Spontaneous switching in cavityless optically bistable systems

Citation
Tm. Lysak et Va. Trofimov, Spontaneous switching in cavityless optically bistable systems, TECH PHYS, 45(2), 2000, pp. 209-213
Citations number
6
Categorie Soggetti
Apllied Physucs/Condensed Matter/Materiales Science
Journal title
TECHNICAL PHYSICS
ISSN journal
10637842 → ACNP
Volume
45
Issue
2
Year of publication
2000
Pages
209 - 213
Database
ISI
SICI code
1063-7842(2000)45:2<209:SSICOB>2.0.ZU;2-A
Abstract
Relaxation cavityless optical bistability is studied when a semiconductor i s exposed to light quanta with an energy exceeding the transition energy an d the free-electron relaxation time depends on temperature. The numerical a nalysis of dynamic equations for temperature and free-electron density demo nstrates that 11 regimes of light-semiconductor interaction are possible. T he regimes are classified in terms of the features of temperature-intensity characteristic curves, namely, by the number and arrangement of instabilit y and quasi-stability segments and by the presence or absence of bistabilit y. It is found that both the upper and the lower branch of a bistable chara cteristic curve may be unstable, which results in spontaneous switchings be tween the respective states. Similarly, if the upper state is unstable and the lower state is stable, a small perturbation of the parameters (free-ele ctron temperature and density) near the former causes the transition to the oscillatory regime. If the upper state is unstable and a small perturbatio n of the lower (stable) state excites a damped oscillation, spontaneous swi tchings result if the fluctuating temperature exceeds some critical value f or the lower state. (C) 2000 MAIK "Nauka/Interperiodica".