Abstract
We discuss various intracavity optical nonlinearities up to the third order in quantum-cascade lasers. The discussions are based on two kinds of nonlinearities, each toward respective applications. The susceptibilities at the second-harmonic or third-harmonic frequencies lead to harmonic generation for multicolor emission; moreover, the third-order susceptibility at the fundamental frequency results in a nonlinear refractive index, i.e., the Kerr nonlinearity, which is associated with self-pulsations in quantum-cascade lasers. The review surveys the technology progression for the enhancement of nonlinear frequency generation as well as the investigation of the physics behind the multimode output of quantum-cascade lasers. In addition, a simulation model accounting for intracavity nonlinear interactions in quantum-cascade lasers is introduced, which can be used to evaluate and further optimize the nonlinear performance.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | 031101 |
| Journal | Journal of Applied Physics |
| Volume | 106 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2009 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Jing Bai would like to acknowledge the support by the start-up fund in the University of Minnesota Duluth. The work of D.S.C. was supported in part by the National Science Foundation by Grant No. NSF ECCS-0523923. D.S.C. would also like to thank the CNRS for their support.