18 research outputs found
Polarization induced instabilities in external four-mirror Fabry-Perot cavities
Various four-mirror optical resonators are studied in the perspective of
realizing passive stacking cavities. A comparative study of the mechanical
stability is provided. The polarization properties of the cavity eigenmodes are
described and it is shown that the effect of mirror misalignments (or motions)
induces polarization and stacking power instabilities. These instabilities
increase with the finesse of the Fabry-Perot cavity. A tetrahedral
configuration of the four mirrors is found to minimize the consequences of the
mirrors's motion and misalignment by reducing the instability parameter by at
least two orders of magnitud