High-frequency optical signal generation in a semiconductor laser by incoherent optical feedback

Abstract This work examines the feasibility of using incoherent optical feedback to generate high-frequency optical signals in a semiconductor laser. At a roundtrip feedback distance of 30 cm, a signal appears at around 1 GHz while the laser output is kept in single longitudinal mode and single polarization. The proposed method does not use any external modulation or saturable absorber. Some of the signal's properties are discussed as well.