Tim D. Germann

Metal-cavity surface-emitting microlaser at room temperature

We propose and realize a substrate-free metal-cavity surface-emitting microlaser with both top and sidewall metal and a bottom distributed Bragg reflector as the cavity structure. The transfer-matrix method is used to design the laser structure based on the round-trip resonance condition inside the cavity. The laser is 2.0 μm in diameter and 2.5 μm in height, and operates at room temperature with continuous-wave mode. Flip-bonding the device to a silicon substrate with a conductive metal provides efficient heat removal. A high characteristic temperature about 425 K is observed from 10 to 27 °C.

High-power semiconductor disk laser based on InAs∕GaAs submonolayer quantum dots

An optically pumped semiconductor disk laser using submonolayer quantum dots (SML QDs) as gain medium is demonstrated. High-power operation is achieved with stacked InAs∕GaAs SML QDs grown by metal-organic vapor-phase epitaxy. Each SML-QD layer is formed from tenfold alternate depositions of nominally 0.5 ML InAs and 2.3 ML GaAs. Resonant periodic gain from a 13-fold nonuniform stack design of SML QDs allows to produce 1.4W cw at 1034nm. The disk laser demonstrates the promising potential of SML-QD structures combining properties of QD and quantum-well gain media for high-power applications.

Temperature-stable operation of a quantum dot semiconductor disk laser

We demonstrate temperature-independent output characteristics of an optically pumped semiconductor disk laser (SDL) based on quantum dots (QDs) grown in the Stranski-Krastanow regime. The gain structure consists of a stack of 7×3 QD layers, each threefold group being located at an optical antinode position. The SDL emits at 1210nm independent of the pump power density. Threshold and differential efficiency do not dependent on heat sink temperature. Continuous-wave operation close to 300mW output power is achieved using the ground-state transition of the InGaAs QDs.

Electro-optical resonance modulation of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers

Optical and electrical investigations of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSEL) with a monolithically integrated electro-optical modulator (EOM) allow for a detailed physical understanding of this complex compound cavity laser system. The EOM VCSEL light output is investigated to identify optimal working points. An electro-optic resonance feature triggered by the quantum confined Stark effect is used to modulate individual VCSEL modes by more than 20 dB with an extremely small EOM voltage change of less than 100 mV. Spectral mode analysis reveals modulation of higher order modes and very low wavelength chirp of < 0.5 nm. Dynamic experiments and simulation predict an intrinsic bandwidth of the EOM VCSEL exceeding 50 GHz.

Electrically driven single photon source based on a site-controlled quantum dot with self-aligned current injection

Electrical operation of single photon emitting devices employing site-controlled quantum dot (QD) growth is demonstrated. An oxide aperture acting as a buried stressor structure is forcing site-controlled QD growth, leading to both QD self-alignment with respect to the current path in vertical injection pin-diodes and narrow, jitter-free emission lines. Emissions from a neutral exciton, a neutral bi-exciton, and a charged exciton are unambiguously identified. Polarization-dependent measurements yield an exciton fine-structure splitting of (84 ± 2) μeV at photon energies of 1.28–1.29 eV. Single-photon emission is proven by Hanbury Brown and Twiss experiments yielding an anti-bunching value of g(2)(0) = 0.05 under direct current injection.

CW substrate-free metal-cavity surface microemitters at 300 K

In this paper substrate-free metal-cavity surface microemitters are demonstrated. The optical cavity is formed by a metal reflector, metal-surrounded sidewall and n-doped distributed-Bragg reflector, which provides optical feedback and carrier injection. We describe a simple design principle with the modal properties modified by geometry and metal-insulator cladding. Both resonant cavity light-emitting diodes (1.85 µm diameter and 0.6 µm height) and lasers (2.0 µm diameter and 2.5 µm height) are successfully fabricated and characterized. These two types of devices operate at room temperature under continuous-wave (CW) operation. Since the devices are substrate-free, they can be bonded to any substrates. From the threshold currents of the lasers, we obtain a high characteristic temperature of 425 K in the range of 10–27 °C. We also discuss a general approach to improve the diffraction from small-aperture devices.

