Abstract

Supermode competition in coupled lasers has previously been analyzed for plane wave geometries in which the self-feedback and mutual coupling parameters are defined explicitly in terms of beam splitters that are used to couple the lasers. In adjoint-coupled unstable resonators, it is convenient to couple the resonators through holes in the scraper mirrors. Hole coupling complicates the analysis of these devices since diffraction and transverse field variations related to the hole geometry play a significant role in dictating the characteristics of the resonator output. In this work we use diffraction theory to estimate the self-feedback and mutual coupling parameters. Overlap integrals are used to reduce the diffraction equations to a form similar to plane wave dispersion equations. We also develop an efficient nonlinear plane wave method for assessing cross-saturation effects in the coupled laser. Dependence of the coupling parameters on hole size, hole position, resonator detuning, and resonator Fresnel numbers is explored.

© 1989 Optical Society of America