A single mode He-Ne laser operating at 6328 Å is used with an iodine cell in the cavity to detect the absorption components of iodine falling within the gain curve of the laser line. Experimental details are given for locking the frequency of the laser line with one of the hyperfine components of the iodine absorption line, using a servo-control system. The system uses the technique of detecting the first and third harmonics of the modulation frequency.
