Single-polarization operation of fiber distributed feedback (DFB) lasers by injection locking

Abstract

This paper investigated injection locking characteristics of a fiber distributed feedback (DFB) laser operating in dual polarizations, and found that it could operate in a single polarization by injection locking. The locking bandwidth was less than 10 MHz, much narrower than DFB laser diodes as a consequence of longer cavity length and resulting longer photon lifetime. As a more practical method to realize single-polarization operation of the fiber DFB laser, we proposed self-injection locking with a polarization-selective optical feedback composed of a mirror and a polarizer, and demonstrated a stable single-polarization operation.