of the relatively broad absorption lines (～1 cm^?1) of acrolein and acrylonitrile. The use of a room-temperature mercury-cadmium-telluride detector resulted in a completely cryogen-free spectrometer. We demonstrate ppb level detection limits within a data acquisition time of ～10 s with these methodologies.     

基于太赫兹量子级联激光器的实时成像研究进展

太赫兹(THz)实时成像是THz技术中颇具潜力的一个领域,具有成像速度快、成像分辨率高等特点,基于THz量子级联激光器(QCL)的实时成像系统是其中最重要的一种,系统体积小、重量轻、成像信噪比高等特点使其在实际应用中具有独特的优势。本文主要介绍了THz QCL器件及其实时成像系统的研究进展,采用超半球高阻硅透镜改善了THz QCL的输出激光,实现了准高斯光束输出,搭建了基于二维摆镜消干涉技术的THz实时成像系统,单帧成像光斑面积45mm×30 mm,实现了对刀片、药片的实时成像演示,成像分辨率优于0.5 mm;最后对成像系统激光源、成像光路和探测端的改进以及成像效果的改善方面进行了综述,并探讨了THz实时成像系统未来的发展趋势及其在材料分析和生物医学成像方面的应用前景。     

Compact gas sensor using a pulsed difference-frequency laser spectrometer

We present a novel compact pulsed laser spectrometer based on difference-frequency mixing of a cw tunable external-cavity diode laser (795-825 nm) and a pulsed Nd:YAG laser (1064 nm) in bulk LiNbO(3) . The pulsed mid-IR source is continuously tunable from 3.16 to 3.67microm and exhibits a linewidth of only 154 MHz, a peak power of approximately 50microW , and a pulse duration of 6 ns at a 6.5-kHz repetition rate. Spectra of methane in room air and formaldehyde have been recorded at room-temperature operation in a multipass cell with deduced detection limits of 10 and 40 parts in 10(9) , respectively.     

Photoacoustic spectrometer based on a DFB-diode laser

We have developed a photoacoustic spectrometer based on a distributed feedback diode laser. The laser can be tuned continuously over 700 GHz enabling both the precise determinations of absorption line parameters such as the pressure broadening coefficient and pressure shift as well as sensitive concentration measurements.     

High-resolution cavity-tuned ringdown spectrometer using a narrow-bandwidth pulsed laser source

A novel method of cavity ringdown spectroscopy is proposed to achieve high spectral resolution with tunable narrow bandwidth pulsed lasers. We demonstrate a cavity-tuned ringdown configuration in which only a single cavity mode is kept excited near the carrier frequency of a narrow bandwidth pulse laser. This is done simply by making a cavity resonance actively track the frequency reference served by the cw injection seed of the pulsed laser source. We present the servo mechanism used in the cavity resonance tracking, reliable procedures for transverse mode matching, and the evidence of single longitudinal mode excitation. The spectrometer performance is tested to record weak molecular overtone features of acetylene around the wavelength of 570 nm, showing cavity tracking stability within 5-MHz uncertainty which overcomes the bandwidth limit of pulsed laser sources itself. PACS 42.62.Fi; 42.60.Da; 33.20.Kf     

A compact quantum-cascade laser based spectrometer for monitoring the concentrations of methane and nitrous oxide in the troposphere

A spectrometer, based on the frequency down-chirped radiation from a pulsed quantum-cascade laser, capable of detecting fluctuations in local ground level methane and nitrous oxide concentrations over a time scale of minutes, is presented. The applicability of this instrument to low-level atmospheric detection is demonstrated through sampling gases in two locations. PACS 33.20.Ea; 42.62.Fi; 42.68.Ca; 85.35.Be     

Wireless terahertz light transmission based on digitally-modulated terahertz quantum-cascade laser

A wireless terahertz digital transmission link is demonstrated, in which a quantum-cascade laser and a spectrally-matched quantum-well photodetector serve as the emitter and receiver, respectively. An on-off modulation scheme is used. By directly amplitude modulating the laser emitting at 4.13 THz, a 1.0-Mbps pseudorandom signal is transmitted over a distance of 2.2 m.     

Fast local intensity fluctuations in a pulsed untuned dye laser

Intensity fluctuations in a pulsed dye laser are studied. Fluctuations are local and very fast. The onset of the fluctuating regime coincides with the laser threshold. The average Fourier spectrum of fluctuations shows three broad peaks at frequencies v ₁=55 MHz, v ₂=110 MHz, v ₃=165 MHz. The three frequencies remain unchanged when resonator geometrical and optical parameters are changed. Nevertheless the amplitude of fluctuations is easily affected by such changes and by the solution temperature. The application of the Grassberger-Procaccia algorithm to the experimental fluctuations gives slope convergence (between 3 and 5) in some cases. This seems to indicate that the origin of fluctuations is chaotic-deterministic.     

Material growth and device fabrication of terahertz quantum-cascade laser based on bound-to-continuum structure

The terahertz quantum-cascade laser （THz QCL） based on bound-to-continuum structure is demonstrated. The X-ray diffraction measurement of the material shows a high crystalline quality of the active region. A THz QCL device was fabricated with semi-insulating surface-plasmon waveguide. The test device is lasing at about 3 THz and operating up to 60 K. It shows a single frequency property under different drive currents and temperatures. At 9 K, the maximum output power is greater than 2 mW with a threshold current density of 159 A/cm2.     

