Theory of frequency modulated combs in lasers with spatial hole burning, dispersion and Kerr

Abstract

Frequency modulated (FM) frequency combs constitute an exciting alternative to generate equidistant spectra. The full set of Maxwell-Bloch equations is reduced to a single master equation for FM combs with fast dynamics to provide insight into the governing mechanisms behind phase-locking. It reveals that the recently observed linear frequency chirp is caused by the combined effects of spatial hole burning, group velocity dispersion and Kerr due to asymmetric gain. The comparison to observation in various semiconductor lasers suggests that the linear chirp is general to self-starting FM combs.