We present an experimental and theoretical study of the intensity noise correlation between the two orthogonally polarized modes in a dual frequency Vertical External Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VECSEL). The dependence of the noise correlation spectra on the non-linear coupling between the two orthogonally polarized modes is put into evidence. Our results show that for small coupling the noise correlation amplitude and phase spectra remain nearly flat (around -6 dB and 0° respectively) within the frequency range of our interest (from 100 kHz to 100 MHz). But for higher values of the coupling constant the low frequency behaviors (below 1-2 MHz) of the correlation amplitude and phase spectra are drastically changed, whereas above this cut-off frequency (1-2 MHz) the correlation spectra are almost independent of coupling strength. The theoretical model is based on the assumptions that the only source of noise in the frequency range of our interest for the two modes are pump noises, which are white noises of equal amplitude but partially correlated.

We measure the coupling constant between the two perpendicularly polarized eigenstates of a two-frequency Vertical External Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VECSEL). This measurement is performed for different values of the transverse spatial separation between the two perpendicularly polarized modes. The consequences of these measurements on the two-frequency operation of such class-A semiconductor lasers are discussed.

Topological defects have been observed and studied in a wide range of systems, such as cosmology, spin systems, cold atoms, and optics, as they are quenched across a phase transition into an ordered state. These defects limit the coherence of the system and its ability to approach a fully ordered state, so revealing their origin and control is becoming an increasingly important field of research. We observe dissipative topological defects in a one-dimensional ring of phased-locked lasers, and show how their formation is related to the Kibble-Zurek mechanism and is governed in a universal manner by two competing time scales. The ratio between these two time scales depends on the system parameters, and thus offers the possibility of enabling the system to dissipate to a fully ordered, defect-free state that can be exploited for solving hard computational problems in various fields.

No abstract

An optical system solves the phase retrieval problem by exploiting the natural mode competition inside a degenerate laser cavity.