Monolithic two-dimensional surface-emitting arrays of GaAs/AlGaAs diode lasers

Abstract

Monolithic two-dimensional arrays with light emission normal to the surface have been obtained by fabricating edge-emitting quantum well GaAs/AlGaAs lasers with deflecting mirrors adjacent to both laser facets. The facets and mirrors were formed by ion beam assisted etching. Proton bombardment between adjoining lasers was used to prevent lasing in the transverse direction. At the highest pulsed current used in these experiments, 10.5 A, the power output of a 22-element array was 1.6 W, which corresponds to a power density of 160 W cm−2. At this level, the power output was still linear with current.

Monolithic 45 Degree Deflecting Mirror as a Key Element for Realization of 2D Arrays of Laser Diodes Based on AlInGaN Semiconductors

“…This research idea was previously utilized by J. P. Donnelly et al, for the fabrication of monolithic 2D arrays based on GaAs/AlGaAs laser diodes, whereas vertical laser facets and deflecting mirrors were fabricated by ion beam-assisted etching [ 25 ]. Likewise, N. Hamao et al, reported SEL diodes based on GaAs/AlGaAs with 45° total reflection micro mirrors formed by Reactive Ion Etching (RIE) method within 1° of precision of 45° angle [ 26 ].…”

Two-Dimensional Surface-Emitting Arrays Of GaAs/AlGaAs Diode Lasers

“…For the front surface of the deflector to be parabolic, etching a second-order polynomial curve IS necessary. power output of 16.5 W at 62 A, which corresponds to a power density of 1.5 kW/cm 2 [21,23,37,38].…”

“…Researchers are hopeful that monolithic arrays, which can be fabricated almost entirely with high-volume semiconductor processing techniques, will be more arnenable to mass production. As a possible direct replacement for hybrid arrays, monolithic two-dimensional arrays of GaAs/ AlGaAs diode lasers with light emission normal to the surface have been made by fabricating horiwntal-cavity edge-emitting quantum-well lasers coupled with external mirrors that deflect the radiation from the laser facets by 90°( Figure 22 [a]) [21,23,37,38]. In addition, several preliminary surface-emitting arrays with IBAE is a dry-etching technique in which the chemically reactant species and the energetic ions can be independently controlled.…”

“…In particular, although they still suffer from high series resistance and low power efficiency, vertical-cavity lasers that utilize epitaxially grown high-reflectivity quarter-wave stacks [30] to define the laser cavity have become an exciting area ofresearch. Another approach to fabricating monolithic two-dimensional arrays is to couple edge-emitting diode lasers with external mirrors that deflect the radiation from the laser facets by 90° [21,23,[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39]. At Lincoln Laboratory, Z.L.…”