Abstract

Controlling the group velocity of light is a valuable resource for quantum and classical optical processing and high performance sensor technologies. In this context, slow-light (SL) and the associated steep dispersion have been proposed to increase the sensitivity of certain types of interferometers. Here, we show that the interaction of two intensity-balanced light beams in a SL medium can be used to detect Doppler shifts with extremely high sensitivity. By using this effect in a liquid crystal light-valve, we have been able to measure Doppler shifts as low as 1 μHz with an integration time of only 1 s. The shot noise limited sensitivity inversely depends on the steepness of the beam-coupling dispersive response. This method allows for remote sensing of very slowly moving objects with a linear response over 5 orders of magnitude.

© 2013 Optical Society of America

Full Article  |  PDF Article

References

You do not have subscription access to this journal. Citation lists with outbound citation links are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an OSA member, or as an authorized user of your institution.

Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Login to access OSA Member Subscription

Cited By

You do not have subscription access to this journal. Cited by links are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an OSA member, or as an authorized user of your institution.

Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Login to access OSA Member Subscription

Figures (4)

You do not have subscription access to this journal. Figure files are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an OSA member, or as an authorized user of your institution.

Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Login to access OSA Member Subscription

Equations (3)

You do not have subscription access to this journal. Equations are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an OSA member, or as an authorized user of your institution.

Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Login to access OSA Member Subscription

Metrics

You do not have subscription access to this journal. Article level metrics are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an OSA member, or as an authorized user of your institution.

Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Login to access OSA Member Subscription