Abstract

Mode-locked semiconductor lasers are efficient sources of short optical pulses ideal for applications in high speed telecommunication systems. Especially promising for telecom applications is the new generation of quantum dot mode-locked lasers (QD-MLL) which demonstrate important advantages over the standard quantum well devices [1]. However, performance improvement is still an ongoing issue, in particular for the efficiency of hybrid mode-locking, – a commonly used technique to improve characteristics and synchronize the mode-locked pulses – namely the dependence of the locking regime on the frequency and power of the applied external signal. Based on our previous results on passive mode-locking in quantum dot lasers [2], we study experimentally and theoretically a monolithic two-section hybrid mode-locked quantum dot laser with periodically modulated reverse bias applied to the saturable absorber section.

© 2009 IEEE