Discrete mode tuning in terahertz quantum cascade lasers

Subhasish Chakraborty; Owen Marshall Marshall; Chen Wei Hsin; Md Khairuzzaman; Harvey Beere; David Ritchie

doi:10.1364/OE.20.00B306

Discrete mode tuning in terahertz quantum cascade lasers

Subhasish Chakraborty^* (Lead), Owen Marshall Marshall, Chen Wei Hsin, Md Khairuzzaman, Harvey Beere, David Ritchie

^*Corresponding author for this work

EEE - Academic & Research

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Abstract

A holographically designed, aperiodic distributed feedback grating is used as a multi-resonance filter and embedded within an existing Fabry-Pérot (FP) terahertz (THz) quantum cascade laser (QCL) cavity. Balancing the feedback strengths of the filter resonances and the FP cavity creates a system capable of a high degree of single-mode selectivity, which is sensitive to changes in driving current. Multi-moded QCLs operating around 2.9 THz are thus modified to achieve purely electronic discrete tuning spanning over 160 GHz with an average tuning resolution of 30 GHz. Applying the same multi-resonance filter to QCLs with gain peaks around 2.65 and 2.9 THz leads to dual-mode lasing with an electrically controlled frequency separation of between 190 and 267 GHz. A phase sensitive mode selection mechanism is experimentally confirmed by the observation of divergent fine-tuning of the lasing modes. © 2012 Optical Society of America.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	B306-B314
Number of pages	9
Journal	Optics Express
Volume	20
Issue number	26
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.20.00B306
Publication status	Published - 10 Dec 2012

Keywords

electronically tunable THz QCL
DFB
aperiodic

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title = "Discrete mode tuning in terahertz quantum cascade lasers",

abstract = "A holographically designed, aperiodic distributed feedback grating is used as a multi-resonance filter and embedded within an existing Fabry-P{\'e}rot (FP) terahertz (THz) quantum cascade laser (QCL) cavity. Balancing the feedback strengths of the filter resonances and the FP cavity creates a system capable of a high degree of single-mode selectivity, which is sensitive to changes in driving current. Multi-moded QCLs operating around 2.9 THz are thus modified to achieve purely electronic discrete tuning spanning over 160 GHz with an average tuning resolution of 30 GHz. Applying the same multi-resonance filter to QCLs with gain peaks around 2.65 and 2.9 THz leads to dual-mode lasing with an electrically controlled frequency separation of between 190 and 267 GHz. A phase sensitive mode selection mechanism is experimentally confirmed by the observation of divergent fine-tuning of the lasing modes. {\textcopyright} 2012 Optical Society of America.",

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author = "Subhasish Chakraborty and Marshall, {Owen Marshall} and Hsin, {Chen Wei} and Md Khairuzzaman and Harvey Beere and David Ritchie",

note = "EPSRC First Grant EP/G064504/1",

year = "2012",

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day = "10",

doi = "10.1364/OE.20.00B306",

language = "English",

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TY - JOUR

T1 - Discrete mode tuning in terahertz quantum cascade lasers

AU - Marshall, Owen Marshall

AU - Hsin, Chen Wei

AU - Khairuzzaman, Md

AU - Beere, Harvey

AU - Ritchie, David

A2 - Chakraborty, Subhasish

N1 - EPSRC First Grant EP/G064504/1

PY - 2012/12/10

Y1 - 2012/12/10

N2 - A holographically designed, aperiodic distributed feedback grating is used as a multi-resonance filter and embedded within an existing Fabry-Pérot (FP) terahertz (THz) quantum cascade laser (QCL) cavity. Balancing the feedback strengths of the filter resonances and the FP cavity creates a system capable of a high degree of single-mode selectivity, which is sensitive to changes in driving current. Multi-moded QCLs operating around 2.9 THz are thus modified to achieve purely electronic discrete tuning spanning over 160 GHz with an average tuning resolution of 30 GHz. Applying the same multi-resonance filter to QCLs with gain peaks around 2.65 and 2.9 THz leads to dual-mode lasing with an electrically controlled frequency separation of between 190 and 267 GHz. A phase sensitive mode selection mechanism is experimentally confirmed by the observation of divergent fine-tuning of the lasing modes. © 2012 Optical Society of America.

AB - A holographically designed, aperiodic distributed feedback grating is used as a multi-resonance filter and embedded within an existing Fabry-Pérot (FP) terahertz (THz) quantum cascade laser (QCL) cavity. Balancing the feedback strengths of the filter resonances and the FP cavity creates a system capable of a high degree of single-mode selectivity, which is sensitive to changes in driving current. Multi-moded QCLs operating around 2.9 THz are thus modified to achieve purely electronic discrete tuning spanning over 160 GHz with an average tuning resolution of 30 GHz. Applying the same multi-resonance filter to QCLs with gain peaks around 2.65 and 2.9 THz leads to dual-mode lasing with an electrically controlled frequency separation of between 190 and 267 GHz. A phase sensitive mode selection mechanism is experimentally confirmed by the observation of divergent fine-tuning of the lasing modes. © 2012 Optical Society of America.

KW - electronically tunable THz QCL

KW - DFB

KW - aperiodic

U2 - 10.1364/OE.20.00B306

DO - 10.1364/OE.20.00B306

M3 - Article

VL - 20

SP - B306-B314

JO - Optics Express

JF - Optics Express

IS - 26

ER -

Discrete mode tuning in terahertz quantum cascade lasers

Abstract

Keywords

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