Quantum fluctuations in very small laser diodes

Quantum fluctuations play a critical role in determining the steady-state and transient response of a laser when there is a small number of particles in the system. These fluctuations, and the fact that a lowest energy state of the system exists, can suppress lasing and enhance spontaneous emission around threshold. Dynamic switching between two characteristic system states can dominate the fluctuations. Correlations between n discrete excited electronic states and s discrete photons create a non-Poisson probability distribution and damp the average dynamic response of laser emission.