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In the final project period, we demonstrated sub femtosecond timing distribution over a 1.2 km polarization-maintaining (PM) fiber-optic link using balanced optical cross-correlators (BOCs) for link stabilization. By eliminating polarization mode dispersion, link operation for 16 days maintained 0.6 fs RMS timing drift and during a 3-day interval only 0.13 fs drift, which corresponds to a stability level of 10-21. To improve the overall system efficiency and robustness, we developed fiber-coupled, hybrid-integrated BOCs using waveguides in periodically-poled KTiOPO4 (PPKTP). The measured second-harmonic conversion efficiency in the waveguides is a factor of 50 higher than that of bulk-optic crystals. Characterization of 1st-generation devices shows performance comparable to free-space BOCs, with the potential for significant improvement in future devices. For optical-to-RF conversion, we developed two balanced optical-microwave phase detectors (BOM-PD) based on the Sagnac and Mach-Zehnder interferometers. RF extraction using BOM-PDs in phase-locked loops yielded sub-10-fs residual timing jitter for locking bandwidths on the order of several hundred kHz. Finally, we characterized the timing jitter of ultralow-noise Ti:Sapphire oscillators, demonstrating an unprecedented 13 as of jitter integrated over the entire Nyquist band. Our measurements agreed well with theory, confirming our models for quantum-limited laser noise. Measurements of commercially available solid-state lasers atmore » 1550 nm showed that there are laser sources already available with sufficiently low noise to achieve sub-femtosecond performance as master oscillators within a timing distribution system.« less |
