Wavelength tuning and spectral properties of distributed feedback diode lasers with a short external optical cavity

We report on the wavelength tuning and spectral properties of distributed feedback (DFB) diode lasers operated with a plane external cavity (XC) mirror positioned as close as possible to the diode-laser front facet. These lasers generate single-frequency near IR radiation at wavelengths of 1392, 1580, 1602, and 1653 nm. A piezoelectric variation of the XC length provided continuous single-frequency tuning to as high as 19 GHz. A further benefit of XC DFB lasers is a residual amplitude modulation per gigahertz tuning of less than 10(-3). The XC feedback also suppresses residual side-mode oscillations to less than 60 dB. The laser's total intensity noise is close to the shot noise limit. The laser linewidth (measured in a beat note experiment) is less than 90 kHz within an acquisition time of 40 ms. The advantageous properties of XC DFB lasers for molecular spectroscopy are demonstrated by recording R(3) 2nu(3) overtone spectra of methane by single-scan single-pass absorption or frequency-modulation spectroscopy.     

Inside Front Cover: An Ultraviolet Organic Thin‐Film Solid‐State Laser for Biomarker Applications (Adv. Mater. 1/2005)

Thin‐film organic solid‐state lasers operating in the ultraviolet wavelength region are fabricated using a novel spiro‐linked material as active organic layer in an optically pumped distributed feedback (DFB) structure in work reported by Riedl and co‐workers on p. 31. The laser wavelength is tunable between 377.7 nm and 395 nm, the shortest laser wavelength reported so far for thin‐film organic solid‐state lasers. The lasers' suitability for spectroscopic applications was tested by use as an excitation source for solutions containing the common fluorescent dyes Coumarin 6, Coumarin 152, and Rhodamine 6G.     

Tunable distributed feedback lasing from leaky waveguides based on gel-glass dispersed liquid crystal thin films

Different amount of nematic liquid crystal (LC) 4-Cyano-4′-pentylbiphenyl(5CB) was encapsulated in sol–gel derived organically modified silica(ORMOSIL) matrices to fabricate dye doped gel-glass dispersed liquid crystal (GDLC) thin films by co-hydrolyzation/condensation of ethyl triethoxisilane (ETES) and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) precursors. Distributed feedback (DFB) leaky waveguide lasers from GDLC thin films using a dynamic grating were demonstrated. Tunable laser action from 558 to 570 nm was obtained in the sample with lowest LC concentration of 0.375 mol%. The DFB laser performance of GDLC thin films with various LC concentrations was investigated using the same pumping geometry, and it was shown that the encapsulation of 5CB also led to the red shift of lasing peak.     

Optimisation of distributed feedback laser biosensors

A new integrated optical sensor chip is proposed, based on a modified distributed- feedback (DFB) semiconductor laser. The semiconductor layers of different refractive indices that comprise a laser form the basis of a waveguide sensor, where changes in the refractive index of material at the surface are sensed via changes in the evanescent field of the lasing mode. In DFB lasers, laser oscillation occurs at the Bragg wavelength. Since this is sensitive to the effective refractive index of the optical mode, the emission wavelength is sensitive to the index of a sample on the waveguide surface. Hence, lasers are modelled as planar waveguides and the effective index of the fundamental transverse electric mode is calculated as a function of index and thickness of a thin surface layer using the beam propagation method. We find that an optimised structure has a thin upper cladding layer of ~0.15 mum, which according to this model gives detection limits on test layer index and thickness resolution of 0.1 and 1.57 nm, respectively, a figure which may be further improved using two lasers in an interferometer-type configuration.     

Theoretical study on polarization dynamics of VCSELs with negative optoelectronic feedback

We investigate theoretically the polarization dynamics of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) subjected to negative optoelectronic feedback. As we vary the feedback delay and strength, the VCSEL exhibits interesting nonlinear dynamics in the two-linear polarized directions. The output instability and negative current modulation induced by delayed feedback can also cause polarization switching (PS) to happen. In addition, we investigate the case when the free-running VCSEL emits in the modulated-elliptical state and find that the laser experiences in succession the elliptical polarization, the x-mode polarization, and the mixed-mode polarization states with an increasing feedback strength.     

Multimode distributed feedback laser emission in a dye-doped optically pumped polymer thin-film

We report on particular features of thin film distributed feedback (DFB) lasers. Devices are optically pumped using a Lloyd-mirror interferometer. For a given DFB grating period, the number of lasing modes is film thickness dependent. Spectral content of the devices is analysed using planar waveguide theory. An excellent agreement between the theoretical transverse electric mode structure and the laser emission spectrum is found.     

Polarimetric distributed feedback fiber laser sensor for simultaneous strain and temperature measurements

We report the application of a dual polarization distributed feedback (DFB) fiber laser as a strain and temperature sensor. By measurement of the absolute wavelength of one polarization as well as the polarization beat frequency, strain and temperature were determined simultaneously. The sensor has an accuracy of +3 microepsilon and +/-0.04 degrees C. Self-heating of the DFB fiber laser as a function of pump power was measured with this sensor.     

