Mode-coupling effects on the small-signal modulation of multitransverse-mode vertical-cavity semiconductor lasers

We explored in detail the dynamics of multitransverse-mode vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs), which are important for optical interconnection applications. We found that the small-signal modulation response exhibits a rich structure including multiresonance peaks as well as response notches. The detailed theoretical and experimental study enabled us to attribute the various features to the coupling level between the participating modes. The generality of the predictions was tested and approved for several types of multitransverse-mode VCSELs and even for a coherent VCSEL array.