Grating-coupled surface-emitting laser with a hyperbolic unstableresonator producing a stable focused output beam

A grating-coupled surface-emitting semiconductor laser has been integrated with a focusing diffractive beamforming element. A hyperbolic unstable resonator is used to introduce mode discrimination and suppress filamentation in a broad geometry, resulting in a 200-μm-wide coherent output. The light is focused 500 μm above the laser surface to a spot size of 5×7 μm. A remarkable beam stability is observed with very small spot size variation and beam-steering up to three times the threshold current under continuous operation     

光学胶膜液体可变焦微透镜阵列

微透镜阵列在光束匀化、波前测量、集成成像等领域有广泛应用。设计了一种基于光学胶膜(Optically Clear Adhesive, OCA)的液体可变焦微透镜阵列。采用矩形排列的硅微孔阵列控制单个透镜的孔径和排布,并以OCA光学胶膜和去离子水作为微透镜阵列的塑形材料。通过调整微流体腔内液体注入的体积实现对透镜焦距从1.46~10.44 mm的调整。依据聚焦与成像实验证实了微透镜阵列具有良好的均匀性。最后,将该微透镜阵列应用于激光光束匀化整形,通过一对微透镜阵列实现了光束匀化整形。进一步通过固定一对微透镜阵列的间距实现匀化光斑尺寸在7.2~8.4 mm内可调,为匀化光斑尺寸可调提供了新思路。     

LD optical switch with polarization insensitivity over a widewavelength range

A double-heterostructure (DH) laser with TM mode lasing has been achieved with a narrow active-layer width, and a laser-diode optical switch (LDSW) module with less than a 0.35-dB gain difference between the TE and TM modes over a wide wavelength range has been constructed by introducing a square bulk active layer formed by dry etching and regrowth. The polarization-insensitive width of a 0.3-μm-thick DH laser is clarified to be between 0.30 and 0.35 μm, since the 0.30- and 0.35-μm-wide DH lasers lase in the TM mode and TE mode, respectively. The polarization-insensitive width of the fabricated 0.3-μm-thick LDSW is estimated to be about 0.32 μm for the fabricated LDSW with a trapezoidal active layer by measuring the single-pass gain and the gain difference between the TE and TM modes. This must be to within 0.01 μm. A 0.35-μm-wide, 300-μm-long LDSW module has lossless gain in the wavelength range of 1.31 to 1.36 μm at 20 mA. The gain difference between the TE and TM modes is as low as 0.35 dB, The rise and fall times are 1.0 and 0.55 ns, respectively. The bulk active-layer LDSW module is promising for use as a polarization-insensitive optical-gate switch in optical information systems     

Optical field analysis of a circular grating-coupledsurface-emitting laser with integrated focusing outcoupler

The lasing characteristics of a circular grating-coupled surface-emitting laser (GCSEL) with an integrated focusing outcoupler are investigated. Measured near and far fields suggest lasing in two near orthogonal and mutually incoherent linear elements, rather than ideal circular modes of the planar circular resonator, resulting in a degradation of the focused spot quality. Modeling of the evolution of the emitted optical field by Fresnel diffraction calculations, using a new orthogonal projection scheme to account for polarization, supports this assumption. Using the theory, we have also estimated the degradation of the focused spot quality induced by random errors in the period of the focusing outcoupler caused by the limited resolution of the electron-beam lithography system used to fabricate the device. We found this effect to be small compared to the effect of the nonideal mode characteristics     

Scalability study of laser-induced vertical make-link structure

The scalability of a direct metal-to-metal connection between two different levels of metallizations has been extrapolated to be compatible with modern semiconductor fabrication technology. A simple equation to evaluate the scalability was formulated based on focused ion beam (FIR) cross-sectional images of larger link structures with various sizes. With a 0.6-μm-thick metal 1 line and a 0.5-μm-thick interlevel dielectric (ILD), a width of less than 0.5 μm is evaluated to be possible for the metal 1 line. Two limitations exist in the process of scaled-down link structures, which are the ratio of the thickness of ILD to the thickness of the metal 1 line, t_ILD/t _m, and the quality of laser beam parameters including the spot size and positioning error. However, modern processing technologies and advanced laser processing systems are considered to allow the scalability of a vertical make-link structure. Two layouts of two-level interconnects were designed with increased interconnect densities with a 1-μm pitch of a 0.5-μm-wide metal 1 line. These results demonstrate the application of commercially viable vertical linking technology to very large-scale integration (VLSI) applications     

Simple compact diode-laser/microlens packaging

A technique has been demonstrated in which the precisely polished substrate of a microlens is directly attached to the front face of a diode laser and heatsink to form a compact stable package. An experimental package using mass-transported GaP spherical microlenses and InGaAs-AlGaAs ridge-waveguide lasers (0.98-μm wavelength) showed a well-collimated beam with a near diffraction-limited 0.7° divergence. The high-index microlens and the favorable lens configuration showed high tolerance for alignment errors in the optical-path-difference and Strehl-ratio calculations     

Surface-emitting unstable-resonator lasers with integrated diffractive beam-forming elements

Grating-coupled surface-emitting semiconductor lasers have been integrated with focusing and spot array generating diffractive beam-forming elements. The lasers have an unstable resonator producing a 160-/spl mu/m-wide single spatial mode. The area of the outcoupler element is 160 /spl mu/m/spl times/240 /spl mu/m. For an outcoupler focusing at 500 /spl mu/m above the surface the spot size is 9 /spl mu/m/spl times/17 /spl mu/m The spot size is primarily limited by aberrations in the wavefront of the guided mode.     

