Optical parametric generation covering the sodium D/sub 1/, D/sub 2/ lines from a 532-nm pumped periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystal with ionic-nonlinearity enhanced parametric gain

We report optical parametric generation from a 532-nm-pumped periodically poled lithium niobate with a wavelength spectrum covering the sodium D/sub 1/, D/sub 2/ wavelengths 589.6 and 589.0 nm. Despite the 8 cm/sup -1/ attenuation at the 5.45 /spl mu/m idler wavelength, the PPLN generates a 9 /spl mu/J/pulse energy near the 589-nm sodium wavelength when pumped by a 130 /spl mu/J/pulse frequency-doubled Nd:YAG Q-switched laser. The observed effective nonlinear coefficient is about 40% higher than its value at the visible and near infrared wavelengths. We believe that this is the first observation of ionic susceptibility enhanced parametric gain in the mid-infrared absorption region of lithium niobate.     

Laser operation of epitaxially grown Yb:KLu(WO/sub 4/)/sub 2/--KLu(WO/sub 4/)/sub 2/ composites with monoclinic Crystalline structure

Epitaxial monoclinic double tungstate composites based on the strongly anisotropic KLu(WO/sub 4/)/sub 2/ (KLuW) were grown with high crystalline quality and laser operation of ytterbium was demonstrated for the first time. Highly efficient CW laser emission of an Yb:KLuW-KLuW crystal was achieved near 1030 nm. The 100-/spl mu/m-thick Yb:KLuW layer was pumped at wavelengths near 980 nm by a tapered diode laser as well as by a Ti:sapphire laser. More than 500 mW of CW output power and slope efficiencies up to 66% were obtained at room temperature without cooling.     

Efficient tunable laser operation of Tm:KGd(WO/sub 4/)/sub 2/ in the continuous-wave regime at room temperature

Tm:KGd(WO/sub 4/)/sub 2/ is studied as a three-level laser on the /sup 3/F/sub 4/ /spl rarr/ /sup 3/H/sub 6/ transition and a tunable source in the 2-/spl mu/m spectral range, operating at room temperature. An overall tunability extending from 1790 to 2042 nm is achieved with maximum output powers of 400 mW for an absorbed pump power of 1 W. Various doping levels, pump wavelengths and polarization configurations are compared and the advantages of the monoclinic double tungstates over other Tm-hosts are outlined.     

Influence of scattering and two-photon absorption on the optical loss in GaAs-Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ nonlinear waveguides measured using femtosecond pulses

The influence of scattering and two-photon absorption on the optical loss in GaAs-Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ semiconductor nonlinear waveguides has been studied using femtosecond pulses. By deploying a scattering technique, loss coefficients were evaluated over an extended wavelength range of 1.3-2.1 /spl mu/m in the near-infrared. A systematic study involving intensity and wavelength dependence of the loss revealed the presence of two-photon absorption for wavelengths below 1.6 /spl mu/m. A simple nonlinear transmission study enabled the separation of the two-photon absorption coefficient from scattering and linear absorption. The calculated two-photon absorption coefficients were /spl sim/9-20 cm/GW.     

Spectroscopic and stimulated emission characteristics of Nd/sup 3+/ in transparent Y/sub 2/O/sub 3/ ceramics

Nd:Y/sub 2/O/sub 3/ ceramic materials have been synthesized using the vacuum sintering technique with the raw materials prepared by the nanocrystalline methods. The TEM measurements reveal the excellent optical quality of the ceramic with low pore volume and narrow grain boundary. The radiative spectral properties of Nd:Y/sub 2/O/sub 3/ ceramic have been evaluated by fitting the Judd-Ofelt model with the absorption and emission data. Individual Stark levels for /sup 2s+1/L/sub J/ manifolds are obtained from the absorption and fluorescence spectra and are analyzed to identify the stimulated emission channels possible in the Nd:Y/sub 2/O/sub 3/ ceramic. Laser performance studies reveal two stimulated emission channels at 1074.6- and 1078.6-nm wavelengths with stimulated emission cross sections of 7.63/spl times/10/sup -20/ and 6.35/spl times/10/sup -20/ cm/sup 2/. With 1.5 at % Nd:Y/sub 2/O/sub 3/ ceramic acting as a laser medium, we obtained a slope efficiency of 32% with 160-mW output power and pump threshold of 200 mW at 1078.6 nm.     

