Q-Switched Semiconductor Diode Lasers With Integrated Modulators

Q-switched semiconductor diode lasers with an integrated modulator have been operated with full on/off modulation at rates of 3 GHz. In addition, modulation of the lasers has been shown up to a detector-limited frequency of 6 GHz. A new model of these devices, which includes amplified spontaneous emission and high gain, predicts the possibility of a new mode of Q-switched operation with the capacity for repetition rates of tens of gigahertz and binary pulse position modulation at rates of the order of 10 Gbit/sec.