Low threshold optical bistable switching in an asymmetric λ/4‐shifted distributed‐feedback heterostructure

The nonlinear optical response of an asymmetric λ/4‐shifted distributed‐feedback GaAs/AlAs heterostructure is investigated using numerical methods, and also demonstrated experimentally. This structure exhibited both optical switching and bistability at incident wavelengths near λ=884 nm. The observed bistability threshold of less than 1 kW cm−2 is more than an order of magnitude smaller than that of any previously measured distributed‐feedback heterostructures.