A surface plasmon infrared nano-pulse laser having a multi-resonance competition mechanism, consisting of the four parts of a surface plasmon nano-pin resonance chamber (1), a spacer layer (2), a gain medium (3), and a two-dimensional material layer (4). The surface plasmon nano-pin resonance chamber (1) consists of a metal nano rod (11) and one or more nano sheets (12) grown thereon, the surface plasmon nano-pin resonance chamber (1) and the gain medium (3) being isolated by the isolating layer (2), and the two-dimensional material layer (4) covering a surface of the surface plasmon nano-pulse laser; positive and negative electrodes (5) are located at two ends of the surface plasmon nano-pulse laser, and a layer of a two-dimensional material having a feature of saturatable absorption is introduced to a surface of the nano-pin resonance chamber.

A tunable vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) is provided. The VCSEL includes a VCSEL emission structure, piezoelectric material, and a piezoelectric electrode. The VCSEL emission structure includes a first reflector; a second reflector; and an active cavity material structure disposed between the first and second reflectors. The active cavity material structure includes an active region. The piezoelectric material is mechanically coupled to the VCSEL emission structure such that when the piezoelectric material experiences a mechanical stress, the mechanical stress is transferred to the active cavity material structure of the VCSEL emission structure. The piezoelectric electrode is designed to cause an electric field within the piezoelectric material. The electric field causes the piezoelectric material to experience the mechanical stress, which causes the active cavity material structure to experience the mechanical stress, which causes the emission wavelength of the VCSEL to be modified from a nominal wavelength of the VCSEL.

A QCL may include a substrate, an emitting facet, and semiconductor layers adjacent the substrate and defining an active region. The active region may have a longitudinal axis canted at an oblique angle to the emitting facet of the substrate. The QCL may include an optical grating being adjacent the active region and configured to emit one of a CW laser output or a pulsed laser output through the emitting facet of substrate.

A surface plasmon infrared nano-pulse laser having a multi-resonance competition mechanism, consisting of the four parts of a surface plasmon nano-pin resonance chamber (1), a spacer layer (2), a gain medium (3), and a two-dimensional material layer (4). The surface plasmon nano-pin resonance chamber (1) consists of a metal nano rod (11) and one or more nano sheets (12) grown thereon, the surface plasmon nano-pin resonance chamber (1) and the gain medium (3) being isolated by the isolating layer (2), and the two-dimensional material layer (4) covering a surface of the surface plasmon nano-pulse laser; positive and negative electrodes (5) are located at two ends of the surface plasmon nano-pulse laser, and a layer of a two-dimensional material having a feature of saturatable absorption is introduced to a surface of the nano-pin resonance chamber.

A QCL may include a substrate, an emitting facet, and semiconductor layers adjacent the substrate and defining an active region. The active region may have a longitudinal axis canted at an oblique angle to the emitting facet of the substrate. The QCL may include an optical grating being adjacent the active region and configured to emit one of a CW laser output or a pulsed laser output through the emitting facet of substrate.

A laser comprising a laser cavity formed by a first optical reflector, a gain region, a second optical reflector having a plurality of reflection peaks, and at least one optically active region. The first mirror may be a DBR or comb mirror and the second mirror may be a comb mirror. The spectral reflectance of the second optical reflector is adjusted at least partially based on an electric signal received form the optically active region such that only one reflection peak is aligned with a cavity mode formed by the first and second reflector.

A photon source comprising a quantum structure capable of defining one or more quantum levels such that a photon may be emitted from the quantum structure due to a transition between at least two quantum levels, a control signal configured to vary the transition energy, the transition energy being the energy separation between the at least two quantum levels; and a laser input beam configured to irradiate the quantum structure, the control signal being configured to bring the transition energy into resonance with the laser input beam and out of resonance with the laser input beam, such that the transition energy is resonant with the energy of the laser input beam for a time less than the time to output two photons from the transition.

A solid-state light source with built-in access resistance modulation is described. The light source can include an active region configured to emit electromagnetic radiation during operation of the light source. The active region can be formed at a p-n junction of a p-type side with a p-type contact and a n-type side with a n-type contact. The light source includes a control electrode configured to modulate an access resistance of an access region located on the p-type side and/or an access resistance of an access region located on the n-type side of the active region. The solid-state light source can be implemented in a circuit, which includes a voltage source that supplies a modulation voltage to the control electrode to modulate the access resistance(s).

An electro-optic (EO) sensor and a method for detecting a local electric field strength, the EO sensor including: a first optical cavity; a gain medium within the first optical cavity; a mode locking element within the first optical cavity; and an EO material within the first optical cavity, an effective optical path length of the EO material being variable depending on the local electric field strength at the EO sensor, wherein the gain medium, the mode locking element, and the EO material are arranged in a common path of light within the first optical cavity, and wherein during operation, the EO sensor emits pulses of light at a repetition rate characteristic of an effective optical path length of the light within the first optical cavity, the effective optical path length varying depending on the electric field strength local to the EO sensor.

A tunable wavelength laser comprising a laser cavity formed by a broadband mirror and a comb mirror. The laser cavity comprising a gain region. The laser cavity is configured such that a non-integer number of cavity modes of the laser cavity are between two consecutive reflection peaks of the comb mirror.