High-energy coherent chirped pulses from multisection laser diode with thick active layer

High-energy (100 pJ) picosecond pulses are obtained from Q-switched AlGaAs multisection lasers with a thick (0.45-μm) active layer. Single longitudinal mode operation in the Q-switching regime is achieved by injecting monochromatic optical pulses into the active region. Chirp amplitude and pulse energy are measured for different electrical pumping conditions in the absorber sections. High values of the time-bandwidth product of pulses (up to 30) are observed, it is shown that the chirp amplitude can reach 10 /spl Aring/. Therefore, it is expected that the 100 pJ coherent optical pulses can be compressed down to 1-2 ps, which represents attractive performances for compact short-pulse light sources.