Investigation of polarization bistability in vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers subjected to optical feedback

Polarization bistability in vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) subject to optical feedback has been studied both experimentally and theoretically. Optical feedback is shown to reduce the width of the bistability hysteresis loop and, hence, suppress the bistability. It is also demonstrated experimentally that polarization-selective optical feedback can be utilized to eliminate VCSEL polarization switching without inducing instabilities in the device.