Sensitive absorption spectroscopy with a room-temperature distributed-feedback quantum-cascade laser

We report what we believe are the first spectroscopic measurements to be made with a room-temperature quantum-cascade distributed-feedback laser. Using wavelength modulation spectroscopy, we detected N(2)O and CH(4) in the chemical fingerprint wavelength range near 8microm . The noise equivalent absorbance for our measurement was 5 parts in 10(5), limited by excess amplitude modulation on the laser output, which corresponds to a 1-Hz bandwidth detection limit of 250 parts N(2)O in 10(9) parts N(2) in a 1-m path length.     

High-resolution wavelength-agile laser source based on pulsed super-continua

A high-speed-scanning laser system is presented consisting of three elements in series: an erbium-fiber femtosecond laser emitting at 1.56 m, a nonlinear fiber, and a dispersive fiber. The system produces chirped broadband pulses that scan from 1.67 to 1.44 m at a rate of 0.6 nm/ns. The spectroscopic potential of the system is demonstrated by conducting sweeps in the ₁+₃ band of C₂H₂ at a repetition rate of 2 MHz. A 3.5-GHz photoreceiver combined with a 20-Gsample/s oscilloscope is used to monitor the optical signal. Instrument broadening due to the time response of the detection system limits the spectral resolution of the system to 0.4 cm^-1, which, however, is sufficient to resolve individual rotational absorption features of C₂H₂. PACS 42.55.Wd; 07.57.Ty; 07.07.Df     

Ambient formaldehyde detection with a laser spectrometer based on difference-frequency generation in PPLN

A laser spectrometer based on difference-frequency generation in periodically poled LiNbO₃ (PPLN) has been used to quantify atmospheric formaldehyde with a detection limit of 0.32 parts per billion in a given volume (ppbV) using specifically developed data-processing techniques. With state-of-the-art fiber-coupled diode-laser pump sources at 1083 nm and 1561 nm, difference-frequency radiation has been generated in the 3.53-μm (2832-cm^-1) spectral region. Formaldehyde in ambient air in the 1- to 10-ppb V range has been detected continuously for nine and five days at two separate field sites in the Greater Houston area operated by the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC) and the Houston Regional Monitoring Corporation (HRM). The acquired spectroscopic data are compared with results obtained by a well-established wet-chemical o-(2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorobenzyl) hydroxylamine (PFBHA) technique. Received: 8 November 2000 / Revised version: 30 January 2001 / Published online: 21 March 2001     

Photoacoustic detection of nitric oxide by use of a quantum-cascade laser

A photoacoustic trace-gas sensor for the measurement of nitric oxide with a detection limit of 500 parts in 10(9) has been demonstrated. The radiation source was a thermoelectrically cooled distributed-feedback quantum-cascade laser operating in pulsed mode near 5.3 microm with an average laser power of 8 mW. A resonant photoacoustic cell was excited in its first longitudinal mode by the modulated laser light. Preliminary measurements have been performed to test the performance of our photoacoustic sensor; possible improvements to reach lower detection limits are discussed.     

Analysis of data transmission technique based on pulsed laser

Pulsed lasers are used mainly in lidar systems as sources of short and highly energetic light pulses. In data transmission systems continuous wave lasers are typically applied, however it is also possible to use pulsed lasers in such systems. Such approach seems to be especially reasonable for devices where a pulsed laser is applied anyway and executes another function (rangefinding). The article discusses a data transmission concept based on a pulsed laser technology. Advantages and limits of such a transmission method are described. Influence of individual transmission elements on the effective data transmission speed is analysed.     

基于CUDA的傅里叶变换成像光谱仪数据重建

为了达到傅里叶变换成像光谱仪(FTIS)数据快速重建的目的,使用GPU并行计算技术设计了基于CUDA(compute unified device architecture)的成像光谱仪快速数据重建优化算法。采用CUDA下的CUFFT库和CUDA并行计算内核,以达到加快成像光谱仪快速数据重建。结果表明,基于CUDA的并行计算技术能有效调动GPU的硬件资源,可大幅度提高光谱重建处理任务的计算效率。如果将该技术应用到更多核的并行计算工作站上,那么单台计算机完成干涉成像光谱仪数据的实时处理任务将成为可能。     

聚变中子能谱测量系统脉冲中子灵敏度的实验研究

为多种复杂环境下的稳态和脉冲DT聚变中子能谱测量建立了一种灵敏度优化反冲质子磁谱仪. 使用成像板和同位素α源测量了谱仪的反冲质子能量-位置投影关系. 利用稳态加速器中子源平台、通过单粒子计数方法结合三维带电粒子输运程序模拟,研究了谱仪脉冲中子灵敏度能量响应. 通过高探测效率参数设置使谱仪对DT中子的探测效率达到2×10^-5 cm²水平,从而在较弱中子源上获得了较高统计精度实验数据. 程序模拟结果与谱仪α粒子刻度和DT中子标定实验结果取得了良好的一致性,可由此发展精细解谱技术,以提高脉冲中子能谱测量的灵敏度和能量分辨. 关键词： 聚变中子能谱 磁反冲质子 脉冲中子灵敏度 粒子输运