In an elliptic In${}_x$Ga${}_{1-x}$AsP microcavity laser, various scarlike modes are experimentally observed. Below the lasing threshold, a bouncing-ball, a triangle, a double, and a triple bow-tie mode spontaneously emit. Above the threshold, a bow-tie scarlike mode lases alone. Our numerical analysis reveals that the bow-tie scarlike mode is not caused by regular islands in phase space due to the Goos-Hänchen shift, but by unstable periodic orbits and that the light emission is assisted by a quasiperiodic orbit.

• Received 7 June 2011

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.84.041803