An analysis of pulsation in coupled-cavity structure semiconductor lasers

Pulsation in a coupled-cavity structure (CCS) semiconductor laser, in which laser cavities are placed parallel with optical coupling between them, has been observed. The mechanism is simulated by solving rate equations for a model with two stripes of different emission energies. The pulsation in the simulation is based on the resonant oscillation, which originates in the nonlinear interaction between the electromagnetic field in the laser cavity and the population inversion, in cooperation with the perturbations caused by repetitively occurring optical pumping and quenching. Important parameters to define the properties of the pulsation are emission-energy difference, coupling coefficient, and excitation levels.