Intensity noise of mode-locked fiber grating external cavity semiconductor lasers

The noise of hybrid soliton pulse source (HSPS) with linearly chirped Gaussian apodized fiber Bragg grating is analyzed by couple-mode equations including spontaneous emission noise when HSPS is mode-locked. Relative intensity noise (RIN) is calculated using numerical solutions of these equations. It is shown that transform-limited pulses are generated over a wide tuning range around the fundamental mode-locking frequency with low spontaneous noise. However, high noise level affects the operation of device, and therefore transform-limited pulses are not obtainable over a wide tuning range. Linewidth enhancement factor and spontaneous coupling factor are the most effective noise parameters and noise increases with increasing value of these parameters.