An open source digital servo for AMO physics experiments

TL;DR

This paper introduces a versatile open-source digital servo designed for feedback control in AMO physics experiments, capable of high bandwidth, complex filtering, and automated lock acquisition, with user-friendly configuration tools.

Contribution

The paper presents a novel open-source digital servo with high bandwidth, advanced control features, and an intuitive GUI, tailored for AMO physics applications.

Findings

Achieves feedback bandwidth up to 1 MHz.

Supports fifth-order loop filter shapes.

Demonstrates successful laser frequency and cavity length control.

Abstract

We describe a general purpose digital servo optimized for feedback control of lasers in atomic, molecular, and optical (AMO) physics experiments. The servo is capable of feedback bandwidths up to roughly 1~MHz (limited by the 320~ns total latency); loop filter shapes up to fifth order; multiple-input, multiple-output control; and automatic lock acquisition. The configuration of the servo is controlled via a graphical user interface, which also provides a rudimentary software oscilloscope and tools for measurement of system transfer functions. We illustrate the functionality of the digital servo by describing its use in two example scenarios: frequency control of the laser used to probe the narrow clock transition of $^{27}$Al$^+$ in an optical atomic clock, and length control of a cavity used for resonant frequency doubling of a laser.