Modelling of switching and stability of vertical-cavity lasers with polarization-selective feedback

Polarization-selective feedback into one of the two linearly polarized modes of emission of a quantum-well vertical-cavity laser is studied theoretically to determine domains of bistability and spontaneous switching as the strength and phase of the optical feedback are varied. Feedback enlarges the domains of instability, enhances the domains of time-dependent polarization and creates more complicated phase-space dynamics when the feedback is sufficiently strong to create multiple steady-state solutions.