Enhanced bistability with the line-narrowed modes in a nonlinear modulated index Fabry-Perot cavity

Rosie Cush, C.J.G. Kirkby

Vl. V. Kocharovsky, Vl. V. Kocharovsky, E. R. Golubyatnikova

Farhad Azadpour, Ali Bahari

Jeffrey E. Ehrlich, David T. Neilson, Andy C. Walker +5 more

We report measurements of quasi-cw optical bistability in an InGaAs/InP multiple quantum well waveguide Fabry–Perot cavity at 1.47 μm wavelength. This operating wavelength is detuned from the band-edge resonance by 0.07 μm, where an enhanced free-carrier contribution to the nonlinear refractive index due to 2D confinement of carriers in the quantum wells accounts for the large index variations. The effect of any thermally induced nonlinear response is negligible.

E. Abraham, Saad S. M. Hassan, R. Bullough

Jian‐Jun He, Michael Čada

A theoretical demonstration of optical bistability in periodic layered media, particularly in long-period GaAs/AlAs superlattices is presented. The proposed structure consists of a periodic multilayer system, as opposed to previously demonstrated nonlinear bistable devices which employed Fabry-Perot etalons. The optical resonance effect which is essential for bistable devices is, in this case, induced by a refractive index modulation. The nonlinear active medium is distributed in the whole structure rather than placed between the two mirrors of a Fabry-Perot cavity. It is shown by a complete calculation of wave propagation in the periodic nonlinear medium that a multiple valued feature appears in the structure's nonlinear reflectivity spectrum. The input/output characteristics of the structure exhibit bistable hysteresis similar to that of a nonlinear Fabry-Perot etalon.>