Very low threshold operation of quantum cascade lasers

doi:10.1088/1674-1056/24/2/024212

Abstract A strain-compensated InP-based quantum cascade laser (QCL) structure emitting at 4.6 μm is demonstrated, based on a two-phonon resonant design and grown by solid-source molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). By optimizing the growth parameters, a very high quality heterostructure with the lowest threshold current densities ever reported for QCLs was fabricated. Threshold current densities as low as 0.47 kA/cm² in pulsed operation and 0.56 kA/cm² in continuous-wave (cw) operation at 293 K were achieved for this state-of-the-art QCL. A minimum power consumption of 3.65 W was measured for the QCL, uncooled, with a high-reflectivity (HR) coating on its rear facet.

Keywords: semiconductor laser quantum cascade lasers threshold current density

Received: 19 May 2014
Revised: 22 August 2014
Accepted manuscript online:

PACS:	42.55.Px	(Semiconductor lasers; laser diodes)
	85.35.Be	(Quantum well devices (quantum dots, quantum wires, etc.))

Fund: Project supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (Grant Nos. 2013CB632801 and 2013CB632803), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 61306058, 61274094, and 61435014), and the Beijing Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. 4144086).

Corresponding Authors: Zhang Jin-Chuan, Liu Feng-Qi
E-mail: zhangjinchuan@semi.ac.cn;fqliu@semi.ac.cn

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Yan Fang-Liang (闫方亮), Zhang Jin-Chuan (张锦川), Yao Dan-Yang (姚丹阳), Liu Feng-Qi (刘峰奇), Wang Li-Jun (王利军), Liu Jun-Qi (刘峻岐), Wang Zhan-Guo (王占国) Very low threshold operation of quantum cascade lasers 2015 Chin. Phys. B 24 024212

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Very low threshold operation of quantum cascade lasers

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