Chaotic Semiconductor Lasers Research Articles

Erasure of time-delay signatures in the output of an opto-electronic feedback laser with modulated delays and chaos synchronisation

By studying the autocorrelation function of the opto-electronic feedback semiconductor laser output the authors establish that the signatures of time delays can be erased in systems incorporating modulated feedback time delays. This property is of importance for the suitability of such laser systems for secure chaos-based communication systems. The authors also make the first report on chaos synchronisation in both uni-directionally and bi-directionally coupled multiple time-delay chaotic semiconductor lasers with modulated opto-electronic feedbacks.

Characteristics of Fast Physical Random Bit Generation Using Chaotic Semiconductor Lasers

We investigate the characteristics of fast random bit generation using chaotic semiconductor lasers. The optical amplitudes of two lasers with chaotic oscillations induced by optical feedback are each sampled at a fixed rate to extract binary bit sequences which are then combined by an exclusive-OR operation to obtain a single random bit sequence. Bit sequences generated at rate of 1 Giga bit per second are verified to pass statistical tests of randomness. We describe the dependence of randomness on laser parameters, in particular the injection current, the external cavity length and the feedback strength. The results provide clear empirical guidelines for tuning the chaotic laser parameters to achieve random bit sequences. This study shows that chaotic laser devices can be fast and reliable sources of physical entropy for computing and communication applications.

Synchronization of bandwidth-enhanced chaos in semiconductor lasers with optical feedback and injection

We experimentally investigate the generation and synchronization of bandwidth-enhanced chaos in a semiconductor laser (drive laser) that is subject to optical injection from another chaotic semiconductor laser (injection laser) with optical feedback. Effective bandwidth enhancement is achieved over 12 GHz, under the condition in which the optical wavelength of the drive laser is positively detuned with respect to that of the injection laser, outside the injection locking range. The bandwidth-enhanced chaotic signal of the drive laser is injected into a third semiconductor laser (response laser) for synchronization. Synchronization of chaos with a bandwidth greater than 12 GHz is observed between the drive and response lasers, under the condition in which the optical wavelength of the response laser is negatively detuned with respect to that of the drive laser, satisfying the injection locking condition. High-quality chaos synchronization is observed within the injection locking range between the drive and response lasers and under the condition of a low relaxation oscillation frequency of the response laser.

Information Encoding and Decoding Using Unidirectionally Coupled Chaotic Semiconductor Lasers Subject to Filtered Optical Feedback

We present a detailed numerical study of the dynamics of two unidirectionally coupled semiconductor lasers subject to filtered optical feedback. We show that this chaos-based communication scheme allows for an improvement in the decoding of encrypted messages in comparison with the conventional feedback scheme. We found that the performance of the system is optimal when the closed-loop configuration and similar filters are used in the emitter and receiver systems.

Ultrahigh-Speed Random Number Generation Based on a Chaotic Semiconductor Laser

The fluctuating intensity of a chaotic semiconductor laser is used for generating random sequences at rates up to 12.5 Gbits/s. The conversion of the fluctuating intensity to a random bit sequence can be implemented in either software or hardware and the overall rate of generation is much faster than any previously reported random number generator based on a physical mechanism. The generator's simplicity, robustness, and insensitivity to control parameters should enable its application to tasks of secure communication and calculation procedures requiring ultrahigh-speed generation of random bit sequences.

Time-Delay Identification in a Chaotic Semiconductor Laser With Optical Feedback: A Dynamical Point of View

A critical issue in optical chaos-based communications is the possibility to identify the parameters of the chaotic emitter and, hence, to break the security. In this paper, we study theoretically the identification of a chaotic emitter that consists of a semiconductor laser with an optical feedback. The identification of a critical security parameter, the external-cavity round-trip time (the time delay in the laser dynamics), is performed using both the auto-correlation function and delayed mutual information methods applied to the chaotic time-series. The influence on the time-delay identification of the experimentally tunable parameters, i.e., the feedback rate, the pumping current, and the time-delay value, is carefully studied. We show that difficult time-delay-identification scenarios strongly depend on the time-scales of the system dynamics as it undergoes a route to chaos, in particular on how close the relaxation oscillation period is from the external-cavity round-trip time.

Differential-phase-shift quantum key distribution experiment using fast physical random bit generator with chaotic semiconductor lasers

A high speed physical random bit generator is applied for the first time to a gigahertz clocked quantum key distribution system. Random phase-modulation in a differential-phase-shift quantum key distribution (DPS-QKD) system is performed using a 1-Gbps random bit signal which is generated by a physical random bit generator with chaotic semiconductor lasers. Stable operation is demonstrated for over one hour, and sifted keys are successfully generated at a rate of 9.0 kbps with a quantum bit error rate of 3.2% after 25-km fiber transmission.

