title: Random optical pulse generation with bistable semiconductor ring lasers.
abstract: We experimentally show that a random optical pulse train can be generated by modulating a bistable semiconductor ring laser. When the ring laser is switched from the monostable to the bistable regime, it randomly selects one of two different stable unidirectional lasing modes, clockwise or counterclockwise modes. Non-deterministic random pulse sequences are generated by driving the switch parameter, the injection current, with a periodic pulse signal. The origin of the nondeterministic randomness is the amplified spontaneous emission noise coupled to the counter-propagating lasing modes. The statistical randomness properties are optimized by adjusting the relative strength of amplified spontaneous emission noise sources for the two lasing modes. It is also shown that it is possible to generate optical pulse sequences which pass a standard suite of statistical randomness tests.
authors.affiliation: NTT Communication Science Laboratories, NTT Corporation, 2-4 Hikaridai, Soraku-gun, Kyoto 619-0237, Japan. sunada@cslab.kecl.ntt.co.jp
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sunada
authors.forename: Takahisa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Harayama
authors.forename: Kenichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Arai
authors.forename: Kazuyuki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tsuzuki
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Uchida
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Davis