Mode-locking and frequency mixing at THz pulse repetition rates in a sampled-grating DBR mode-locked laser

摘要

We report a sampled grating distributed Bragg reflector (SGDBR) laser with two different gratings which mode-lock independently at respective pulse repetition frequencies of 640 and 700 GHz. The device operates in distinct regimes depending on the bias conditions, with stable pulse trains observed at 640 GHz, 700 GHz, the mean repetition frequency of 666 GHz, and the sum frequency of 1.34 THz (due to nonlinear mixing). Performance is consistent and highly reproducible with exceptional stability observed over wide ranges of drive bias conditions. Furthermore, a monolithically integrated semiconductor optical amplifier is used to amplify the pulse trains, providing an average output power of 46 mW at 666 GHz.