Shilnikov Dynamics in a Passive Q -Switching Laser

Abstract
The laser containing a saturable absorber (LSA) is known to present optical instabilities in the form of regular pulses of various shapes. We report on the first experimental observation of optical chaos through different scenarios in the CO2 + CH3I LSA. By varying the absorber pressure and/or the laser frequency, the LSA output follows a period-doubling cascade to chaos or makes a transition to Shilnikov-type chaos.