Frequency noise reduction of visible InGaAlP laser diodes by different optical feedback methods

The emission spectra of several commercial InGaAlP laser diodes operating in the visible range were investigated. Strong relaxation sidebands at frequency spacings up to 2 GHz were observed in the field spectra. By using optical feedback from an external high-finesse resonator, the laser line-width was reduced from a few hundred megahertz to less than one megahertz. However, only a small part of the laser power was found within the narrow bandwidth, whereas most of the power finds itself in relaxation sidebands a few gigahertz apart from the carrier. The frequency noise reduction was investigated by using an external cavity configuration. With a short cavity length the relaxation oscillation sidebands were completely suppressed, and the laser linewidth was reduced to a few megahertz. Additional strong reduction in the laser linewidth to roughly 50 kHz was obtained using a combination of the external cavity laser with optical feedback from an external high-finesse resonator