Characterization of asymmetric graded-index planar optical waveguides from the knowledge of TE/sub 0/-TE/sub 1/ mode cutoff wavelengths

The authors have proposed (1991) a simple method for predicting the index profile parameter (the profile exponent q in case of a power law profile or the aspect ratio S in case of trapezoidal index profile) of a graded-index optical fiber which is single moded in the 1.3-1.55 mu m wavelength range from a measurement of the LP/sub 11/ and LP/sub 02/ cutoff wavelengths. They extend the method with appropriate modification to determine the asymmetry parameter sigma , the maximum refractive index n/sub f/ and the characteristic thickness d of the guiding layer of a few-moded graded-index asymmetric planar optical waveguide from a measurement of the TE/sub 0/ and TE/sub 1/ cutoff wavelengths. The method is simple and can give firsthand information about these parameters with reasonably good accuracy.<>     

Ge/SiO/sub 2/ laminated optical polarizer for the wavelength region 0.6-1 mu m

A report is presented on laminated polarizers (LAMIPOLs) suitable for short wavelengths of light ( lambda <1 mu m). This new device consists of periodic alternative layers of ultrathin Ge (e.g., <8 nm thick) and SiO/sub 2/ (e.g., <1 mu m thick). The quality factor of the new laminated polarizer, defined by R= alpha /sub TE// alpha /sub TM/, is in excess of 200 at lambda =0.8 mu m and is a decreasing function of the wavelength lambda . This is in remarkable contrast to the fact that the quality factor for an Al/SiO/sub 2/ LAMIPOL is an increasing function of lambda .<>     

InGaAs-InP mesa DHBTs with simultaneously high f/sub /spl tau// and f/sub max/ and low C/sub cb//I/sub c/ ratio

We report an InP-InGaAs-InP double heterojunction bipolar transistor (DHBT), fabricated using a conventional triple mesa structure, exhibiting a 370-GHz f/sub /spl tau// and 459-GHz f/sub max/, which is to our knowledge the highest f/sub /spl tau// reported for a mesa InP DHBT-as well as the highest simultaneous f/sub /spl tau// and f/sub max/ for any mesa HBT. The collector semiconductor was undercut to reduce the base-collector capacitance, producing a C/sub cb//I/sub c/ ratio of 0.28 ps/V at V/sub cb/=0.5 V. The V/sub BR,CEO/ is 5.6 V and the devices fail thermally only at >18 mW//spl mu/m/sup 2/, allowing dc bias from J/sub e/=4.8 mA//spl mu/m/sup 2/ at V/sub ce/=3.9 V to J/sub e/=12.5 mA//spl mu/m/sup 2/ at V/sub ce/=1.5 V. The device employs a 30 nm carbon-doped InGaAs base with graded base doping, and an InGaAs-InAlAs superlattice grade in the base-collector junction that contributes to a total depleted collector thickness of 150 nm.     

Laterally scaled Si-Si/sub 0.7/Ge/sub 0.3/ n-MODFETs with f/sub max/>200 GHz and low operating bias

We report on the dc and RF characterization of laterally scaled, Si-SiGe n-MODFETs. Devices with gate length, L/sub g/, of 80 nm had f/sub T/=79 GHz and f/sub max/=212 GHz, while devices with L/sub g/=70 nm had f/sub T/ as high as 92 GHz. The MODFETs displayed enhanced f/sub T/ at reduced drain-to-source voltage, V/sub ds/, compared to Si MOSFETs with similar f/sub T/ at high V/sub ds/.     

(Al/sub 0.5/Ga/sub 0.5/)/sub 0.65/In/sub 0.35/P/Ga/sub 0.65/In/sub 0.35/P double-heterostructure orange light-emitting diodes

Visible light-emitting diodes (LEDs) emitting at 615 nm and employing the AlGaInP/GaInP double heterostructure (DH) grown on a lattice-matched GaAs/sub 0.7/P/sub 0.3/ substrate have been fabricated for the first. The external quantum efficiency of 0.156% for the orange LEDs can be achieved by introducing the GaP material as the current spreader and window layer for the DH LEDs.<>     

Measurement of the coherence length of sputtered Nb/sub 0.62/Ti/sub 0.38/N thin films

