Photonic generation of millimeter and terahertz waves with high phase stability

Optical generation of highly stable millimeter and terahertz waves is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The optical-fiber-path-induced phase fluctuation is identically transferred to a 40 MHz intermediate frequency by using dual-heterodyne phase error transfer, then canceled by a phase-locked loop. Based on the scheme, highly stable signals within the frequency range from 25 GHz to 1 THz are generated, and the phase jitter is decreased from 2.05 rad to 4.7 mrad in the frequency range from 0.01 Hz to 1 MHz. For 1 THz, the residual phase noise reaches -60 dBc/Hz at 1 Hz frequency offset from the carrier, and the relative timing jitter is reduced to 0.7 fs.