Lateral positioning of InGaAs quantum dots using a buried stressor

We present a “bottom-up” approach for the lateral alignment of semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) based on strain-driven self-organization. A buried stressor formed by partial oxidation of (Al,Ga)As layers is employed in order to create a locally varying strain field at a GaAs(001) growth surface. During subsequent strained layer growth, local self-organization of (In,Ga)As QDs is controlled by the contour shape of the stressor. Large vertical separation of the QD growth plane from the buried stressor interface of 150 nm is achieved enabling high optical quality of QDs. Optical characterization confirms narrow QD emission lines without spectral diffusion. V C 2012 American Institute of Physics .[ http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.3691251] The deterministic alignment of quantum dots (QDs) during an epitaxial growth process is mandatory for electronic and optoelectronic devices 1 based on single QDs, for example, single photon detectors 2 and non-classical light emitters. 3 The self-organized formation of coherently strained islands, e.g., QDs, by the growth of strained layers in the “Stranski-Krastanow” growth regime is a consequence of the total energy minimization of the strained layer system. 4–6 QDs are formed if the strain energy relieved by island formation surpasses the energy cost associated with newly formed surfaces and edges. 7 Therefore, a selective formation of QDs on a surface will occur if the surface exhibits sites of increased strain energy, higher strain energy relief, or lower facet formation energy during growth of a strained layer. Current techniques for QD positioning generally deploy nanometer-scale lithography techniques like electron beam lithography, 8 focused ion beam lithography, 9 local oxidation, 10 or nano-imprinting 11 in order to define nanometersized areas as exclusive nucleation sites prior to the growth of quantum dots. All these “top-down” approaches share a number of difficulties, which impact the structural and optical properties of the quantum dots. First, deterministic quantum dot nucleation is possible only within very close vertical proximity to the structural patterning. An often reported problem is the missing of QDs at shallow holes patterned on a growth surface. 8,9 Since the patterning involves etching of the surface or other invasive means, the quantum dots will be surrounded by defect sites which degrade their structural and optical quality. 12 Even though sophisticated cleaning

Atomic structure and optical properties of InAs submonolayer depositions in GaAs

Using cross-sectional scanning tunneling microscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy, the atomic structure and optical properties of submonolayer depositions of InAs in GaAs are studied. The submonolayer depositions are formed by a cycled deposition of 0.5 monolayers InAs with GaAs spacer layers of different thicknesses between 1.5 and 32 monolayers. The microscopy images exhibit InAs-rich agglomerations with widths around 5 nm and heights of up to 8 monolayers. A lateral agglomeration density in the 1012 cm−2 range is found. During the capping of the InAs depositions a vertical segregation occurs, for which a segregation coefficient of ∼0.73 was determined. In the case of thin GaAs spacer layers, the observed segregation forms vertically connected agglomerations. The photoluminescence spectra exhibit peaks with linewidths below 10 meV and show a considerable dependence of the peak energy on the spacer thickness, even up to 32 monolayers GaAs, indicating a long range electronic coupling.Using cross-sectional scanning tunneling microscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy, the atomic structure and optical properties of submonolayer depositions of InAs in GaAs are studied. The submonolayer depositions are formed by a cycled deposition of 0.5 monolayers InAs with GaAs spacer layers of different thicknesses between 1.5 and 32 monolayers. The microscopy images exhibit InAs-rich agglomerations with widths around 5 nm and heights of up to 8 monolayers. A lateral agglomeration density in the 1012 cm−2 range is found. During the capping of the InAs depositions a vertical segregation occurs, for which a segregation coefficient of ∼0.73 was determined. In the case of thin GaAs spacer layers, the observed segregation forms vertically connected agglomerations. The photoluminescence spectra exhibit peaks with linewidths below 10 meV and show a considerable dependence of the peak energy on the spacer thickness, even up to 32 monolayers GaAs, indicating a long range electronic coupling.

Low Thermal Impedance of Substrate-Free Metal Cavity Surface-Emitting Microlasers

The thermal impedance of a substrate-free metal cavity surface-emitting microlaser is measured. The lasing wavelength shifts with temperature at a ratio of 4.367 × 10^-2 nm/°C. An extremely low thermal impedance below 1.730°C/mW is extracted for this microlaser with a 1.0-μm radius and 3.5-μm height in the temperature window of 20°C -80°C. The full metal coverage, substrate-free configuration, and metal bonding lead to efficient heat removal.

Alternative precursor metal-organic chemical vapor deposition of InGaAs∕GaAs quantum dot laser diodes with ultralow threshold at 1.25μm

Laser diodes based on InGaAs quantum dots (QDs) operating at 1250nm with ultralow threshold current densities of 66A∕cm2, transparency current densities of 10A∕cm2 per quantum dot layer, and high internal quantum efficiencies of 94% have been realized using alternative precursor metal-organic chemical vapor deposition. Photoluminescence of the active QD stacks clearly indicates the requirement of varying growth parameters for subsequently deposited QD layers. The excellent performance of the QD lasers was obtained by adjusting the number of stacked QD layers to a limit given by the In content of the InGaAs strain-reducing layers grown on the QDs and individual durations of the growth interruption after deposition for each QD layer.