Patent ID: 6822981
Filing Date: 2004-11-23
Classification: H01S

Abstract:
A wavelength-tunable laser comprising:a first resonant cavity containing an optical amplifier medium; a pair of opposed reflector members which define the first resonant cavity; a second resonant cavity; and a reflector external to said first resonant cavity delimiting the second resonant cavity thereinbetween, and selectively reflecting for an integer number N of optical frequencies, wherein said two opposed reflector members are not wavelength selective and delimit an amplifying first active section coupled to a phase tuning second active section, each of said two active sections connected to an electrical supply, said second active section having an effective group index that can be adjusted electro-optically as a function of an electrical voltage applied, said first and second active sections having dimensions such that a difference between optical frequencies of any two resonant modes of said first resonant cavity is never equal to a difference between optical frequencies of any two selectively reflected frequencies of said reflector, and second active section modifying an optical length of said first resonant cavity to provide for a selective coincidence of only one optical frequency between the resonant modes of said first resonant cavity and the selectively reflected frequencies of said reflector, wherein the difference between any two adjacent reflected optical frequencies is constant and the reflected optical frequencies are interleaved with consecutive optical frequencies of resonant modes.