Temporally resolved measurements of the emission pattern of semiconductor lasers

In this project we study the emission characteristics of semiconductor lasers. Because of the development of high-quality semiconductor lasers during the last decades, these optical sources play nowadays a central role in many applications. In this project we want to explore new functionalities of semiconductor lasers by manipulating their spectral, dynamical and coherence properties. Therefore we will study in detail the evolution of the spatially and temporally resolved emission properties of Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers (VCSELs). We will investigate how optical modes built up inside laser cavities that support multiple transversal modes. This way we will gain physical insight in the appearance of spatially incoherent laser emission, which is a unique emission regime that can be instigated in VCSELs. This study will also be used to test and fine-tune theoretical models that describe the dynamical behavior of multi-mode lasers.