Masakatsu OKADA and Mitsuo HASHIMOTO

Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Ritsumeikan University, 1916, Noji, Kusatsu, Shiga, 525 Japan

(Received August 10, 1995; Accepted August 18, 1995)

Optical multistability of a Fabry-Perot semiconductor laser is analyzed when multi-optical inputs detuned from the cavity-resonant wavelength of a semiconductor laser are injected. Many split branches are shown to be produced in the optical output versus optical input characteristics for different detuned optical inputs. It is also shown that optical outputs can be switched in any one of the optical input wavelengths by optical input pulses, based on the optical output versus input characteristics with multi-split branches.

Key words : semiconductor laser, optical multistability, optical switching, wavelength switching