Widely tunable and narrow-linewidth violet lasers enabled by UV-transparent materials.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41271687.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-025-65211-2 and PMC identifier 12638939.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Embedding multi-wavelength lasers in photonic waveguide circuits is of interest for next-generation ion traps, such as for miniaturizing optical clocks or upscaling ion-based quantum computing. Critically, this path involves photonic integration of highly coherent lasers in the ultraviolet (UV) range, which is presently obstructed by the transparency limit of materials used in established integrated waveguides. Here, we demonstrate the first integrated, extended cavity diode laser based solely on UV-transparent materials. We integrate aluminum oxide waveguide circuits with gallium nitride amplifiers to generate milliwatt-level on-chip output power near the ultraviolet range. The extended cavity approach allows for wide wavelength coverage and precise frequency control, which is demonstrated by tuning mode-hop-free to a Sr-transition frequency. Due to the inherent stability of photonic circuits and UV-compatible integration, the intrinsic laser linewidth reaches a record-low value around 300 kHz with better than 43-dB side-mode suppression. These results announce the viability of a novel class of integrated lasers that opens access to the UV.