Superconducting and normal state properties of the useful film material NbxTi/sub 1-x/N have been characterized. In particular, the coherence length of reactively sputtered Nb/sub 0.62/Ti/sub 0.38/N thin films is determined to be 2.4/spl plusmn/0.3 nm. The results are inferred from fitting the de Gennes-Werthamer theory to experimental measurements of the proximity-induced depression of the transition temperature in Nb-Nb/sub 0.62/Ti/sub 0.38/N-Nb structures. The coherence length, as defined by this theory, can be used to infer the zero-temperature Ginzburg-Landau coherence length, /spl xi//sub GL/ (0), of 3.8 nm for the Nb/sub 0.62/Ti/sub 0.38/N synthesized in this study. The shorter coherence length and lower resistivity of these films, when compared to NbN, indicates that they are an appealing choice for electrodes in rapid single flux quantum circuits.     

547-GHz f/sub t/ In/sub 0.7/Ga/sub 0.3/As-In/sub 0.52/Al/sub 0.48/As HEMTs with reduced source and drain resistance

We fabricated 30-nm gate pseudomorphic channel In/sub 0.7/Ga/sub 0.3/As-In/sub 0.52/Al/sub 0.48/As high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) with reduced source and drain parasitic resistances. A multilayer cap structure consisting of Si highly doped n/sup +/-InGaAs and n/sup +/-InP layers was used to reduce these resistances while enabling reproducible 30-nm gate process. The HEMTs also had a laterally scaled gate-recess that effectively enhanced electron velocity, and an adequately long gate-channel distance of 12nm to suppress gate leakage current. The transconductance (g/sub m/) reached 1.5 S/mm, and the off-state breakdown voltage (BV/sub gd/) defined at a gate current of -1 mA/mm was -3.0 V. An extremely high current gain cutoff frequency (f/sub t/) of 547 GHz and a simultaneous maximum oscillation frequency (f/sub max/) of 400 GHz were achieved: the best performance yet reported for any transistor.     

DRAM plate electrode bias optimization for reducing leakage current in UV-O/sub 3/ and O/sub 2/ annealed CVD deposited Ta/sub 2/O/sub 5/ dielectric films

A new plate biasing scheme is described which allowed the use of 65% higher supply voltage without increasing the leakage current for the UV-O/sub 3/ and O/sub 2/ annealed chemical-vapor-deposited tantalum pentaoxide dielectric film capacitors in stacked DRAM cells. Dielectric leakage was reduced by biasing the capacitor plate electrode to a voltage lower than the conventionally used value of V/sub cc//2. Ta/sub 2/O/sub 5/ films with 3.9 nm effective gate oxide, 8.5 fF//spl mu/m/sup 2/ capacitance and <0.3 /spl mu/A/cm/sup 2/ leakage at 100/spl deg/C and 3.3 V supply are demonstrated.<>     

Fully silicided NiSi gate on La/sub 2/O/sub 3/ MOSFETs

We have fabricated the fully silicided NiSi on La/sub 2/O/sub 3/ for n- and p-MOSFETs. For 900/spl deg/C fully silicided CoSi/sub 2/ on La/sub 2/O/sub 3/ gate dielectric with 1.5 nm EOT, the gate dielectric has large leakage current by possible excess Co diffusion at high silicidation temperature. In sharp contrast, very low gate leakage current density of 2/spl times/10/sup -4/ A/cm/sup 2/ at 1 V is measured for 400/spl deg/C formed fully silicided NiSi and comparable with Al gate. The extracted work function of NiSi was 4.42 eV, and the corresponding threshold voltages are 0.12 and -0.70 V for respective n- and p-MOSFETs. Electron and hole mobilities of 156 and 44 cm/sup 2//V-s are obtained for respective n- and p-MOSFETs, which are comparable with the HfO/sub 2/ MOSFETs without using H/sub 2/ annealing.     

Blue energy upconversion emission in thulium-doped-SiO/sub 2/-P/sub 2/O/sub 5/ channel waveguides excited at 1.064 /spl mu/m

Blue energy upconversion emission in Tm/sup 3+/-doped SiO/sub 2/-P/sub 2/O/sub 5/ channel waveguides off-resonance pumped by infrared radiation is reported. The waveguide samples were excited by a single continuous-wave laser source at 1.064 /spl mu/m. Two distinct blue emission signals around 450 and 480 nm, in addition to red at 660 nm and near-infrared at 800-nm less intense emissions were observed. The upconversion excitation mechanism was assigned to stepwise multiphoton absorption processes followed by nonradiative multiphonon-assisted relaxation processes. Infrared-to-blue conversion efficiencies with respect to the absorbed pump power of /spl sim/6.0/spl times/10/sup -7/ for this off-resonance pumping scheme was measured. The dependence of the infrared-to-blue upconversion mechanism upon the excitation power and thulium content is also examined.     

