Nearly quantum-noise-limited timing jitter from miniature Er:Yb:glass lasers

Abstract

We report on nearly quantum-limited timing-jitter performance of two passively mode-locked Er:Yb:glass lasers with a repetition rate of 10 GHz. The relative timing jitter of both lasers was measured to be 190 fs (100 Hz-1.56 MHz) root mean square. The remaining cavity-length fluctuations are below 7.5 pm in the 6 Hz-8 kHz frequency range, indicating the stability of a rugged miniature cavity setup. By actively controlling the cavity length we reduced the timing jitter to 26 fs (6 Hz-1.56 MHz). We also discuss the influence of cavity length on the practically achievable timing jitter.