Anomalous mode pulling, instabilities, and chaos in a single-mode, standing-wave 3.39-μm He-Ne laser

Abstract

A high-gain, single-mode He-Ne 3.39-μm laser shows extreme mode pulling, as the laser operating frequency varies up to three times more slowly than the corresponding variation of the empty-cavity frequency. When the laser is operated at low pressures, new features appear in the vicinity of, and in conjunction with, the Lamb dip. Dispersive effects from the overlapping of the holes distorts the more nearly linear mode pulling observed for high pressures near line center. When the dispersive effects are strong enough instabilities are observed including self-pulsing, quasiperiodic, and chaotic output. At sufficiently high gain, the dispersion is distorted to give a multivalued region for the laser operating frequency for a single cavity frequency as predicted by Bennett.