Multiwavelength super-structured Bragg grating laser for tunable repetition rate mode-locked operation

Area of Science:

• Optoelectronics
• Semiconductor Lasers
• Photonics

Background:

• Multiwavelength lasers are crucial for optical communications and spectroscopy.
• Achieving stable phase locking and tunable repetition rates in such lasers remains a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and fabricate a novel multiwavelength laser utilizing a super-structured Bragg grating.
• To investigate the phase locking mechanisms and dynamic behaviors of the laser.
• To characterize the pulsed emission regime and its tunable repetition rate.

Main Methods:

• Design and fabrication of a multiwavelength laser on multiquantum well AlGaInAs-InP.
• Utilizing a super-structured Bragg grating for wavelength control.
• Employing mutual injection of neighboring cavities and four-wave mixing for phase locking.
• Optical and electrical characterization of laser emission regimes.

Main Results:

• Successful fabrication of the multiwavelength laser.
• Demonstration of phase locking through mutual injection and four-wave mixing.
• Observation of complex dynamic behaviors in various emission regimes.
• Characterization of a pulsed regime with a quasi-continuous tunable repetition rate from 32 GHz to 49 GHz.

Conclusions:

• The developed super-structured Bragg grating laser enables phase locking and exhibits tunable pulsed operation.
• This technology offers a promising platform for applications requiring tunable, high-repetition-rate optical sources.
• Further research into controlling the complex dynamics could unlock advanced functionalities.