Low noise semiconductor-based mode-locked laser at 800 nm suitable for high bandwidth photonic analogdigital conversion

We report in this paper a low noise mode-locked laser at 800 nm designed for high bandwidth photonic A/D converter based on a photoconductive switch approach. The laser uses a semiconductor optical amplifier implemented in a long fibred ring cavity with a high quality factor including an intensity modulator and a chirped Bragg filter. Active and harmonic mode-locking lead to optical pulses with repetition rates in the few GHz range and an average optical power of 6 mW. Thanks to cavity dispersion management and the use of a compact fibred external compressor, pulse duration of 4.7 ps is obtained for a repetition rate of 2.01 GHz. At this repetition rate, a timing jitter of 34 fs, for integration frequencies from 10 Hz to 1 MHz, is obtained with a non-stabilized laser source. Implemented in a compact volume with all COTS components, the developped laser source is the ideal one for a photo-switch based A/D converter.