Seeded Optical Parametric Oscillator as a Light Source for Slow-Light Imaging Spectroscopy

In this article, the authors discuss an experimental demonstration of a seeded Optical Parametric Oscillator as a light source for Slow Light Imaging Spectroscopy applications. An advantage of such a system, namely narrow linewidth of less than 400 MHz, allows for precise profiling of slow light features of atomic rubidium vapor, produced by high refractive index gradients in the vicinity of resonant transitions. Time delays of up to 48 ns were observed with a clear definition of the delayed pulse from the parasitic Mie and Rayleigh scattering. A comparison between the experimental data and numerical simulation over a frequency detuning range from -1 GHz to 4 GHz shows a good agreement for both qualitative and quantitative results.