Polarization correlations in pulsed, vertical-cavity, surface-emitting lasers

We have examined noise behavior and polarization correlation sin the output of a pulsed, multitransverse-mode, vertical-cavity, surface-emitting laser (VCSEL). We have measured the output of the laser simultaneously in two or thogonal, linear polarizations as a function of drive current for pulse wid ths of 3 ns, 10 ns,and 30 ns. We present joint probability distributions fo r the number of detected photoelectrons in each of the two polarization-res olved outputs. The joint distributions indicate that the correlations can b e quite complicated, and are not completely described by a single number (i .e., the correlation coefficient). Furthermore, we find that the number of lasing modes appear to be the most important parameter in determining the d egree of polarization correlation. (C) 2000 Optical Society of America.