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The gain recovery time of a bound-to-continuum terahertz frequency quantum cascade laser, operating at 1.98 THz, has been measured using broadband terahertz-pump-terahertz-probe spectroscopy. The recovery time is found to reduce as a function of current density, attaining a value of 18 ps as the laser is brought close to threshold. We attribute this reduction to improved coupling efficiency between the injector state and the upper lasing level as the active region aligns.

The effects of optical feedback (OF) in lasers have been observed since the early days of laser development. While OF can result in undesirable and unpredictable operation in laser systems, it can also cause measurable perturbations to the operating parameters, which can be harnessed for metrological purposes. In this work we exploit this ‘self-mixing’ effect to infer the emission spectrum of a semiconductor laser using a laser-feedback interferometer, in which the terminal voltage of the laser is used to coherently sample the reinjected field. We demonstrate this approach using a terahertz frequency quantum cascade laser operating in both single- and multiple-longitudinal mode regimes, and are able to resolve spectral features not reliably resolved using traditional Fourier transform spectroscopy. We also investigate quantitatively the frequency perturbation of individual laser modes under OF, and find excellent agreement with predictions of the excess phase equation central to the theory of lasers under OF.

In this work, we present a density-matrix model, which considers an infinite quantum cascade laser (QCL) and models transport via a nearest neighbor approximation. We will discuss derivation of output parameters of the model in detail and show the direct mathematical link to the semiclassical rate equation approach. This model can be extended to an arbitrary number of states in the QCL period, without a priori specification of upper and lower lasing level. Application of the model to various QCL structures is possible, including bound-to-continuum structures, which typically employ a large number of states per period. The model has been applied to a 2-THz bound-to-continuum QCL, and a very good agreement with measured V-I characteristics is obtained along with qualitative agreement with measured L-I characteristics in terms of dynamic range.

Two-dimensional spectroscopy is performed on a terahertz (THz) frequency quantum cascade laser (QCL) with two broadband THz pulses. Gain switching is used to amplify the first THz pulse and the second THz pulse is used to probe the system. Fourier transforms are taken with respect to the delay time between the two THz pulses and the sampling time of the THz probe pulse. The two-dimensional spectrum consists of three peaks at (ω = 0, ω = ω), (ω = ω, ω = ω), and (ω = 2ω, ω = ω) where ω denotes the lasing frequency. The peak at ω = 0 represents the response of the probe to the zero-frequency (rectified) component of the instantaneous intensity and can be used to measure the gain recovery.

The accuracy of high-resolution spectroscopy depends critically on the stability, frequency control, and traceability available from laser sources. In this work, we report exact tunable frequency synthesis and phase control of a terahertz laser. The terahertz laser is locked by a terahertz injection phase lock loop for the first time, with the terahertz signal generated by heterodyning selected lines from an all-fiber infrared frequency comb generator in an ultrafast photodetector. The comb line frequency separation is exactly determined by a Global Positioning System-locked microwave frequency synthesizer, providing traceability of the terahertz laser frequency to primary standards. The locking technique reduced the heterodyne linewidth of the terahertz laser to a measurement instrument-limited linewidth of <1 Hz, robust against short-and long-term environmental fluctuations. The terahertz laser frequency can be tuned in increments determined only by the microwave synthesizer resolution, and the phase of the laser, relative to the reference, is independently and precisely controlled within a range ±0.3π. These findings are expected to enable applications in phase-resolved high-precision terahertz gas spectroscopy and radiometry. Published by The Optical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

A periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystal with multiple poling periods is used to generate tunable narrow-bandwidth THz pulses for injection seeding a quantum cascade laser (QCL). We demonstrate that longitudinal modes of the quantum cascade laser close to the gain maximum can be selected or suppressed according to the seed spectrum. The QCL emission spectra obtained by electro-optic sampling from the quantum cascade laser, in the most favorable case, shows high selectivity and amplification of the longitudinal modes that overlap the frequency of the narrow-band seed. Proper selection of the narrow-band THz seed from the PPLN crystal discretely tunes the longitudinal mode emission of the quantum cascade laser. Moreover, the THz wave build-up within the laser cavity is studied as a function of the round-trip time. When the seed frequency is outside the maximum of the gain spectrum the laser emission shifts to the preferential longitudinal mode.

We report the generation mechanism associated with nano-grating electrode photomixers fabricated on Fe-doped InGaAsP substrates. Two different emitter designs incorporating nano-gratings coupled to the same broadband antenna were characterized in a continuous-wave terahertz (THz) frequency system employing telecommunications wavelength lasers for generation and coherent detection. The current-voltage characteristics and THz emission bandwidth of the emitters is compared for different bias polarities and optical polarisations. The THz output from the emitters is also mapped as a function of the position of the laser excitation spot for both continuous-wave and pulsed excitation. This mapping, together with full-wave simulations of the structures, confirms the generation mechanism to be due to an enhanced optical electric field at the grating tips resulting in increased optical absorption, coinciding with a concentration of the electrostatic field.