Absolute frequency measurement of a water-stabilized diode laser at 1.384 mu m by means of a fiber frequency comb

We report on the absolute frequency measurement of an extended-cavity diode laser stabilized against a Doppler-free vibration-rotation transition of the H(2) (18)O isotopologue near 1.384 mu m. Absolute determination is performed by comparing the water-stabilized laser frequency with respect to a GPS-disciplined Rb microwave standard by means of a self-referenced fiber-based optical frequency comb. The line center frequency of the 2(2,1)-> 2(2,0) transition of the H(2) (18)O nu(1)+nu(3) combination band is found to be 216 519 045 955(13) kHz.