Injection locking

Optics

Physics

Frequency comb

Chemistry

Materials science

Quantum cascade laser

Cascade

Computer science

Chromatography

Optoelectronics

Laser

Mode-locking

Radio frequency

Telecommunications

Comb generator

Nature Photonics

Quantum cascade laser (QCL) frequency combs are a promising candidate for chemical sensing and biomedical diagnostics1–4. They are electrically pumped and compact, making them an ideal platform for on-chip integration5. Until now, optical feedback is fatal for frequency comb generation in QCLs6. This property limits the potential for integration. Here, we demonstrate coherent electrical injection locking of the repetition frequency to a stabilized radio-frequency oscillator. We prove that the injection-locked QCL spectrum can be phase-locked, resulting in the generation of a frequency comb. We show that injection locking is not only a versatile tool for all-electrical frequency stabilization, but also mitigates the fatal effect of optical feedback. A prototype self-detected dual-comb set-up consisting only of an injection-locked dual-comb chip, a lens and a mirror demonstrates the enormous potential for on-chip dual-comb spectroscopy. These results pave the way to miniaturized and all-solid-state mid-infrared spectrometers. Quantum cascade laser frequency combs are coherently locked to an external radio-frequency source even in extremely high-feedback conditions. The internal phase-locking mechanism and the possibility of all-electric stabilization are investigated.

Coherent injection locking of quantum cascade laser frequency combs