RESUMO
We report a novel, to the best of our knowledge, and simple technique to lock a 642â nm multi-quantum well diode laser to an external linear power buildup cavity by directly feeding the cavity reflected light back to the diode laser for enhancement of gas Raman signals. The dominance of the resonant light field in the locking process is achieved by reducing the reflectivity of the cavity input mirror and thus making the intensity of the directly reflected light weaker than that of the resonant light. Compared with traditional techniques, stable power buildup in the fundamental transverse mode TEM00 is guaranteed without any additional optical elements or complex optical arrangements. An intracavity exciting light of 160â W is generated with a 40â mW diode laser. Using a backward Raman light collection geometry, detection limits at the ppm level are achieved for ambient gases (N2, O2) with an exposure time of 60â s.