Tunable Characteristics of Optical Frequency Combs from InGaAs/GaAs Two-Section Mode-Locked Lasers

We observed tunable characteristics of optical frequency combs (OFCs) generated from InGaAs/GaAs double quantum wells (DQWs) asymmetric waveguide two-section mode-locked lasers (TS-MLLs). This involves an asymmetric waveguide mode-locked semiconductor laser (AWML-SL) operating at a center wavelength of net modal gain of approximately 1.06 µm, which indicates a stable pulse shape, with the power-current(P-I) characteristic curve revealing a small difference between forward and reverse drive currents in the gain region. Under different operating conditions, the laser exhibits the characteristics of OFCs. And the pulse interval in the timing and the peak interval in the frequency domain show a periodic alternating change trend with the increase in the gain current. This tunable characteristic is reported for the first time. The study demonstrates the feasibility of generating tunable optical combs using a monolithic integrated two-section mode-locked semiconductor laser (MI-TS-MLL). This has important reference value for the application of OFCs generated from MI-TS-MLLs or integrated optical chips.