Abstract
Two formal methods for finding laser modes and threshold conditions in laser resonators containing as many as N mirrors are presented. The first method is based on an analysis determining the reflectivity and the transmittivity of an N-mirror system with gain. This is an extension of the classical 2 × 2 matrix method. The second method is based on self-consistency equations for the system and directly yields the circulating fields of the individual resonators. A set of rules has been proved to allow these fields to be calculated directly by means of inspection. The laser oscillation condition for an N-mirror system is found. Examples are given for systems with as many as five mirrors.
© 1996 Optical Society of America
Full Article | PDF ArticleMore Like This
M. Brunel, A. Le Floch, and F. Bretenaker
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 13(5) 946-960 (1996)
Anna Tyszka-Zawadzka and Paweł Szczepański
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 13(2) 300-305 (1996)
Kuei-Huei Lin and Wen-Feng Hsieh
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 13(8) 1786-1793 (1996)