The DOI matches its Crossref record; 30 of the 30 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Photonic microwave signals with zeptosecond-level absolute timing noise
Open accessAbstract
Ultralow-noise microwave signals are generated at 12 GHz by a low-noise fibre-based frequency comb and cutting-edge photodetection techniques. The microwave signals have a fractional frequency stability below 6.5 × 10–16 at 1 s and a timing noise floor below 41 zs Hz–1/2. Photonic synthesis of radiofrequency (RF) waveforms revived the quest for unrivalled microwave purity because of its ability to convey the benefits of optics to the microwave world1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11. In this work, we perform a high-fidelity transfer of frequency stability between an optical reference and a microwave signal via a low-noise fibre-based frequency comb and cutting-edge photodetection techniques. We demonstrate the generation of the purest microwave signal with a fractional frequency stability below 6.5 × 10−16 at 1 s and a timing noise floor below 41 zs Hz−1/2 (phase noise below −173 dBc Hz−1 for a 12 GHz carrier). This outperforms existing sources and promises a new era for state-of-the-art microwave generation. The characterization is achieved through a heterodyne cross-correlation scheme with the lowermost detection noise. This unprecedented level of purity can impact domains such as radar systems12, telecommunications13 and time–frequency metrology2,14. The measurement methods developed here can benefit the characterization of a broad range of signals.
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Cites
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Nobel Lecture: Passion for precision
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Generation of ultrastable microwaves via optical frequency division
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High spectral purity Kerr frequency comb radio frequency photonic oscillator
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Quantum Projection Noise in an Atomic Fountain: A High Stability Cesium Frequency Standard
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Cited by
20 years of developments in optical frequency comb technology and applications
Fortier, T., & Baumann, E. (2019) · Communications Physics · doi:10.1038/s42005-019-0249-y · Cited by 963
A phase-stable dual-comb interferometer
Chen, Z., Yan, M., Hänsch, T. W., & Picqué, N. (2018) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-018-05509-6 · Cited by 139
Schioppo, M., Kronjäger, J., Silva, A., Ilieva, R., Paterson, J. W., Baynham, C. F. A., Bowden, W., Hill, I. R., Hobson, R., Vianello, A., et al. (2022) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-021-27884-3 · Cited by 118
Real-time phase tracking for wide-band optical frequency measurements at the 20th decimal place
Giunta, M., Hänsel, W., Fischer, M., Lezius, M., Udem, T., & Holzwarth, R. (2020) · Nature Photonics · doi:10.1038/s41566-019-0520-5 · Cited by 41
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Metadata
- Authors
- Xie, X., Bouchand, R., Nicolodi, D., Giunta, M., Hänsel, W., Lezius, M., Joshi, A., Datta, S., Alexandre, C., Lours, M., Tremblin, P.-A., Santarelli, G., Holzwarth, R., & Le Coq, Y.
- Venue
- Nature Photonics
- Published
- 2016-11-21
- Volume
- 11
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 44-47
- ISSN
- 1749-4885 (ISSN-L)
- 1749-4893
- OpenAlex
- W2529784696
- Cited by
- 441
- References
- 30
- FWCI
- 18.45
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
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- Xie, X., Bouchand, R., Nicolodi, D., Giunta, M., Hänsel, W., Lezius, M., Joshi, A., Datta, S., Alexandre, C., Lours, M., Tremblin, P.-A., Santarelli, G., Holzwarth, R., & Le Coq, Y. (2017). Photonic microwave signals with zeptosecond-level absolute timing noise. Nature Photonics. https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2016.215
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