9B5 - Linewidth measurements of CW gallium arsenide lasers at 77°K

Measurements have been made on the linewidths of several continuously excited gallium arsenide lasers operating at 77°K by using an optical system similar to that of a Michelson Intefferometer with a leg unbalance of 3000 feet. For CW GaAs lasers operating in a single mode, homodyne detection was used to determine the linewidth to within the system's resolution of 150 kc/s. For various CW GaAs laser current levels and mode configurations, the system allowed a means of determining the bandwidth of the intensity noise by autocorrelation.