Pulse train interaction and control in a microcavity laser with delayed optical feedback

Abstract

We report experimental and theoretical results on the pulse train dynamics in an excitable semiconductor microcavity laser with an integrated saturable absorber and delayed optical feedback. We show how short optical control pulses can trigger, erase, or retime regenerative pulse trains in the external cavity. Both repulsive and attractive interactions between pulses are observed, and are explained in terms of the internal dynamics of the carriers. A bifurcation analysis of a model consisting of a system of nonlinear delay differential equations shows that arbitrary sequences of coexisting pulse trains are very long transients towards weakly stable periodic solutions with equidistant pulses in the external cavity.

Robust spike timing in an excitable cell with delayed feedback

“…Notably, the striking similarity between the theoretical predictions and experimental data was not produced by fitting a specific mathematical model to the chosen cell type, but was reflective of general properties of excitability that are present in most neurons, as well as other cell types [4][5][6][7][8]. The parallels of our results with those observed in laser systems [18,20] further highlight the ubiquitous nature of the regeneration of activity in excitable systems with delay. Our experimental setup showcases that a living mammalian system, represented by an excitable cell, is a feasible platform for studying this phenomenon in a neural context.…”

“…The presence of rich dynamics, including coexistence between different types of dynamic behaviour in nonlinear systems with delays [15][16][17], has sparked significant interest in investigating the interplay between excitability and delay in a variety of systems. A prominent example of such a system involves semiconductor micro-cavity lasers [18][19][20]; in an analogous fashion to neural systems, the number of emission pulses per delay period in the laser system is thought to be reflective of its ability to store information. In particular, it has been suggested that this property could be used in the construction of bioinspired 'neuromorphic' photonic resonators that process information through light pulses alone [21,22].…”

Chaos in time delay systems, an educational review

“…The space-time representation allows for regularities or irregular patterns to be identified by visual inspections. Thus, it is used to analyze pulse trains from laser cavities [198], spatio-temporal pattern formation in systems with multiple delays [66], and for the identification of chimera states in time delay systems [122].…”

Photonic Computing With Single and Coupled Spiking Micropillar Lasers

“…This provides the basis of a regenerative memory for temporal spike patterns. A micropillar laser with delayed optical feedback was shown experimentally to behave analogously [32], allowing the fast optical control with single input perturbations of the optical buffer of spikes. Both repulsive and attractive pulse to pulse interaction were evidenced.…”