
Frequency-Locked Laser Chapter 5: Operation
Rev A, March 23, 2018 Page 11
5.2. Start-Up Procedure
The LLD1530 is powered up in the following way. Please reference the labeled front panel features in Section 4.1:
1. Turn on the system by turning the POWER key (F5); the POWER-ON LED (F1) will indicate that the system
is powered. Turning on the system does not enable laser emission.
2. Press the ENABLE button (F10) to turn on the laser. After approximately 2 s, the laser turns on and the
LASER-ON LED (F11) illuminates to indicate that light is being emitted from the LASER APERTURE (F9).
The system will automatically lock the laser frequency to that of a molecular transition in C2H2, which takes around
15 seconds in most cases7. The LOCKED LED (F2) will indicate when the procedure is finished and the system is
ready to use.
5.3. Automatic and Manual Modes of Operation
Care has been taken to minimize temperature-related drifts of the LLD1530 output wavelength. However, changing
environmental conditions, for example due to an increase in system temperature resulting from extended period of
operation, may cause the frequency to drift outside of the specified ±25 MHz frequency range. The relationship
between laser frequency and temperature has been well characterized, and changes in the ambient temperature
are monitored to determine when it is necessary to execute a frequency re-locking procedure in order to maintain
operation within specifications. When the ambient temperature changes ±3.5 °C from the temperature at which the
laser was last frequency locked, the laser frequency has drifted up to ±25 MHz. This is the boundary of the specified
range around the target frequency.
The LLD1530 allows the user to choose how the instrument should respond when the frequency nears the edge of
the specified frequency range by offering two operational modes, AUTO and MANUAL. The preferred mode of
operation can be selected by pressing the MODE switch button (F10). The LEDs (F6 and F7) above the mode
switch button indicate the current mode of operation. The mode may be changed whenever desired, including any
time after the laser has been enabled.
While the instrument operates in automatic mode, the frequency re-locking procedure is triggered after the
temperature of the instrument has changed by 90% of ±3.5 °C, or after an external disturbance causes the frequency
locking to be lost. The RELOCK control (F4) is disabled during operation in automatic mode. The re-locking
procedure typically completes in 15 seconds.
When the instrument operates in manual mode, the RELOCK NEEDED LED (F3) will illuminate after the
temperature of the instrument has changed by 90% of ±3.5 °C. This LED indicates the temperature has changed
by enough since the last locking event that the frequency is close to exiting the specified range, and that re-locking
the laser frequency is necessary to maintain operation within specifications. Pressing the RELOCK button (F4) will
trigger the re-locking procedure. If the temperature changes by ±3.5 °C, the LOCKED LED is extinguished.
Operation in the manual mode can benefit experiments in which it would be detrimental for the laser emission to be
interrupted, or when the application is intolerant of the “wavelength steps” that occur during the re-locking process.
However, if the RELOCK NEEDED LED (F3) is illuminated, the specified frequency accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
Regardless of the mode of operation, the LOCKED (F2) LED is extinguished while the re-locking procedure
executes. The LOCKED LED will illuminate again after the re-locking procedure completes and the output
wavelength is stable. Please refer to Section 5.5 for more information on the stability of the instrument.
WARNING
Note that invisible laser radiation is emitted even during a re-lock event!
7In rare cases when the LLD1530 is disturbed by mechanical or thermal influences the lock procedure can take up to around a minute or until
the system is undisturbed again.