Interband cascade lasers (ICLs) constitute a new class of semiconductor lasers allowing lasing emission in the 3– 7 μm wavelength region. Their structure presents similarities and differences with respect to both standard bipolar semiconductor lasers and quantum cascade lasers (QCLs). In contrast to QCLs, the stimulated emission of ICLs relies on the interband transition of type-II quantum wells while the carrier-to-photon lifetime ratio is similar to conventional bipolar lasers. ICLs can be classified into class-B laser systems like common quantum well lasers, and they exhibit a multi-GHz relaxation oscillation frequency that is related to the maximum modulation/chaos bandwidth achievable by these lasers. Moreover, ICLs take advantage of a cascading mechanism over repeated active regions, which allows us to boost the quantum efficiency and, thus, the emitted optical power. On top of that, the power consumption of ICLs is one or two orders of magnitude lower than their QCL counterparts whereas high-power of few hundreds of milliWatts can be achieved. Here, we report some recent results on the dynamic and nonlinear properties of ICLs. In particular, we demonstrate the generation of fully-developed chaos under external optical feedback. We show that ICLs exhibit some peculiar intensity noise features with a clear relaxation oscillation frequency. Together, these properties are of paramount importance for developing long-reach secure free-space communication, random bit generator, and remote chaotic LiDAR systems. Lastly, we also predict that ICLs are preferable devices for amplitude-noise squeezing because large amplitude noise reduction is attainable through inherent high quantum efficiency and short photon and electron lifetimes.
Quantum dot lasers directly grown on silicon are excellent candidates to achieve energy and cost-efficient optical transceivers thanks to their outstanding properties such as high temperature stability, low threshold lasing operation, and high feedback tolerance. In order to reach even better performance, p-type doping is used to eliminate gain saturation, gain broadening due to hole thermalization and to further reduce the linewidth enhancement factor. Optical transceivers with low relative intensity noise are also highly desired to carry broadband data with low bit-error rate. Indeed, the intensity noise stemming from intrinsic optical phase and frequency fluctuations caused by spontaneous emission and carrier noise degrades the signal-to-noise ratio and the bit-error rate hence setting a limit of a highspeed communication system. This paper constitutes a comprehensive study of the intensity noise properties of epitaxial quantum dot lasers on silicon. Results show minimal values between - 140 dB/Hz and - 150 dB/Hz for doping level between 0 and 20 holes/dot in the active region. In particular, the intensity noise is insensitive to temperature for p-doped QD laser. Modulation properties such as damping, carrier lifetime, and K-factor are also extracted from the noise characteristics and analyzed with respect to the doping level. We also provide numerical insights based on an excitonic model illustrating the effects of the Shockley-Read-Hall recombination on the intensity noise features. These new findings are meaningful for designing high speed and low noise quantum dot devices to be integrated in future photonic integrated circuits.
Photonics integrated circuits on silicon are considered as a key technology for data centers and high-performance computers. Owing to the ultimate carrier confinement and reduced sensitivity to crystalline defects, semiconductor quantum dot lasers directly grown on silicon exhibit remarkable properties such as low threshold current, high temperature stability and robust tolerance to external reflections. This latter property is particularly important for achieving large-scale integrated circuits whereby unintentional back-reflections produced by the various passive/active optoelectronic components can hinder the stability of the lasers. In this context, it is known that quantum dot lasers are more resistant to optical feedback than quantum well ones thanks to the low linewidth enhancement factor, the large damping, and the possible absence of upper lasing states. In this work, we theoretically investigate the reflection sensitivity of quantum dot lasers directly grown on silicon by studying the peculiar role of the epitaxial defects, which induce nonradiative recombination through the Shockley-Read-Hall process. By using the Lang and Kobayashi model, we analyze the nonlinear properties of such quantum dot lasers through the bifurcation diagrams and with respect to the nonradiative lifetime. In particular, we show that the increase of the Shockley-Read-Hall recombination shrinks the chaotic region and shifts the first Hopf bifurcation to higher feedback values. We believe that these results can be useful for designing novel feedback resistant lasers for future photonics integrated circuits operating without optical isolator.
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