Abstract

Arrays of coupled lasers, especially semiconductor laser arrays, are of considerable technical importance. Nevertheless, both experiment and theory have shown that already two single-mode lasers that are stable individually can exhibit a chaotic instability when coupled. As the dynamical time scales in semiconductor lasers prohibit measurements in the time domain, solid state lasers, e.g., coupled Nd:YAG [1] or Nd:YVO₄ lasers, are much better suited for studying the basic dynamics of coupling instabilities.

© 1998 IEEE