Abstract

It is shown that significant optical power is generated in secondary pulsations after switch-off of vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser diodes (VCSEL’s) when the laser is modulated from an above-threshold state to a current that is at or below the threshold value. It is found from simulations that the optical power in the secondary pulsations can be as much as 25% of the power in the lasing state. The initial reduction of optical output power subsequent to the switch-off permits a spatial redistribution of charge carriers that in turn permits a transient recovery of the modal gain above the threshold value, thus enabling the secondary pulsations to occur. The phenomenon occurs as a result of the interplay between the transverse-mode structure and the gain medium and, as such, cannot be predicted by spatially independent rate equation models. Implications of the phenomenon for practical applications of VCSEL’s with pseudorandom nonreturn-to-zero modulation formats are pointed out.

© 1995 Optical Society of America

Bias level dependence of turn-off oscillations in vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers

Angel Valle and Luis Pesquera
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 23(10) 2148-2156 (2006)

Self-pulsation in vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers as a result of the interplay between carrier-induced antiguiding and built-in index guiding

Krassimir Panajotov, Guy Van der Sande, Hugo Thienpont, and Irina Veretennicoff
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 21(6) 1192-1198 (2004)

Self-consistent approach to thermal effects in vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers

C. Z. Ning, R. A. Indik, and J. V. Moloney
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 12(10) 1993-2004 (1995)

Intensity and polarization self-pulsations in vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers

Alessandro Scirè, Josep Mulet, Claudio R. Mirasso, and Maxi San Miguel
Opt. Lett. 27(6) 391-393 (2002)

Effect of spatial hole burning on injection-locked vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser arrays

Tal Fishman and Amos Hardy
Appl. Opt. 39(18) 3108-3114 (2000)