Novel wavelength-resonant optoelectronic structure and its application to surface-emitting semiconductor lasers

Abstract

An optimised design for optoelectronic devices which depends on the interaction between an electromagnetic standing wave and the carrier population is described. The structure consists of quantum well layers spaced at one half the wavelength of a selected optical transition in quantum wells. This spatial periodicity allows the amplifying or absorbing medium (quantum wells) to coincide with the peaks of the standing wave optical field in the Fabry-Pérot cavity. In such a periodic medium, the gain or absorption for the selected wavelength is enhanced by a factor of two compared to a uniform medium. This concept was applied to fabricate a surface-emitting semiconductor laser in the GaAs/AlGaAs system. Lasing was achieved with the shortest gain medium length (320 nm) ever reported.