波前像差对超短飞秒激光脉冲聚焦特性的影响

为了研究波前像差对超短飞秒激光脉冲聚焦特性的影响, 基于瑞利-索末菲标量衍射理论, 对比研究了在散焦、像散、慧差、三叶形像差以及球差等各类波前像差下, 均匀强度分布和高斯强度分布的超短飞秒激光脉冲的聚焦特性。结果表明, 波前像差对均匀强度分布的飞秒脉冲在焦平面处的光强分布具有明显的不利影响, 从而降低飞秒脉冲的聚焦峰值功率, 而对高斯强度分布的飞秒脉冲影响相对较小, 即在高斯强度分布下, 在焦平面处仍然有可能获得较好的、近衍射极限的聚焦光斑; 在非焦平面处, 即使初始脉冲具有高斯强度分布, 非焦平面处的光强分布受各类波前像差的影响也较为明显; 对于所研究的30fs(1/e2半宽度)超短脉冲, 波前像差对脉冲持续时间的影响几乎可以忽略。此研究结果对超短飞秒激光束的光束质量评估及聚焦特性分析具有实际的指导意义。     

High-intensity fibre-coupled diode laser array

An optical fibre that can couple more than 80% of the power from a 100 ?m-wide 10-stripe diode laser array to a 50 ?m core diameter and 0.3 NA optical fibre is demonstrated. Output powers of 850 mWCW and 2.8 W pulsed (200 ns pulse width at 10 kHz repetition rate) are achieved from the output end of the fibre.     

Microcollimated laser diode with low wavefront aberration

A microcollimated laser diode (MCLD) utilizing a 1-mm short focal length, φ0.5-mm small diameter micro Fresnel lens (MFL) as the collimating lens is discussed. The MCLD is assembled with a 780-nm quantum-well laser diode dice and an MFL in the smallest commercially available laser package. The radiated laser beam from the MCLD has a power of higher than 2 mW at 50 mA driving current, a φ2 mm beam diameter with a nearly Gaussian intensity profile, and a low wavefront aberration of less than λ/14 (RMS value) measured at a 1-m distance     

基于微透镜阵列光束均匀化的傅里叶分析

为了提高高功率固体激光器泵浦光束的均匀性,分析了成像型和衍射型微透镜阵列匀化光束的基本原理,基于菲涅尔衍射和傅里叶变换公式,推导出了微透镜阵列焦平面上光强分布的解析表达式,比较了两种光束微透镜阵列对光束匀化的效果。同时,研究了成像型微透镜阵列子透镜的相对孔径及微透镜阵列间距对光强分布的影响。结果表明,成像型微透镜阵列具有更好地匀化效果,且子透镜孔径是影响光束均匀性最主要的因素。     

Native-oxidized InAlAs blocking layer buried heterostructureInGaAsP-InP MQW laser for high-temperature operation

A novel idea of InAlAs native oxide utilized to replace the p-n-p-n thyristor blocking layer and improve the high-temperature performance of the buried heterostructure first proposed and demonstrated. A temperature (To) of 50 K is achieved from an InAlAs native oxide buried heterostructure (NOBH) InGaAsP-InP multiquantum-well laser with 1.5-μm-wide diode leakage passage path. The threshold current and slope efficiency of NOBH laser changes from 5.6 mA, 0.23 mW/mA to 28 mA, 0.11 mW/mA with the operating temperature changing from 20°C to 100°C. It is comparable to conventional p-n reverse biased junction BH laser with minimized diode leakage current, and is much better than the buried ridge strip with proton implanted laterally confinement laser     

Laser-to-fiber coupling scheme by utilizing a lensed fiberintegrated with a long-period fiber grating

An optical coupling scheme between a laser diode and a single-mode fiber utilizing a lensed fiber integrated with a long-period fiber grating is experimentally demonstrated and qualitatively analyzed. A long working distance of 110 μm and a coupling of 35% are obtained for a laser diode with an ellipticity of 2.5. The longitudinal and transverse tolerances at 1-dB excess loss are 26 and 2.5 μm, respectively     

Microlens fabricated by the planar process

A novel microlens that can be integrated on a laser-diode substrate by the planar process is proposed. It consists of two microcylindrical lenses fabricated by the planar process, and all of their dimensions are less than 100 μm. One lens is a horizontal focusing lens whose curved shape determines focusing. The other is a vertical focusing lens whose gradient refractive index determines focusing. The relationship between fabrication errors and lens characteristics is quantitatively established by comparing lenses with various fabrication errors. Also a laser diode integrated with the horizontal focusing lens is successfully fabricated without damage     

