Multiheterodyne spectroscopy using interband cascade lasers

Lukasz A. Sterczewski; Jonas Westberg; Charles L. Patrick; Chul Soo Kim; Mijin Kim; Chadwick L. Canedy; William W. Bewley; Charles D. Merritt; Igor Vurgaftman; Jerry R. Meyer; Gerard Wysocki

doi:10.1117/1.OE.57.1.011014

19 September 2017 Multiheterodyne spectroscopy using interband cascade lasers

Lukasz A. Sterczewski, Jonas Westberg, Charles L. Patrick, Chul Soo Kim, Mijin Kim, Chadwick L. Canedy, William W. Bewley, Charles D. Merritt, Igor Vurgaftman, Jerry R. Meyer, Gerard Wysocki

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Optical Engineering, Vol. 57, Issue 1, 011014 (September 2017). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.OE.57.1.011014

Abstract

While midinfrared radiation can be used to identify and quantify numerous chemical species, contemporary broadband midinfrared spectroscopic systems are often hindered by large footprints, moving parts, and high power consumption. In this work, we demonstrate multiheterodyne spectroscopy (MHS) using interband cascade lasers, which combines broadband spectral coverage with high spectral resolution and energy-efficient operation. The lasers generate up to 30 mW of continuous-wave optical power while consuming <0.5 W of electrical power. A computational phase and timing correction algorithm is used to obtain kHz linewidths of the multiheterodyne beat notes and up to 30 dB improvement in signal-to-noise ratio. The versatility of the multiheterodyne technique is demonstrated by performing both rapidly swept absorption and dispersion spectroscopic assessments of low-pressure ethylene (C₂H₄) acquired by extracting a single beat note from the multiheterodyne signal, as well as broadband MHS of methane (CH₄) acquired with all available beat notes with microsecond temporal resolution and an instantaneous optical bandwidth of ∼240 GHz. The technology shows excellent potential for portable and high-resolution solid-state spectroscopic chemical sensors operating in the midinfrared.

CC BY: © The Authors. Published by SPIE under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Unported License. Distribution or reproduction of this work in whole or in part requires full attribution of the original publication, including its DOI.

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Lukasz A. Sterczewski, Jonas Westberg, Charles L. Patrick, Chul Soo Kim, Mijin Kim, Chadwick L. Canedy, William W. Bewley, Charles D. Merritt, Igor Vurgaftman, Jerry R. Meyer, and Gerard Wysocki "Multiheterodyne spectroscopy using interband cascade lasers," Optical Engineering 57(1), 011014 (19 September 2017). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.OE.57.1.011014

Received: 15 June 2017; Accepted: 22 August 2017; Published: 19 September 2017

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