Synchronization of chaotic semiconductor lasers by optical injection with random phase modulation

It is shown that identical synchronization of two chaotic semiconductor lasers can be achieved by injection of a common optical signal with randomly varying phase. An optical signal with randomly modulated phase is injected into two semiconductor lasers which have chaotic oscillations due to optical feedback. Strong correlation between complex intensity oscillations of the two lasers is observed even though the intensity of the common injection signal is constant. Characteristic properties of this type of synchronization are shown, in particular, the dependence of the synchronization threshold on the injection strength and the rate of phase modulation, and the dependence of the intensity correlation on the difference in phase of optical feedback.

Theoretical investigations of cascaded chaotic synchronization and communication based on optoelectronic negative feedback semiconductor lasers

In this paper, a novel chaotic relay system, based on cascaded synchronization in optoelectronic negative feedback chaotic semiconductor lasers, is presented. Synchronization characteristics and the influence of parameter mismatches on synchronization performances are investigated. The results show that the complete synchronization can be achieved under suitable system parameters; internal parameter mismatches of the lasers have influence on synchronization quality, but the system possesses more robustness to parameter mismatches compared with cascaded synchronization based on coherent optical feedback. Moreover, communication related issues are also investigated. Under the additive chaos modulation (ACM) encryption scheme, encoded messages can be successfully extracted at both mediator laser (ML) and receiver laser (RL) parts; parameter mismatches of the lasers will affect messages decoding, but the influence is not strong.

Cascaded synchronisation of multiple time-delay electro-optical semiconductor lasers

The authors report on cascaded synchronisation in coupled chaotic multiple time-delay electro-optical semiconductor lasers. The authors derive the existence and sufficient stability conditions for the synchronisation regimes. Analytical results are fully supported by numerical simulations. The results are important for chaos-based long-haul communication systems.

Fast physical random bit generation with chaotic semiconductor lasers

Random number generators in digital information systems make use of physical entropy sources such as electronic and photonic noise to add unpredictability to deterministically generated pseudo-random sequences1,2. However, there is a large gap between the generation rates achieved with existing physical sources and the high data rates of many computation and communication systems; this is a fundamental weakness of these systems. Here we show that good quality random bit sequences can be generated at very fast bit rates using physical chaos in semiconductor lasers. Streams of bits that pass standard statistical tests for randomness have been generated at rates of up to 1.7 Gbps by sampling the fluctuating optical output of two chaotic lasers. This rate is an order of magnitude faster than that of previously reported devices for physical random bit generators with verified randomness. This means that the performance of random number generators can be greatly improved by using chaotic laser devices as physical entropy sources. Random-number generators are important in digital information systems. However, the speed at which current sources operate is much slower than the typical data rates used in communication and computing. Chaos in semiconductor lasers might help to bridge the gap.

Synchronization in multiple time delay chaotic semiconductor lasers with optoelectronic feedbacks and couplings

We make the first report on the synchronization regimes in both unidirectionally and bidirectionally optoelectronically coupled multiple time delay chaotic semiconductor lasers with optoelectronic feedbacks. We derive the existence conditions for the synchronization regimes. Numerical modelling supports the analytical findings.

Numerical Analysis on Chaos Synchronization in Semiconductor Lasers Subject to a Common Drive Signal

We numerically observe chaos synchronization of two semiconductor lasers commonly driven by a chaotic semiconductor laser subject to optical feedback. We observe strongly correlated chaos synchronization between the two response lasers even when the correlation between the drive and response lasers is low. We show that the cross correlation between the two responses is larger than that between drive and responses over a wide parameter region.

Spiking optical patterns and synchronization

We analyze the time resolved spike statistics of a solitary and two mutually interacting chaotic semiconductor lasers whose chaos is characterized by apparently random, short intensity spikes. Repulsion between two successive spikes is observed, resulting in a refractory period, which is largest at laser threshold. For time intervals between spikes greater than the refractory period, the distribution of the intervals follows a Poisson distribution. The spiking pattern is highly periodic over time windows corresponding to the optical length of the external cavity, with a slow change of the spiking pattern as time increases. When zero-lag synchronization between two lasers is established, the statistics of the nearly perfectly matched spikes are not altered. The similarity of these features to those found in complex interacting neural networks, suggests the use of laser systems as simpler physical models for neural networks.