A hybrid light source with integrated inorganic light-emitting diode and organic polymer distributed feedback grating

We report a compact light source that incorporates a semiconductor light-emitting diode, nanostructured distributed feedback (DFB) Bragg grating and spin-coated thin conjugated polymer film. With this hybrid structure, we transferred electrically generated 390?nm ultraviolet light to an organic polymer via optical pumping and out-couple green luminescence to air through a second-order DFB grating. We demonstrate the feasibility of electrically driven, hybrid, compact light-emitting devices and lasers in the visible range.     

Wavelength modulation detection of water vapor with a vertical cavity surface-emitting laser

A vertical cavity surface-emitting laser was studied for gas-sensing applications. Properties of the 962-nm laser that were measured include side-mode suppression, wavelength tuning with temperature and current, power versus injection current, and the amplitude noise spectrum. With wavelength modulation spectroscopy, a rms noise level of 2 x 10(-4) absorbance units was achieved. The large current tuning range (25 cm(-1)) and smaller amplitude modulation (11%/cm(-1)) of the vertical cavity laser compare favorably with Fabry-Perot and distributed feedback diode lasers for spectroscopic gas sensing, especially at atmospheric pressure.     

Background correction by wavelength modulation for pulsed-laser-excited atomic fluorescence spectrometry.

Instrumentation was constructed to modulate the dye laser wavelength for background correction in laser-excited atomic fluorescence spectrometry (LEAFS). To achieve wavelength modulation a piezoelectric pusher was used to drive the wavelength tuning mirror in a laboratory-constructed grazing incidence dye laser. The laser pulses were synchronized with the piezoelectric pusher movement so that alternate laser pulses measured the atomic fluorescence signal at the analytical atomic spectral line (on-line) and the background signal at a wavelength displaced to one side of the atomic line (off-line). The background-corrected signal was obtained by subtracting the off-line "background" from the on-line "signal plus background". The spectral line width (fwhm) of the dye laser was 0.003 nm, while the wavelength modulation interval was controllable over the range from 0 to 0.2 nm with a spectral resolution limited only by the spectral line width of the laser. This type of background correction could, in principle, be applied to other types of tunable lasers such as pulsed Ti: sapphire lasers. The performance of background correction by wavelength modulation (WM) was demonstrated by measurement of sodium resonance fluorescence in an air-acetylene flame and by thallium nonresonance fluorescence in a graphite furnace. The experimental data indicated that the wavelength modulation corrected, effectively and quantitatively, for flame background, blackbody emission from a graphite furnace, and scatter of laser radiation off aluminum chloride (1 mg/mL as AI) matrix particles in both the furnace and the flame. Analytical results were in good agreement with certified values for the determination of sodium in standard reference materials by the use of modulated LEAFS.     

High-frequency intensity modulation in orthogonal polarized dual frequency lasers with optical feedback

High-frequency modulation of laser output intensity is studied with asymmetric feedback induced by the misalignment of an external feedback reflector in an orthogonal polarized dual frequency laser. The fringe frequency of the optical feedback system is seven times higher than that of a conventional optical feedback system, due to multiple feedback effects. The output characteristics of two orthogonal polarized modes are also investigated. Mode competition is observed between the two modes. When initial intensities of the two modes are unequal, the mode competition will be strong. The difference in initial intensity between the two orthogonally polarized modes plays an important role in the mode competition with optical feedback. Experimental results are presented, as well as a theoretical explanation. The high-frequency modulation of laser intensity can greatly increase the resolution of an optical feedback sensing system.     

Distributed-feedback dye-doped solgel silica lasers

Dye-doped solgel silica lasers with distributed feedback were demonstrated. Solgel silica slabs doped with Rhodamine 6G or Coumarin 460 dyes were fabricated. Periodic gain modulation in dye-doped solgel silica slabs were created by the interference pattern of the pumped laser beams diffracted by a holographic grating. Laser pulse trains with subnanosecond spikes were induced. Laser emission wavelengths were centered at 480 and 585 nm for Rhodamine 6G and Coumarin 460, respectively. It was possible for us to tune approximately 20 nm around the emission centers by varying the intersection angle. The laser linewidth was of the order of 60 pm.     

Fixed-wavelength operation of a copper-laser-pumped dye laser injection seeded by low-power He-Ne lasers

The design and operating characteristics of a dye laser pumped by a 3-W copper-vapor laser (CVL) and injection seeded by low-power (1-5 mW) He-Ne lasers at 633 nm are reported. An extremely simple optical arrangement is used wherein the output mirror of the He-Ne laser and a third mirror form the dye laser cavity. Laser efficiency in fixed-wavelength operation has been investigated for variable CVL pump power, He-Ne injection power and polarization, and cavity output coupling for a standard Rhodamine 590/Rhodamine 640 dye solution. Over 90% of free-running (unseeded) laser power is obtained in fixed-wavelength (seeded) operation at low CVL pump powers (≤1 W), dropping to approximately 60% at 3-W pump power. Maximum CVL pump to dye laser optical conversion efficiency in narrow-band, fixed-wavelength operation at 633 nm was 12%.     

