Frequency locking of tunable Er:Yb microlasers to absorption lines of (C2H2)-C-13 in the 1540-1550 nm wavelength interval

We demonstrate frequency stabilization of widely tunable erbium-ytterbium microlasers in the wavelength interval between 1540 and 1550 nm by locking the oscillators to nine different absorption lines of (C2H2)-C-13, spaced by approximately 150 GHz. Frequency stability is evaluated by measuring the two-sample Allan variance of the heterodyne beat-note signal between two identical lasers. The square root of the Allan variance is 7 x 10(-10) for integration times between 10(-3) and 10(2) s. (C) 1997 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(97)01345-4].