Interaction-induced mode switching in steady-state microlasers

Abstract

We demonstrate that due to strong modal interactions through cross-gain saturation, the onset of a new lasing mode can switch off an existing mode via a negative power slope. In this process of interaction-induced mode switching (IMS) the two involved modes maintain their identities, i.e. they do not change their spatial field patterns or lasing frequencies. For a fixed pump profile, a simple analytic criterion for the occurrence of IMS is given in terms of their self- and cross-interaction coefficients and non-interacting thresholds, which is verified for the example of a two-dimensional microdisk laser. When the spatial pump profile is varied as the pump power is increased, IMS can be induced even when it would not occur with a fixed pump profile, as we show for two coupled laser cavities. Our findings apply to steady-state lasing and are hence different from dynamical mode switching or hopping. IMS may have potential applications in robust and flexible all-optical switching.

14 pages, 5 figures

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• Steady-state ab initio laser theory for complex gain media
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Cited by in corpus (6)

• Pump-power-driven mode switching in a microcavity device and its relation to Bose-Einstein condensation
• Raman Laser Switching Induced by Cascaded Light Scattering
• On the number of Bose-selected modes in driven-dissipative ideal Bose gases
• Symmetry, stability, and computation of degenerate lasing modes
• Condensation of Thresholds in Multimode Microlasers
• Selective Pumping of Localized States in a Disordered Active Medium