Nanophotonic Devices Enable New Applications for Laser Frequency Combs

Hosted By: Applied Spectroscopy Technical Group

12 October 2022 12:00 - 13:00

Eastern Time (US & Canada) (UTC -05:00)

Laser frequency combs are a specialized type of femtosecond laser that allows for ultra-precise measurements of light. They are commonly used as the optical-to-radio “clockwork” that keeps track of the ticks of an optical atomic clock. However, frequency combs have numerous other potential applications, including precision spectroscopy of atmospheric gases to detect pollution, optical telecommunications, and the calibration of astronomical spectrometers for the detection of planets orbiting around distant stars. Now, nanophotonic chips (essentially computer chips for light) are revolutionizing frequency combs, making existing systems smaller, more efficient, more capable, and more colorful than ever before.

Octave Photonics is developing packaged nanophotonic devices that are simple to use and provide unprecedented capabilities. In this webinar hosted by the Applied Spectroscopy Technical Group, Daniel Hickstein will discuss Octave’s current research projects, including a project to use laser frequency combs to build a tiny optical atomic clock, a project to build a frequency comb to find distant planets not visible to any telescope, and a project to develop the first commercial stable microcomb.

Subject Matter Level: Intermediate - Assumes basic knowledge of the topic

What You Will Learn:

Applications of laser frequency combs
Use of nonlinear nanophotonic devices with laser frequency combs
Cutting-edge projects with frequency combs

Who Should Attend:

Undergrad and grad students from different fields such as integrated photonics and nanophotonics
Academic sector from different fields
Industry (frequency comb, atomic clocks, satellite subsystems, high bandwidth communications)

About the Presenter: Daniel Hickstein from Octave Photonics

Dr. Hickstein is Principal Scientist at Octave Photonics. He received his PhD in physics at the University of Colorado Boulder in 2014, where he studied how atoms, molecules, and nanoparticles respond to strong laser fields. In his postdoc at NIST, he developed nanophotonic waveguides for supercontinuum generation and the first ultrafast and ultrastable laser based on electro-optic modulation. He later became the Director of VUV and XUV products at KMLabs Inc., overseeing the eXtreme Ultraviolet Ultrafast Source (XUUS), and the Hyperion VUV product. At Octave Photonics, he is working to develop ready-to-use nanophotonic devices including the comb-offset stabilization module (COSMO). Currently, he is working on a NASA grant to develop 10+ GHz repetition rate frequency comb lasers to be used to calibrate astronomical spectrographs to search for exoplanets.