Coherent optical frequency combs: From principles to applications

A coherent optical frequency comb is a kind of broad-spectrum light sources delivering equidistant frequencies, and correspondingly its temporal waveform appears as a sequence of ultrashort pulses. Being the cornerstone technology of today's laser and time-frequency disciplines, it effectively links the optical frequency and the microwave frequency, and has promoted the development of diverse applications, such as precision spectroscopy, optical measurement, coherent optical communications, and optical clocks in the past two decades. In this review, we comprehensively introduce the development path, physical principle, generation/tuning methods, and advanced applications of optical frequency combs.