Abstract

Optical bistability in a laser with an intracavity saturable absorber is a phenomenon theoretically investigated firstly by Lugiato et al⁽¹⁾. The experimental observations in CO₂ lasers^(2,3) have provided clear evidence of the bistability phenomenon and shown that the absorber parameters could be determined from these observations. In this work a quantitative comparison between a theoretical description of optical bistability and the experimental results is presented for the first time. The parameters defining the laser cavity and the CO₂ amplifying medium were measured carefully, and the bistability was observed and analyzed quantitatively as a function of the laser parameters.

© 1983 Optical Society of America