Transverse effects in ring fiber laser multimode instabilities

We study the influence of the transverse structure of pump and lasing fields and of the width of the doped region on the conditions for the appearance of the multimode instability in an ${\mathrm{Er}}^{3+}$-doped ring fiber laser. We show that the instability can be inhibited while maintaining a large output power when the radius of the doped region is a fraction of the core radius.

Scalable Electro-Optic Control of Localized Bistable Switching in Broad-Area VCSELs Using Reconfigurable Funnel Waveguides

We demonstrate a steplike optical modulation based on the activation and deactivation of a bistable localized structure using a photoinduced and reconfigurable miniaturized 30 × 30 μm electroactivated funnel waveguide. Control of a single 10-μm-diameter spot in a 200-μm-diameter vertical-cavity surfaceemitting laser at 980 nm is achieved modulating the phase of an exciting beam in the specific position of the spot in the cavity. This localized on-off response can be scaled into arrays and offer a possible route to fast integrated optical logical functions and memory at low intensities at near-infrared wavelengths.

Coherent master equation for laser modelocking

Modelocked lasers constitute the fundamental source of optically-coherent ultrashort-pulsed radiation, with huge impact in science and technology. Their modeling largely rests on the master equation (ME) approach introduced in 1975 by Hermann A. Haus. However, that description fails when the medium dynamics is fast and, ultimately, when light-matter quantum coherence is relevant. Here we set a rigorous and general ME framework, the coherent ME (CME), that overcomes both limitations. The CME predicts strong deviations from Haus ME, which we substantiate through an amplitude-modulated semiconductor laser experiment. Accounting for coherent effects, like the Risken-Nummedal-Graham-Haken multim…

Generalized rate equations for multimode lasers

Abstract A generalized rate equations model for class B lasers outside the uniform field limit is presented. This model allows to correctly describe the Risken–Nummedal–Graham–Haken instability and its associated multimode dynamics. When parameters suitable for fiber lasers – where the instability has been observed – are adopted, the computation time is shown to be greatly reduced with respect to the complete model based on the full set of Maxwell–Bloch (MB) equations.

Multimode emission in inhomogeneously broadened ring lasers

The threshold for multilongitudinal-mode emission in inhomogeneously broadened ring lasers is analytically investigated. In the homogeneous limit the multimode instability corresponds to the classical Risken–Nummedal–Graham–Haken instability. It is found that by increasing the inhomogeneous linewidth, the instability threshold is decreased and the growth of high-frequency side modes is favored. In the limit where the population-inversion decay rate γ‖ is much smaller than the polarization decay rate γ⊥ (class B lasers), analytical expressions for the instability threshold are found, which are then generalized to three-level lasers for a comparison with experimental results obtained with erb…

Coherent effects in the multimode dynamics of inhomogeneously broadened ring lasers

We investigate under which conditions coherent effects manifest in the multimode dynamics of inhomogeneously broadened ring lasers. In particular, we demonstrate that for long enough cavities standard rate equations for class-B lasers fail in describing the multimode dynamics.

Risken–Nummedal–Graham–Haken instability in class-B lasers

We determine analytical expressions for the Risken-Nummedal-Graham-Haken multimode laser instability outside the uniform field limit in the case of very fast polarization decay (class-B laser). A new condition for the observability of that instability, concerning the value of the cavity mirrors reflectivity, is predicted.

Quantum coherence and fast-gain effects in laser modelocking: The coherent master equation

Modelocking embraces a variety of techniques leading to the periodic emission of ultrashort laser pulses, typically on the picosecond scale and below, whose impact in science and technology can be hardly exaggerated.

Multimode instability in ring fiber lasers

Coexistence of single-mode and multi-longitudinal mode emission in the ring laser model

A homogeneously broadened unidirectonal ring laser can emit in several longitudinal modes for large enough pump and cavity length because of Rabi splitting induced gain. This is the so called Risken-Nummedal-Graham-Haken (RNGH) instability. We investigate numerically the properties of the multi-mode solution. We show that this solution can coexist with the single-mode one, and its stability domain can extend to pump values smaller than the critical pump of the RNGH instability. Morevoer, we show that the multi-mode solution for large pump values is affected by two different instabilities: a pitchfork bifurcation, which preserves phase-locking, and a Hopf bifurcation, which destroys it.

Reduced dynamical equations for solid-state lasers and VCSELs

It is the aim of this presentation to show that a reduction in the number of coupled equations is feasible for spatio-temporal laser models with generic values of the pump and other parameters. Reduced equations have been derived via the application of two separate, yet equivalent, methods: one based on the CM and the other on operational calculus. The long term dynamics of the reduced models for solid-state lasers and VCSELs have been compared with that of the full systems by using both mathematical methods. Extensive numerical simulations for the complex dynamics of these and other laser models become suddenly feasible within reasonable computational time.

Lorenz–Haken instability in a laser with arbitrary mirrors reflectivity

Abstract We study the Lorenz–Haken instability in a laser with arbitrary mirrors reflectivity R . In the limit of slow population difference we demonstrate that in order to observe the instability the reflectivity must exceed the critical value R c ≃0.5379, which coincides with that found recently for the multimode (Risken–Nummedal–Graham–Haken) instability. Several other differences with respect to the uniform field limit R →1 are presented.

Modal expansions in lasers outside the uniform-field limit

We show that, in lasers characterized by a slow population dynamics, the expansion of the electric field on longitudinal modes is useful even beyond the uniform-field limit. The dynamical behavior of the laser above the second threshold can be well reproduced by a set of ordinary differential equations, whose integration is much faster than that of the complete Maxwell–Bloch equations. The conditions for the uniform-field limit are also clarified.

A Coherent Master Equation for active mode locking in lasers

We present the derivation of a new master equation for active mode locking in lasers that fully takes into account the coherent effects of the light matter interaction through a peculiar adiabatic elimination technique. The coherent effects included in our model could be relevant to describe properly mode-locked semiconductor lasers where the standard Haus’ Master Equation predictions show some discrepancy with respect to the experimental results and can be included in the modelling of other mode locking techniques too.