External cavity diode laser with very-low frequency drift

An external cavity diode laser with significant mechanical robustness was installed in a housing that was sealed from outside for eliminating variations in the refractive index of air. Using the feedback signal for a frequency lock, it was found that the variation in the laser frequency under free running was suppressed to 275 MHz over one month and depended on the room temperature. Moreover, the upper limit of the linear frequency drift rate was evaluated as intrinsically 40 Hz/s. The frequency lock is expected to be sustainable for more than 110 days with temperature-controlled housing.