The paper discusses the generation of squeezed states of the electromagnetic field using degenerate parametric down conversion in an optical cavity. The authors observed noise reductions greater than 50% relative to the vacuum noise level in a balanced homodyne detector. A quantitative comparison with theoretical predictions suggests that the observed squeezing results from a field that would be squeezed by more than tenfold in the absence of linear attenuation. The experimental setup involves an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) with a nonlinear optical crystal and a balanced homodyne detector. The degree of squeezing is characterized by the reduction in detected noise power, and the measurements are consistent with theoretical predictions. The results indicate that the field state is not only a squeezed state but also a minimal-uncertainty state. This work has implications for various applications in optical physics involving the nonclassical nature of squeezed radiation.The paper discusses the generation of squeezed states of the electromagnetic field using degenerate parametric down conversion in an optical cavity. The authors observed noise reductions greater than 50% relative to the vacuum noise level in a balanced homodyne detector. A quantitative comparison with theoretical predictions suggests that the observed squeezing results from a field that would be squeezed by more than tenfold in the absence of linear attenuation. The experimental setup involves an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) with a nonlinear optical crystal and a balanced homodyne detector. The degree of squeezing is characterized by the reduction in detected noise power, and the measurements are consistent with theoretical predictions. The results indicate that the field state is not only a squeezed state but also a minimal-uncertainty state. This work has implications for various applications in optical physics involving the nonclassical nature of squeezed radiation.