Influence of external mirror on modal behavior of twin-stripe index-guided injection lasers

The coupled-mode theory of parallel waveguides is used to calculate the influence of an external mirror on the modal behavior of the AR-coated laser array. The case of twin-stripe index-guided injection lasers with separate contacts is treated in detail. It is shown that for asymmetrical current injection, the external cavity couples the laser's guided array modes and creates new laser-cavity modes with a better mode discrimination in favour of the one having a single far-field pattern. These results imply that multiple laser arrays might benefit from an additional external mirror.<
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