Three-dimensional failure analysis of high power semiconductor laser diodes operated in vacuum

Abstract

The damaged region of a semiconductor laser diode that failed in a vacuum environment was analyzed using focused ion beam (FIB) serial sectioning, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM), electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS), energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and nanodiffraction. The FIB nanotomography models and the TEM cross sections show a damage structure extending deep into the core and originating at the diode/antireflective (AR) coating interface. Nanocrystalline gold was detected at this interface using both TEM diffraction and EDS, and the localization of gold along the core at the diode/AR interface was corroborated using 3D ToF-SIMS. A thinning of the AR coating above the failure site was observed by TEM with a corresponding increase in carbon content on the AR surface detected with EELS. It is suggested that failure proceeded by pyrolysis of adsorbed hydrocarbons on the AR coating, which, in the presence of a high optical flux, contributed to carbothermal reduction of the AR coating. As the optical flux increased, thermal gradients facilitate metal migration, leading to larger gold clusters. These clusters are sites for deep level traps and may promote catalytic reactions.

Analysis of bulk and facet failures in AlGaAs-based high-power diode lasers

“…These defect networks are not topic of this report. However the appearance of those, which are created in standard tests [17,[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30] and in single-pulse step tests [4,9], are absolutely similar. Therefore we consider it very likely that COD in broad-area lasers takes place in the same way during single-pulse step tests and cw operation.…”

“…The defect serves as the starting point for the creation of a defect network within the plane of the waveguide. This topic has been extensively studied in the literature [17,[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30] and modeled [4,9,28], and will not be further considered here. In case of single-pulse tests with only one high pulse resulting in a high overload at the facet, the damaged front facet area correlates with the power [18,31].…”

On the alignment of a cylindrical block copolymer: a time-resolved and 3-dimensional SFM study

“…26 Nondamaging techniques are X-ray microscopy, [27][28][29][30][31] transmission electron microscopy (TEM), [32][33][34][35] atom probe field ion microscopy (APFIM), 36 and focused-ion-beam (FIB) tomography. [37][38][39][40] A recently published non-damaging depth-resolved imaging method is based on scanning force microscopy (SFM) and tip indentation mapping. 41 Destructive methods are based on measuring ultra-thin layers of the sample material e.g.…”

Imaging the effect of dielectric breakdown in a multilayered polymer film

“…To explore these breakdown processes in polymer films, an analytical technique that has proven to be useful for analyzing damaged regions of failed semiconductor devices9 was adapted to study the effects of a dielectric breakdown in polymer films. The technique, a combination of focused ion beam (FIB) milling and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), provides images of the spatial variation of the changes resulting from the breakdown.…”