Uniform linear arrays of strained-layer InGaAs-AlGaAs quantum-wellridge-waveguide diode lasers fabricated by ECR-IBAE

Uniform linear arrays of strained-layer multiple-quantum-well InGaAs-AlGaAs ridge-waveguide diode lasers have been fabricated that operate near 980 nm and have low threshold currents I_th and high differential quantum efficiencies η_d. Uniformity was achieved by a combination of uniform ion-beam-assisted etching with an electron cyclotron resonance ion source and uniform organometallic vapor-phase epitaxial (OMVPE) growth. We investigated the effects of device geometry, namely, ridge width, cavity length, and remaining cladding thickness outside the ridge t, on I_th and η_d. For uncoated lasers with 500-μm-long cavities, 2- to 3-μm-wide ridges, and t=165±75 nm fabricated in double-quantum-well OMVPE material, I_th was typically in the range 6-7 mA and η_d was >40% per facet. A 24-element array of 2-μm-wide, 200-μm-long ridge-waveguide lasers with a high reflection coating on the back facet exhibited excellent uniformity, with threshold currents and single-ended differential quantum efficiencies that averaged 3.4 mA and 72%, respectively. Similar arrays with high-reflectivity coatings on both facets exhibited threshold currents as low as 2 mA     

Surface emitting InGaAsP/InP distributed feedback laser diode at 1.53 mu m with monolithic integrated microlens

Monolithic integration of a distributed feedback (DFB) surface-emitting laser diode with a microlens is demonstrated. The transverse and longitudinal cross-sectional views of the laser diode are illustrated. The microlens and a DFB laser structure are located on opposite sides of an n-InP substrate. 11 mA minimum continuous wave (CW) threshold current and 5 mW CW emission perpendicular to the InP substrate are achieved at room temperature using a chemically etched 45 degrees mirror. Single mode emission at 1.53 mu m is obtained. The integrated microlens, etched by ion beam and coated with aluminum oxide, provides optical beam collimation and an ultralow laser mode reflectivity of <10/sup -4/.<>     

Design optimization of a hyperbolic unstable-resonatorsemiconductor laser

A semiconductor laser with a hyperbolic unstable resonator has been investigated through numerical simulations. The laser has an integrated focusing grating outcoupler. The complete device, including the resonator, outcoupler, and free-space propagation, has been modeled. Propagation in the resonator and the outcoupler grating has been modeled using a beam-propagation method that accounts for anti-guiding and thermal effects. The work has been aimed at optimizing the resonator layout for suppressed filamentation and wavefront distortion, i.e., to design a laser that produces an injection-independent focused spot. We show that small changes in the resonator layout can have a large effect on the laser performance and characteristics of the focused spot. We conclude that thermal effects, rather than anti-guiding effects, limit the performance of the device     

Extrinsic frequency response of a wide-bandwidth metalsemiconductor metal diode

The active area of an interdigitated GaAs MSM diode with 1-μm finger width and spacing is extended with two novel structures, one an integrated tapered coplanar waveguide and another coplanar stripline transmission line. The diodes were illuminated by 5-ps laser pulses of 30-μm in diameter, and the external overall frequency response of the complete system, found by taking the Fourier transform of the detected temporal signal was 2.4 GHz for the coplanar waveguide and 1.4 GHz for the stripline geometry     

High temperature, high power InGaAs/GaAs quantum-well lasers withlattice-matched InGaP cladding layers

The authors report the high-temperature and high-power operation of strained-layer InGaAs/GaAs quantum well lasers with lattice-matched InGaP cladding layers grown by gas-source molecular beam epitaxy. Self-aligned ridge waveguide lasers of 3-μm width were fabricated. These lasers have low threshold currents (7 mA for 250-μm-long cavity and 12 mA for 500-μm-long cavity), high external quantum efficiencies (0.9 mW/mA), and high peak powers (160 mW for 3-μm-wide lasers and 285 mW for 5-μm-wide laser) at room temperature under continuous wave (CW) conditions. The CW operating temperature of 185°C is the highest ever reported for InGaAs/GaAs/InGaP quantum well lasers, and is comparable to the best result (200°C) reported for InGaAs/GaAs/AlGaAs lasers     

High-Power 1.06-$mu{hbox {m}}$ Near-Diffraction-Limited Planar Tapered Amplifier Injected With Seed Light Through a Fiber Biconical Microlens

We designed a 1.06-mum single-quantum-well (SQW) InGaAs/AlGaAs planar tapered amplifier that was injected with seed light of a fiber Bragg grating stabilized laser diode through a fiber biconical microlens. To increase the amplifier output, the microlens with approximately 3- and 11-mum radii on vertical and horizontal axes, respectively, provides high coupling efficiency between the laser diode and the amplifier. The microlens also controls propagation in the tapered gain area to suppress the filament formation. In addition, the small radii of the microlens reduce near-end reflection at the amplifier input to prevent parasitic laser oscillation of the amplifier. We demonstrated near-diffraction-limited output of 5.5 W with the beam quality factor M² of 1.5 by using a 3-mm-long amplifier having an optical confinement factor of 1.2%.