Semiconductor laser dynamics - from blue to infrared emission

An investigation of the dynamics of different types of semiconductor lasers is presented.

Self-pulsation characteristics of blue InGaN laser diode emitting at 400 nm wavelength are investigated theoretically and experimentally. The results show a good agreement between measured and calculated characteristics. The impact of the saturable absorber on the laser dynamics is analysed.

We discuss also the impact of a passive dispersive reflector on the dynamical behaviour of a single mode diode laser.

Finally, we study the continuous-wave operation of a semiconductor laser subject to optical feedback from a Fabry-Perot resonator in a case where the emission is resonant to a reflection minimum of the resonator. This configuration is treated in the framework of Lang-Kobayashi equations. In the weak-feedback regime, the feedback phase allows noninvasive control of the cw emission and a tailoring of its small-signal response within wide limits. The results obtained are a prototype for all-optical realizations of delayed feedback control.