Optimizing auxiliary laser heating for Kerr soliton microcomb generation.

Abstract

Auxiliary laser heating has become a widely adopted method for Kerr soliton frequency comb generation in optical microcavities, thanks to its reliable and easy-to-achieve merits for solving the thermal instability during the formation of dissipative Kerr solitons. Here, we conduct optimization of auxiliary laser heating by leveraging the distinct loss and absorption characteristics of different longitudinal and polarization cavity modes. We show that even if the auxiliary and pump lasers enter orthogonal polarization modes, their mutual photothermal balance can be efficient enough to maintain a cavity thermal equilibrium as the pump laser enters the red-detuning soliton regime, and by choosing the most suitable resonance for the auxiliary and pump lasers, the auxiliary laser power can be reduced to 20% of the pump laser and still be capable of warranting soliton generation. Moreover, we demonstrate soliton comb generation using integrated laser modules with a few milliwatt on-chip pump and auxiliary powers, showcasing the potential for further chip integration of the auxiliary laser heating method.