Tracking length and differential wavefront sensing signals from quadrant photodiodes in heterodyne interferometers with digital phase-locked loop readout

Abstract

We propose a method to track signals from quadrant photodiodes (QPD) in heterodyne laser interferometers that employ digital phase-locked loops for phase readout. Instead of separately tracking the four segments from the QPD and then combining the results into length and Differential Wavefront Sensing (DWS) signals, this method employs a set of coupled tracking loops that operate directly on the combined length and angular signals. Benefits are increased signal-to-noise ratio in the loops and the possibility to adapt the loop bandwidths to the different dynamical behavior of the signals being tracked, which now correspond to physically meaningful observables. We demonstrate an improvement of up to 6 dB over single-segment tracking, which makes this scheme an attractive solution for applications in precision inter-satellite laser interferometry in ultra-low-light conditions.

11 pages, 8 figures

References in corpus (4)

• Test of the Equivalence Principle Using a Rotating Torsion Balance
• On orbit performance of the GRACE Follow-On Laser Ranging Interferometer
• LISA Pathfinder Platform Stability and Drag-free Performance
• Optical suppression of tilt-to-length coupling in the LISA long-arm interferometer

Cited by in corpus (7)

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• On-axis Optical Bench for Laser Ranging Instruments in future gravity missions
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• IWAVE -- An Adaptive Filter Approach to Phase Lock and the Dynamic Characterisation of Pseudo-Harmonic Waves
• Experimental Demonstration of an On-Axis Laser Ranging Interferometer for Future Gravity Missions