INTERMODE BEAT STABILIZED LASER WITH FREQUENCY PULLING

A frequency-stabilized two-mode He-Ne laser has been developed. The intermode beat frequency of the experimental laser was approximately 600 MHz for a 25-cm cavity. The laser frequency in which the mode stands is pulled to the center of the gain curve (frequency pulling). The degree of pulling depends on where the longitudinal modes stand in the broadened gain curve. Beat frequency is thereby changed periodically of the order of hundreds of kilohertz with respect to cavity expansion. The frequency pulling was effectively used for frequency stabilization of the laser. The standing position of the longitudinal mode lights was locked in the gain curve by controlling the change of intermode beat frequency. A microwave mixer was applied to extract the frequency change of the intermode beat. Excellent frequency stability (10(10) for the laser oscillation and 10(6) for the beat frequency) was attained. The polarization orthogonality of the proposed laser was superior to that of Zeeman lasers.