Frequency sweeping of emission from heterojunction quantum lasers with pump current modulation

We have used numerical modeling to study the dynamic shift of the “instantaneous” laser frequency (sweeping) as a function of the pump current modulation frequency for heterojunction quantum lasers when the lasing frequency is tuned within the gain band. As the model for the active medium, we used a two-band model with identical distribution of levels for the electron and hole subbands, in which we take into account direct transitions between the ground-state subbands. We have established that the variation in the sweep qualitatively corresponds to the behavior of the amplitude detuning characteristics of the laser. Depending on the parameters of the system during emission of pulses, the variation in the laser frequency can be monotonic or nonmonotonic. By selecting the pump current modulation frequency and setting the laser frequency within the gain band, we can realize the cases of maximum or minimum dynamic shift of the lasing frequency. __________ Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 73, No. 3, pp. 370–374, May–June, 2006.