Ultrawide-band La-codoped Bi/sub 2/O/sub 3/-based EDFA for L-band DWDM systems

The demonstration of a 253-cm-long lanthanum-codoped Bi/sub 2/O/sub 3/-based erbium-doped fiber which provides gain of greater than 20 dB and noise figure less than 6.7 dB to 142 dense wavelength-division-multiplexing channels simultaneously over an extended wavelength range of 58 nm from 1554 to 1612 nm is reported. The 3-dB (gain of 17-20 dB) bandwidth of the erbium-doped fiber amplifier is 54 nm when it is pumped with 350 mW of 1480-nm light. The power conversion efficiency of the fiber is about 54%.     

Thickness dependence of Weibull slopes of HfO/sub 2/ gate dielectrics

Breakdown voltage distribution, Weibull slopes, and area scaling factors have been investigated for HfO/sub 2/ gate dielectrics in order to gain a better understanding of the breakdown mechanism. Weibull slope of thick HfO/sub 2/ (e.g., /spl beta//spl ap/4 for EOT=2.5 nm) is smaller than that of SiO/sub 2/ with similar physical thickness, whereas /spl beta/ of the thinner HfO/sub 2/ (e.g., /spl beta//spl ap/2 for EOT=1.4 nm) is similar to that of SiO/sub 2/. The implication of the thickness dependence of /spl beta/ is discussed.     

Ultralow leakage In/sub 0.53/Ga/sub 0.47/As p-i-n photodetector grown on linearly graded metamorphic In/sub x/Ga/sub 1-x/P buffered GaAs substrate

A novel top-illuminated In/sub 0.53/Ga/sub 0.47/As p-i-n photodiodes (MM-PINPD) grown on GaAs substrate by using linearly graded metamorphic In/sub x/Ga/sub 1-x/P (x graded from 0.49 to 1) buffer layer is reported. The dark current, optical responsivities, noise equivalent power, and operational bandwidth of the MM-PINPD with aperture diameter of 60 /spl mu/m are 13 pA, 0.6 A/W, 3.4/spl times/10/sup -15/ W/Hz/sup 1/2/, and 7.5 GHz, respectively, at 1550 nm. The performances of the MM-PINPD on GaAs are demonstrated to be comparable to those of a similar device made on InGaAs-InP substrate.     

Wavelength shift of selectively oxidized Al/sub x/O/sub y/-AlGaAs-GaAs distributed Bragg reflectors

The effect of multiple oxidations on Al/sub x/O/sub y/-GaAs DBRs and Al/sub x/O/sub y/-AlGaAs-GaAs DBRs is investigated. With a compositionally graded AlGaAs layer, the oxide DBR remains stable under thermal stress, whereas without it, the DBR fractures. The stopband of the oxide DBR with the AlGaAs layer shifts when sequenced through multiple oxidation processes, which is attributed to the vertical oxidation of the AlGaAs. The resonance wavelength of a Fabry-Perot cavity containing an oxide DBR shifts 6 nm after 30 min of additional oxidation at 425/spl deg/C.     

Invasiveness of LiTaO/sub 3/ and GaAs probes in external E-O sampling

Disturbances of signals on a coplanar waveguide (CPW) induced by the presence of LiTaO/sub 3/ and GaAs electrooptic probes in external electrooptic (EO) sampling have been simulated and compared quantitatively. The finite-difference-time-domain method is used to simulate the full wave field around a coplanar waveguide on a GaAs substrate in an external EO sampling configuration. The results indicate that the induced signal disturbance, or invasiveness, of a LiTaO/sub 3/ probe is almost ten times that of a GaAs probe in terms of the magnitude of S/sub 11/, but that LiTaO/sub 3/ yields about two times the EO response for a given S/sub 11/ and optical probing wavelength. The transparency of LiTaO/sub 3/ to shorter wavelengths, however, allows an even higher sensitivity for this material relative to GaAs. The results suggest that these probes do not exhibit significant invasiveness (magnitude of S/sub 11/ smaller than -40 dB), if they are removed from contact by the distance of CPWs center conductor width.<>