Multimode dynamics of semiconductor lasers (original) (raw)

In this manuscript we analyze the modal dynamics of multimode semiconductor quantum-well lasers. Modal switching is the dominant feature of the devices analyzed and it obeys a highly organized antiphase dynamics which leads to an almost constant total intensity output. For each active mode a regular switching at frequencies of few MHz is observed. The activation order of the modes follows a well defined sequence starting from the lowest wavelength (bluest) mode to the highest wavelength (reddest) mode, then the sequence starts again from the bluest mode. Using a multimode theoretical model and a simpler phenomenological model we identify that four wave mixing is the dominant mechanism at the origin of the observed dynamics. The asymmetry of the susceptibility function of semiconductor materials allows to explain the optical frequency sequence.