808-nm diode-pumped continuous-wave Tm:GdVO4 laser at room temperature

A high-quality gadolinium vanadate (GdVO4) crystal with 7-at. % thulium as the starting material was grown by the Czochralski technique. The measured absorption spectra exhibited sufficient absorption coefficients for laser diodes (LDs) for neodymium laser pumping: 6.0 cm(-1) for pi polarization and 6.2 cm(-1) for sigma polarization at 808 nm. Laser oscillation was carried out with single-stripe 808-nm LDs in an end-pumping configuration. A slope efficiency of 28% and a threshold of 750 mW were exhibited with respect to the absorbed pump power. An output power of 420 mW was achieved at an absorbed power of 2.4 W. It was demonstrated that Tm:GdVO4 is a useful material for 2-microm lasers, particularly in a compact LD-pumped system.     

Performance analysis of a time-division-multiplexed fiber-optic gas-sensor array by wavelength modulation of a distributed-feedback laser

The results of an investigation of the performance of a time-division-addressed fiber-optic gas-sensor array by means of wavelength modulation of a distributed-feedback (DFB) laser are reported. The system performance is found to be severely limited by the extinction ratio of the optical switch used for pulse amplitude modulation. Formulas that relate the cross-talk level to the extinction ratio of the switch, the modulation parameters of the DFB laser, and the optical path differences among sensing channels are derived. Computer simulation shows that an array of 20 methane gas sensors with a detection sensitivity of 2000 parts in 10(6) (ppm) (10-cm gas cell) for each sensor may be realized with a commercially available single Mach-Zehnder amplitude modulator (-35-dB extinction ratio). An array of 100 sensors with a 100-ppm detection sensitivity for each sensor may be realized if a double Mach-Zehnder amplitude modulator is used.     

Distributed feedback leaky laser emission from dye doped gel-glass dispersed liquid crystal thin film patterned by soft lithography

Gel-glass dispersed liquid crystal (GDLC) thin films doped with organic laser dye Rhodamine 6G (R6G) were prepared via a sol-gel procedure of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and ethyl triethoxisilane (ETES). As characterized by scanning electronic microscope (SEM), surface-relief structures were successfully patterned on lower refractive index GDLC thin films by soft lithographic technology, which support distributed feedback (DFB) laser emission based on leaky mode propagation. The performance of the DFB laser emission was investigated and the spectral narrowing of the emitted radiation and the fine structure pattern were found to be controlled by the doping concentration of liquid crystal (LC) 4-cyano-4′-pentylbiphenyl (5CB). We also showed the synchronous excitation of a DFB lasing with random lasing mediated by light scattering inside the same GDLC leaky waveguide.     

Does photosensitivity pave the way towards the fabrication of miniature coherent light sources in inorganic glass waveguides?

Photosensitivity designates the ability to permanently change the refractive index of a glass by optical processing. The phenomenon allows the fabrication of numerous phase structures, the simplest of which is the Bragg grating obtained by photoimprinting a periodic index modulation within the material. Bragg gratings have changed the way in which optical fibre (or planar waveguide) lasers are now used. Distributed Bragg Reflector (DBR) or Distributed Feed Back (DFB) lasers, when intracore Bragg gratings are used for linear cavity feedback, are commonly fabricated in rare earth doped optical silica-based fibres. On the other hand, photosensitivity can also result in effects which can prove to be detrimental to the fabrication of miniature coherent light sources. The paper will cover some of the advances that have been made in improving the photosensitivity of inorganic glasses, in searching new photosensitive materials and in characterizing Bragg grating properties relevant to laser applications.     

Multimode analysis of relative intensity noise associated with intensity modulation of semiconductor lasers

This paper analyzes the relative intensity noise (RIN) associated with intensity modulation (IM) of multilongitudinal mode semiconductor lasers. We considered two states of operation; namely, stable single-mode and multimode hopping that correspond to weak and strong asymmetric gain suppression. The former is typically considered by AlGaAs lasers, whereas the latter is considered by InGaAsP lasers. We introduce comparison of the influence of the modulation parameters on both the total and modal RIN between both lasers. We show that the IM response and 2HD display a peak at the relaxation frequency. The multimode hopping in the InGaAsP laser induces levels of signal distortion much higher than those in the AlGaAs laser in the regime of low modulation frequencies. Under weak modulation, the total and modal RINs of both the lasers vary little from those of the non-modulated lasers. The deep modulation releases the multimode hopping phenomenon in the InGaAsP laser and suppresses the mode-hopping peak in the RIN spectrum.