Realization of a compact one-seed laser system for atom interferometer-based gravimeters

A simple and compact design of the laser system is important for realization of compact atom interferometers (AIs). We design and realize a simple fiber bench-based 780-nm laser system used for Rb-85 AI-based gravimeters. The laser system contains only one 780 nm seed laser, and the traditional frequency-doubling-module is not used. The Raman beams are shared with one pair of the cooling beams by using a liquid crystal variable retarder based polarization control technique. This laser system is applied to a compact AI-based gravimeter, and a best gravity measurement sensitivity of 230 mu Gal/Hz(1/2) is achieved. The gravity measurements for more than one day are also performed, and the long-term stability of the gravimeter is 5.5 mu Gal. (c) 2018 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement