C.H. Lange

Coherent interactions of dissipative spatial solitons

We report observation of the interaction between two coherent dissipative spatial solitons in a periodically patterned semiconductor optical amplifier with power levels of tens of milliwatts. The interactions are nonlocal and phase dependent and exhibit surprising features, such as soliton birth. The experimental results are in good agreement with the numerical simulations.

Stability properties of multiwavelength, incoherent, dissipative spatial solitons.

We have investigated the interaction between two dissipative spatial solitons of different frequencies in periodically patterned semiconductor optical amplifiers. The experimental results are in good agreement with the theory. Simulations suggest that multiwavelength interactions do not produce stable bound solitons unless the systems modeling equations are completely symmetric.

Dissipative Spatial Soliton Phenomena in Active Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers

We review our observations of multiple solitonic phenomena in electrically pumped semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) including the generation of scalar solitons, their interactions, the possibility of incoherent vector solitons and modulational instability.

Intracavity Fabry-Perot-modulator: Characterization and modelling

Summary form only given. Modulation of intracavity losses is a powerful tool for controlling the laser dynamics, e.g. for active mode-locking and for synchronization of different lasers. In this paper we present an optical device that allows for fast modulation of the intracavity losses by external illumination. The device is designed as a nonlinear semiconductor Fabry-Perot etalon consisting of two Bragg reflectors with a center wavelength of 1064 nm at the backside and the frontside of a 5-/spl mu/m-thick nonlinear medium - an InGaAs layer. The indium content is chosen such that the bandgap energy is 1.28 eV (/spl lambda//sub gap/ = 970 nm). While the device is highly reflecting for wavelengths longer than /spl lambda//sub gap/ around 1064 nm, radiation with /spl lambda/ < /spl lambda//sub gap/ generates carriers which change the index of refraction and, therefore, the reflectivity of the device in the vicinity of a Fabry-Perot resonance. To characterize the capabilities of the optically controlled Fabry-Perot-modulator (FPM), we performed a spectrally resolved two color pump probe measurement.

All optical passive synchronization of two independent laser oscillators

Summary form only given. A novel scheme for passive synchronization of two independently mode-locked laser oscillators in a master slave configuration is presented. As an example the scheme is used to synchronize a picosecond mode-locked Nd:YVO/sub 4/ laser (at 1064 nm) as the slave and a femtosecond mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser (around 850 nm) as the master oscillator. All optical synchronization is achieved by modulating the intracavity losses of the slave laser with the pulse train of the master oscillator.

Passive synchronization of two independent laser oscillators with a Fabry-Perot modulator

By optical modulation of the reflectivity of an intracavity nonlinear Fabry-Perot semiconductor mirror, the pulse train from a passively mode-locked picosecond Nd:YVO(4) laser oscillator is synchronized to an independent femtosecond-mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser. We obtain stable synchronized pulse trains at central wavelengths of 1064 and 850 nm, and the Ti:sapphire laser is still independently tunable over a large wavelength range. The tolerable cavity-length difference between the two laser oscillators exceeds 20mu;m .