Observation of positive and negative nonlinear gain in an optical injection experiment: Proof of the cavity standing-wave-induced nonlinear gain theory in 1.3 μm wavelength semiconductor diode lasers

The origin of nonlinear gain in 1.3 μm InGaAsP semiconductor diode lasers is studied by measuring the magnitude and phase of a probe laser’s frequency response to optical injection with orthogonally polarized light from a pump laser. The sign and magnitude of the gain nonlinearity induced by optical injection depend on wavelength separation between pump and probe laser. The maximum magnitude of the nonlinear gain parameter is about 1.5×10−15 cm2. These results are consistent with the recently proposed theory that nonlinear gain is caused by the feedback from the dielectric grating induced by the standing wave in the laser cavity.