Dynamics of power distribution in multimode semiconductor

Abstract

Semiconductor lasers with optical feedback are prone to exhibit unstable behavior. When working near threshold with moderate to low optical feedback, intensity dropouts are observed. These intensity drops, also called low-frequency fluctuations, occur both in single-mode and multimode semiconductor lasers. In this paper, the dynamics of the power distribution between the longitudinal modes of a multimode semiconductor laser is experimentally and numerically analyzed in the low-frequency fluctuation regime. It is observed that power dropouts of the total intensity, corresponding to drops in the dominant modes of the laser, are invariably accompanied by sudden activations of several longitudinal side modes. These activations are seen not to be simultaneous to the dropouts of the main modes, but to occur after them. The phenomenon is statistically analyzed in a systematic way, and the corresponding delay is estimated, leading to the conclusion that the side mode activation is a consequence of the dropouts of the dominant modes. A multimode extension of the Lang-Kobayashi equations is used to model the experimental setup. Numerical simulations also exhibit a time delay between the side-mode activation and the power dropout of the total intensity.