An Equivalent Circuit for Quantum Cascade Lasers

A new simpler equivalent circuit model of a quantum cascade laser based on two level rate equations is presented. The model is valid for small and large signals. A realistic current voltage model based on experimental results is included in the circuit model. Incorporation of the current voltage characteristic makes the circuit model fully compatible with parasitics and drive electronics. The model is validated by comparison of simulated results with analytica results and large signal numerical results reported earlier.     

量子级联激光器的发展及其应用

量子级联激光器作为新近出现的全固化小型理想中远红外激光源,引起了人们极大的兴趣,本文介绍了量子级联激光器的发展、应用状况及一些可能的应用范围。     

Voltage Tunability of Quantum Cascade Lasers

The voltage tunability of three types of quantum cascade laser designs is investigated. The tuning coefficients and tuning ranges of electroluminescence and laser emission from all designs are measured and compared with the calculated results. A reduced tunability was observed in all lasers above threshold. This is attributed to the decrease of resistance across the laser active region (AR) as the photon density increases. A resumed tunability high above threshold occurs in all lasers with anticrossed injector ground and upper laser states. Lasers based on the anticrossed diagonal transition are tunable above threshold, with a tuning range of about 30 ${hbox {cm}}^{-1}$ ($sim$ 3% of the laser emission wavenumber), i.e., a tuning rate of 750 ${hbox {cm}}^{-1} hbox{V}^{-1}cdot hbox{period}^{-1}$ of the AR and the injector.      

GaAs/AlGaAs量子级联激光器

利用分子束外延方法生长了激射波长约为9μm的GaAs/Al0.45Ga0.55As量子级联激光器.条宽35μm,腔长2mm的器件准连续激射温度最高达120K,81K下未经收集效率修正的峰值功率超过70mW.     

GaAs/AlGaAs量子级联激光器

利用分子束外延方法生长了激射波长约为9μm的GaAs/Al0.45Ga0.55As量子级联激光器.条宽35μm，腔长2mm的器件准连续激射温度最高达120K，81K下未经收集效率修正的峰值功率超过70mW．     

Hot Electrons in THz Quantum Cascade Lasers

We compare the electrical power dependence of the lattice temperature and the electronic temperature of GaAs/Al_xGa_1-xAs THz quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) with different active region schemes, as extracted by the analysis of microprobe band-to-band photoluminescence experiments. Thermalized non-equilibrium distributions are found in all classes of QCLs. While in the case of bound-to-continuum structures all subbands share the same temperature, the upper laser level of active regions based on the resonant-phonon scheme heats up by ΔT ~ 100 K with respect to lower energy levels. The comparison among samples with different Al mole fractions show that the use of smaller x values leads to larger electronic temperatures.     

中红外量子级联激光器的发射光谱测量

基于FTIR光谱仪建立了中红外半导体激光器发射光谱测量系统,并引入双调制技术改善了系统的性能。用此系统对中红外波段量子级联激光器的激射特性进行了测量,对有关测量结果进行了分析,并对系统应用中的有关问题进行了讨论。     

量子级联激光器的热管理研究进展

作为目前最重要的中远红外光源,量子级联激光器(QCL)因独特的性能和频率可拓展至太赫兹(THz)的特点,成为研究的热点.对于QCL,影响其输出功率和工作温度的因素较多,其中高效散热是重要的因素.首先对中红外和太赫兹两种QCL的热管理研究进行了归纳和总结;讨论和分析了两者之间的相似和不同点,主要讨论两种激光器固体侧散热的...     

太赫兹QCL的电子结构计算和设计

通过电子结构和波函数的设计实现电子选择性注入及粒子数反转是制备太赫兹量子级联激光器(QCL)的基础。本文介绍了求解外场下超晶格QCL电子结构的分区级数解法及非正交基对角化方法,并将计算结果与国际上啁啾超晶格及共振声子模式QCL的相关实验结果进行了对比,二者的精确吻合证明了计算方法的准确性。在此基础上给出了一种共振声子模式QCL超晶格的有源区设计方案,并讨论了外场偏离设计值对QCL特性的影响。     

Numerical Simulation of ZnO-Based Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers

In this work, a particle-based Monte Carlo model is used to quantify the potential of terahertz sources based on the ZnO-based material system relative to existing devices based on GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells. Specifically, two otherwise identical quantum cascade structures based on ZnO/MgZnO and GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells are designed, and their non-equilibrium carrier distributions are then computed as a function of temperature. The simulation results show that, because of their larger optical phonon energy, ZnO/MgZnO quantum cascade laser structures exhibit weaker temperature dependence of the population inversion than in the case of similar structures made of GaAs/AlGaAs. In particular, as the temperature is increased from 10 K to 300 K, population inversion is found to decrease by a factor of 4.48 and 1.50 for the AlGaAs and MgZnO structure, respectively. Based on these results, the MgZnO devices are then predicted to be, in principle, capable of laser action without cryogenic cooling.     

