Precise Measurements of Bistability in a CO2 Laser with Intracavity Saturable Absorber

Optical bistability in a laser with an intracavity saturable absorber is a phenomenon theoretically investigated firstly by Lugiato et al(1). The experimental observations in CO2 lasers(2,3) have provided clear evidence of the bistability phenomenon and shown that the absorber parameters could be determined from these observations. In this work a quantitative comparison between a theoretical description of optical bistability and the experimental results is presented for the first time. The parameters defining the laser cavity and the CO2 amplifying medium were measured carefully, and the bistability was observed and analyzed quantitatively as a function of the laser parameters.