Frequency measuring system using mirror gap stabilized Fabry-Perot interferometer

The mirror gap of a Fabry-Perot interferometer was stabilized with two laser diodes; one locked to the line frequency 385,243,555.14445 MHz of the F=3<--1 in 5D(3/2)<--5S(1/2) (87Rb) and the other to the 385,284,566.3663 MHz of the F=4<--2 in 5D(5/2)<--5S(1/2) (87Rb) [Opt. Commun. 102 (1993) 432]. The length of the mirror gap was adjusted to generate the zero-cross points simultaneously at both of the two line positions. The fringe signals obtained from an interferometer thus stabilized can be used as frequency markers having accuracies of the order of 10(10) depending on the finesse of the interferometer used. Based on measurement using Cs D1 hyperfine lines reported by Udem et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 82 (1999) 3568], the uncertainty of markers in the region 50 THz apart from the reference lines is +/- 5 MHz.