Wavelength stability in a hybrid photonic crystal laser through controlled nonlinear absorptive heating in the reflector

Authors

Andrei P. Bakoz, Department of Physical Sciences, Cork Institute of Technology, Cork, Ireland
Alexandros A. Liles, University of St Andrews
Alfredo A. Gonzalez-Fernandez, University of St Andrews
Tatiana Habruseva, Tyndall National Institute at National University of Ireland, Cork
Changyu Hu, University of St Andrews
Evgeny A. Viktorov, Saint Petersburg National Research University of Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics University ITMO
Stephen P. Hegarty, Department of Physical Sciences, Cork Institute of Technology, Cork, IrelandFollow
Liam O'Faolain, Cappa Centre, Cork Institute of Technology, Cork, IrelandFollow

Document Type

Article

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Disciplines

Optics | Physical Sciences and Mathematics | Physics

Publication Details

© The Author(s) 2018. Published in Light: Science & Applications.

Abstract

The need for miniaturized, fully integrated semiconductor lasers has stimulated significant research efforts into realizing unconventional configurations that can meet the performance requirements of a large spectrum of applications, ranging from communication systems to sensing. We demonstrate a hybrid, silicon photonics-compatible photonic crystal (PhC) laser architecture that can be used to implement cost-effective, high-capacity light sources, with high side-mode suppression ratio and milliwatt output output powers. The emitted wavelength is set and controlled by a silicon PhC cavity-based reflective filter with the gain provided by a III–V-based reflective semiconductor optical amplifier (RSOA). The high power density in the laser cavity results in a significant enhancement of the nonlinear absorption in silicon in the high Q-factor PhC resonator. The heat generated in this manner creates a tuning effect in the wavelength-selective element, which can be used to offset external temperature fluctuations without the use of active cooling. Our approach is fully compatible with existing fabrication and integration technologies, providing a practical route to integrated lasing in wavelength-sensitive schemes.

Recommended Citation

Bakoz, A.P. et al., 2018. Wavelength stability in a hybrid photonic crystal laser through controlled nonlinear absorptive heating in the reflector. Light: Science & Applications, 7(1). Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41377-018-0043-8.