Single-Mode and Mode-Hop-Free Wavelength Sweep Light Source With Range of Over 160 nm and High Swept Frequency

This letter describes a single-mode and mode-hop-free wavelength sweep light source that uses a micromachined scanning mirror. The light source has a wavelength sweep range of over 160 nm in the 1.55
$\mu{\hbox{m}}$
band and the repeatability of output power level of less than
$\pm {\hbox{0.05}}~{\hbox{dB}}$
. The swept frequency is 307.8 Hz, and the frequency can be changed by use of a scanning mirror with a different mechanical resonance frequency. A tunable laser source was measured by a heterodyne interferometer that uses the wavelength sweep light source and it was confirmed that the side mode suppression ratio of the wavelength sweep light source was more than 50 dB.