461nm laser for studies in ultracold neutral strontium
A 461 nm laser was constructed for the purposes of studying ultracold neutral strontium. The dipole-allowed 1 S0 &rarr; 1P1 transition at 460.862 nm can be used in laser cooling and trapping; optical imaging, Zeeman slowing, and photoassociative spectroscopy. We produce light at this wavelength by converting infrared light at 922nm from various IR sources, notably a Ti:Sapphire laser, via second harmonic generation in a frequency doubling cavity using a potassium niobate crystal. This thesis will discuss the motivation, optical resonator, locking electronics, and characterization of a 461 nm laser.
Molecular physics, Atomic physics, Optics
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations