| WARF: P01034US |  |
| Vertical-cavity Surface-emitting Lasers with Anti-resonant Reflecting Optical Waveguides |
| INVENTORS | • | Luke Mawst, Delai Zhou |
OVERVIEW
The invention relates to the field of semiconductor diode lasers and particularly to vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs). VCSELs are made by constructing the laser optical cavity in the direction perpendicular to the active layer. Light is emitted vertically from the surface of a fabricated
wafer, creating a device with the processing properties of an LED and the optical output properties of a laser diode. VCSEL lasers can be used in a variety of applications, including fiber optic networks, blood and gas monitoring devices, and laser printers. Current research efforts in VCSEL
technology are directed at increasing the single-mode output power. This is highly desirable for all applications requiring free-space propagation, like optical reading and writing. The present invention uses an
anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide (ARROW) to reduce the edge radiation losses for the fundamental mode. This structure is capable of providing single-mode output at higher powers than conventional VCSEL devices.
KEY BENEFITS
- VCSELs have several advantages over conventional edge-emitting semiconductor lasers, including compact size, low-threshold, and high-fiber coupling efficiency
- VCSELs offer a simplified fabrication process and allow wafer-level characterization
- Invention provides a method for making single-mode VCSELs with output powers useful in laser printing, telecommunications, optical recording, and DVDs (digital video disks)
- VCSELs formed using this method will provide single-mode output at higher power than other devices currently available and with larger apertures
- Various material systems commonly used in semiconductor lasers can be used to form the laser of this invention
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Intellectual Property Status
Tech Fields
Information Technology - Telecommunications
Analytical Instrumentation - Lasers
CONTACT INFORMATION
For current licensing status, please contact our team at
licensing@warf.org
or phone 608.262.4924. (Clicking this link will open a contact form in a popup window. If you have problems viewing the form, try disabling your popup blocker software.)
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