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Mode pulling and étalon effects have been claimed to prevent self-starting in passively mode-locked lasers that use fast saturable absorbers. A unidirectional ring geometry significantly reduces backscatter coupling and thus should facilitate self-starting. We present supportive evidence and demonstrate true self-starting in self-stabilized, passively mode-locked Ti:sapphire and erbium fiber lasers.
Tamura et al. (Mon,) studied this question.