Common-chaotic-signal induced synchronization in semiconductor lasers

We experimentally and numerically observe synchronization of two semiconductor lasers commonly driven by a chaotic semiconductor laser subject to optical feedback. Under condition that the relaxation oscillation frequency is matched between the two response lasers, but mismatched between the drive and the two response lasers, we show that it is possible to observe strongly correlated synchronization between the two response lasers even when the correlation between the drive and response lasers is low. We also show that the cross correlation between the two responses is larger than that between drive and responses over a wide parameter region.

Power dropout control by optical phase modulation in a chaotic semiconductor laser

The effect of periodic phase modulation of light on a chaotic external-cavity semiconductor laser working in a regime of low-frequency fluctuations (LFFs) is studied numerically. It is observed that the phase modulation changes the time period between consecutive dropouts in the emitted laser intensity. A new variable ΦL is defined as the phase of the laser's LFFs, which increases in time with 2π after each power dropout event. The phase ΦPM of the periodic phase modulator is unfolded on the real axis and increases linearly at a rate given by the modulating frequency. It is shown that the phase difference between the laser and the modulator ΔΦ(t)=mΦL(t)−nΦPM(t), where m and n are integers, remains constant in time, leading to phase-synchronized states, for specific values of the modulating frequency and amplitude.

Synchronization of mutually versus unidirectionally coupled chaotic semiconductor lasers

Synchronization dynamics of mutually coupled chaotic semiconductor lasers are investigated experimentally and compared to identical synchronization of unidirectionally coupled lasers. Mutual coupling shows high quality synchronization in a broad range of self-feedback and coupling strengths. It is found to be tolerant to significant parameter mismatch which for unidirectional coupling would result in loss of synchronization. The advantages of mutual coupling are emphasized in light of its potential use in chaos communications.

Identification of the Optimum Time-Delay for Chaos Synchronization Regimes of Semiconductor Lasers

It is shown that the optimum correlation for chaos synchronization of master-slave semiconductor lasers occurs at a delay time that is sensitive to both the injection strength and the frequency detuning of the driving field. This effect may be overlooked if the correlation function is not evaluated globally. The correlation function has been used as the de facto method for quantitatively determining the degree of synchronization achieved between unidirectional coupled chaotic semiconductor lasers, see for example . The correlation function is a continuous function of the delay time but is normally evaluated at only two delay times. It is shown that this approach can cause a misidentification of the dominant synchronization process and can also mask important temporal fluctuations in the nature and quality of the chaos synchronization. In essence, two factors contribute to the potential for misidentification, the first is the inherent small time shift required to obtain the optimum correlation and the second is the quasi-periodicity that is present in certain chaotic regimes. This paper shows that a reevaluation of some of the published numerical studies of chaos synchronization is necessary.

Theoretical study of cascade synchronization in chaotic lasers and chaotic repeater

The chaotic repeater is proposed for long-haul chaotic communications. The physical model of all optical chaotic semiconductor laser repeater is presented. The synchronization of chaos repeater system is theoretically demonstrated. Chaos synchronization of a transmitter, a repeater and a recoverer is numerically achieved. Relationships of synchronization error and synchronization time with the system feedback coefficient are analyzed. Application of the repeater system is numerically simulated in chaotic laser communications. Chaotic communications and synchronization error analysis with a sinusoidal modulation signal of frequency 0.2GHz and a digital signal of 0.2Gb/s rate are given respectively to illustrate that chaotic repeater can improve the decoding quality in chaotic laser communications. The repeater bandwidth, chaotic communications with a high rate digital signal of 20Gb/s and synchronization error are analyzed respectively. Numerical results of a sinusoidal modulation signal of bandwidth from 0.1 to 20GHz, and a digital signal of modulation bandwidth from 0.1 to 20Gb/s are obtained, and numerical relationship of synchronization error to the modulation frequency is also shown. The system parameter mismatch is also numerically analyzed.

Dynamical characterisation of laser diode subject to double optical feedback for chaotic optical communications

A chaotic semiconductor laser subject to double optical feedback is characterised in terms of the statistical analysis, power spectrum analysis and forecast error analysis of the chaotic dynamics. Varying the relative lengths of the two external cavities, the dynamics are observed and compared to that of a single cavity. We show that in the case of integer multiple external-cavity lengths the round-trip time delays can be deduced from the forecast error analysis. In the case of fractional multiple cavity lengths, only the mean value of the cavity resonance frequencies can be deduced from the power spectra and hence the cavity time delays cannot be found. Cavity time delays that differ more than 0.4 ns can be obtained from the forecast error analysis. In the case of similar cavity lengths, the cavity time delays cannot be extracted. The results show that double optical feedback may offer particular advantages for enhancing security in chaos encryption.