Optical Mode Control of Surface-Plasmon Quantum Cascade Lasers

Surface-plasmon waveguides based on metallic strips can provide a two-dimensional optical confinement. This concept has been successfully applied to midinfrared quantum cascade lasers, processed as ridge waveguides, to demonstrate that the lateral extension of the optical mode can be influenced solely by the width of the device top contact. In this configuration, the waveguide mode has a reduced interaction with the top metal and the ridge sidewalls. This results in lower propagation losses and higher performances. For devices operating at a wavelength of lambdaap7.5 mum, the room-temperature threshold current density was reduced from 6.3 to 4.4 kA/cm² with respect to larger devices with full top metallization     

短腔长单模量子级联激光器

报道了激射波长为5.4和7.84μm的应变补偿In1-xGaxAs/In1-yAlyAs量子级联激光器的单模激射.以高质量的应变补偿量子级联激光器材料为支撑,通过减小FP腔长,开辟实现单模器件的新途径.首次实现阈值电流仅为50mA、腔长为145μm的激射波长在λ≈5.4μm的单模激射和阈值电流仅为80mA、腔长为170μm的激射波长在λ≈7.84μm的单模激射.这是目前InGaAs/InAlAs材料体系最短腔长的边发射量子级联激光器.     

Single Mode Operation of Short-Cavity Quantum Cascade Lasers

报道了激射波长为5.4和7.84μm的应变补偿In1-xGaxAs/In1-yAlyAs量子级联激光器的单模激射.以高质量的应变补偿量子级联激光器材料为支撑,通过减小FP腔长,开辟实现单模器件的新途径.首次实现阈值电流仅为50mA、腔长为145μm的激射波长在λ≈5.4μm的单模激射和阈值电流仅为80mA、腔长为170μm的激射波长在λ≈7.84μm的单模激射.这是目前InGaAs/InAlAs材料体系最短腔长的边发射量子级联激光器.     

太赫兹量子级联激光器光注入特性

基于三能级速率方程,研究了独立运行、主从注入和相互注入太赫兹量子级联激光器(THz-QCLs)的相对强度噪声和调制特性。在自由运行情况下,THz-QCL的自发辐射噪声在低频时表现出白噪声特性。与传统的半导体激光器不同,在低频区没有对应于弛豫振荡的共振峰。主从注入可以有效降低THz-QCLs噪声20 dB,提高THz-QCLs低噪声工作的效率。对于互注入THz-QCLs,即使在锁相区,噪声也明显高于自由运行情况。通过应用注入锁定方案,与直接调制方案相比,可以大大增加调制带宽。     

High Resolution Terahertz Spectroscopy with Quantum Cascade Lasers

High resolution terahertz (THz) spectroscopy is a powerful analytical tool for laboratory purposes as well as for remote sensing in astronomy, planetary research, and Earth observation. THz quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) are promising sources for implementation into THz spectrometers, in particular at frequencies above 3 THz, which is the least explored portion of the THz region. One application of QCLs in THz spectroscopy is in absorption spectrometers, where they can replace less powerful and somewhat cumbersome sources based on frequency mixing with gas lasers. Another one is using a QCL as local oscillator in a heterodyne spectrometer for remote sensing. This article will review the state-of-the art in high resolution THz spectroscopy with QCLs.     

Low-Loss Surface-Mode Waveguides for Terahertz Si–SiGe Quantum Cascade Lasers

A new design of low-loss terahertz waveguide for Si-SiGe quantum-cascade lasers (QCLs) is presented. Periodic surface gratings are used to define waveguides without the requirement of cleaved or etched end facets. As Si cleaves along the (111) planes and not in the vertical direction for standard Si (100) substrates, this significantly aids the fabrication of waveguides. Losses down to 2 cm^-1 with modal overlap of 0.4 can be achieved for shallow gratings with etched depths of only 0.56 mum for an active material layer thickness of 8 mum. Such low loss and high modal overlap is key to any Si-SiGe QCL being realized     

GaAs/AlGaAs量子级联激光器自脉动动力学

利用步进扫描时间分辨傅里叶变换红外光谱,研究了波长9.76μm GaAs/AlGaAs量子级联激光器的准连续波激射谱.在驱动电流周期内,时间上堆叠的发射谱能够观察到明显的光强自脉动现象.有源区中的自加热积累大大影响了电子的驰豫和输运性质.热引起的在注入区较高子能级中占据的载流子由于这些子能级与下一注入区的连续态形成共振条件而泄露,而耦合阱有源区中第四子能级的存在加快了这个过程.周期性破坏和恢复的共振条件所引起的载流子泄露在很大程度上导致了时域堆叠光谱的自脉动.     

Self-Pulsation Dynamics in GaAs/AIGaAs Quantum Cascade Lasers

Quasi-continuous wave lasing spectra of GaAs/A1GaAs quantum cascade lasers emitting at 9.76μm arecharacterized by step.scan time.resolved Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.Pronounced self·pulsation instacked emission spectra is observed in the driving current duration.Self·heating accumulation in the active regionaffects the electron relaxation and transport greatly.Thermally-induced carrier occupation of the higher sublevelsin an injector can leak out through a resonant condition with the continuum states above the next injector,whichwill be facilitated by the fourth sublevel of the coupled quantum wells active region.The leaking process arisingfrom the periodic breaking and recovering of resonant tunneling accounts for the physical mechanism of the selfpulsedeffect in stacked emission spectra.     

GaAs/AlGaAs量子级联激光器自脉动动力学

利用步进扫描时间分辨傅里叶变换红外光谱,研究了波长9.76μm GaAs/AlGaAs量子级联激光器的准连续波激射谱.在驱动电流周期内,时间上堆叠的发射谱能够观察到明显的光强自脉动现象.有源区中的自加热积累大大影响了电子的驰豫和输运性质.热引起的在注入区较高子能级中占据的载流子由于这些子能级与下一注入区的连续态形成共振条件而泄露,而耦合阱有源区中第四子能级的存在加快了这个过程.周期性破坏和恢复的共振条件所引起的载流子泄露在很大程度上导致了时域堆叠光谱的自脉动.