Surface-emitting device, vertical external-cavity surface-emitting laser, and method for manufacturing surface-emitting device

• US 10,541,514 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2017
• Issued: 01/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 02/25/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NGK Insulators Limited
• Original Assignee: NGK Insulators Limited
• Inventors: Kuraoka, Yoshitaka, Nonaka, Kentaro, Sugiyama, Tomohiko, Yoshino, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): Van Roy, Tod T
• Application Number:
  US15/428,236
• Publication Number:
  US 20170250519A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,076 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/2015 the substrate being of crystalline semiconductor material, e.g. lattice adaptation, heteroepitaxy
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 2304/04 MOCVD or MOVPE
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0283 Optically inactive coating on the facet, e.g. half-wave coating
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/041 Optical pumping
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/141 using a wavelength selective device, e.g. a grating or etalon H01S5/146 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18361 Structure of the reflectors, e.g. hybrid mirrors
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/3201 incorporating bulkstrain effects, e.g. strain compensation, strain related to polarisation
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/320225 polar orientation
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/34333 with a well layer based on Ga(In)N or Ga(In)P, e.g. blue laser
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/423 having a vertical cavity

Abstract

A vertical external-cavity surface-emitting laser (VECSEL) whose blueshift is reduced also in a high intensity range of emitted laser light is realized. A surface-emitting device for VECSEL includes a base substrate made of GaN and c-axis oriented, and an emitter structure formed of a group 13 nitride semiconductor and provided on the base substrate. The emitter structure is formed of unit deposition parts, each of which is provided on the base substrate and includes a DBR layer having a distributed Bragg reflection structure and an active layer that has a multiple quantum well structure and generates excitation emission in response to irradiation with external laser light. A c-axis orientation of each of the unit deposition parts conforms to the c-axis orientation of the base substrate located directly below the unit deposition parts. Grooves are formed between the unit deposition parts.

Claims

1. A surface-emitting device for an excitation medium of a vertical external-cavity surface-emitting laser, the surface-emitting device comprising:

a base substrate made of GaN and c-axis oriented; and

an emitter structure formed of a group 13 nitride semiconductor and provided on said base substrate,

wherein

said base substrate is an oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate,

said emitter structure is formed of a plurality of unit deposition parts, and each of said plurality of unit deposition parts is provided on said base substrate and includes a DBR layer having a distributed Bragg reflection structure and an active layer that has a multiple quantum well structure and generates excitation emission in response to irradiation with external laser light,

wherein a c-axis orientation of each of said plurality of unit deposition parts conforms to the c-axis orientation of said base substrate located directly below said plurality of unit deposition parts, and

wherein grooves are formed between said plurality of unit deposition parts, wherein the grooves are formed at random positions.

2. The surface-emitting device according to claim 1, wherein

each of said plurality of unit deposition parts is provided, on a corresponding crystal among crystals of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate, conforming to a c-axis orientation of said corresponding crystal, and

said grooves are located along grain boundaries on a main surface of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate.

3. The surface-emitting device according to claim 2, wherein an average in-plane particle size of each of GaN crystals of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate is 5 μ

m to 30 μ

m.

4. The surface-emitting device according to claim 2, wherein a value of an X-ray rocking curve full width at half maximum of a GaN (0002) plane in said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate is 0.2 degrees to 1.0 degree.

5. The surface-emitting device according to claim 1, wherein

each of said unit deposition parts includes

a first GaN layer provided on said base substrate,

said DBR layer provided on said first GaN layer,

said active layer being n type and provided on said DBR layer, and

a second GaN layer provided on said active layer,

said DBR layer has said distributed Bragg reflection structure in which a first unit reflection layer formed of a group 13 nitride having a composition InxAl_1-xN (0≤

x<

1) and a second unit reflection layer made of GaN are deposited repeatedly and alternately, and

said active layer has said multiple quantum well structure in which a first unit active layer of n type having a composition In_yGa_1-yN (0<

y<

1) and a second unit active layer of n type made of GaN are deposited repeatedly and alternately.

6. The surface-emitting device according to claim 1, wherein said grooves extend from a surface of said device toward said base substrate.

7. A vertical external-cavity surface-emitting laser comprising:

an optical resonator including

a surface-emitting device for an excitation medium, and

a resonant mirror, and

an excitation light source,

said surface-emitting device including

a base substrate made of GaN and c-axis oriented, and

an emitter structure formed of a group 13 nitride semiconductor and provided on said base substrate,

wherein

said base substrate is an oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate,

said emitter structure is formed of a plurality of unit deposition parts, and each of said plurality of unit deposition parts is provided on said base substrate and includes a DBR layer having a distributed Bragg reflection structure and an active layer having a multiple quantum well structure,

said excitation light source irradiates said active layer of said surface-emitting device with excitation laser light to cause said active layer to generate excitation emission,

a c-axis orientation of each of said plurality of unit deposition parts conforms to the c-axis orientation of said base substrate located directly below said plurality of unit deposition parts,

grooves are formed between said plurality of unit deposition parts, wherein the grooves are formed at random positions, and

said resonant mirror resonates the excitation emission generated in said active layer between said DBR layer of said surface-emitting device and said resonant mirror.

8. The surface-emitting device according to claim 7, wherein said grooves extend from a surface of said device toward said base substrate.

9. A method for manufacturing a surface-emitting device for an excitation medium of a vertical external-cavity surface-emitting laser, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) preparing a base substrate made of GaN and c-axis oriented; and

(b) forming an emitter structure formed of a group 13 nitride semiconductor on said base substrate,

wherein said base substrate is an oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate,

in said step (b), said emitter structure is formed such that

said emitter structure includes

a plurality of unit deposition parts, each of which is provided on said base substrate and includes a DBR layer having a distributed Bragg reflection structure and an active layer that has a multiple quantum well structure and generates excitation emission in response to irradiation with external laser light, and

grooves formed between said plurality of unit deposition parts, wherein the grooves are formed at random positions, and

a c-axis orientation of each of said plurality of unit deposition parts conforms to the c-axis orientation of said base substrate located directly below said plurality of unit deposition parts.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein

in said step (b), said plurality of unit deposition parts are grown such that each of said deposition parts conforms to a c-axis orientation of said corresponding crystal on a corresponding crystal among crystals of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate, and that said grooves are formed along grain boundaries on a main surface of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein an average in-plane particle size of each of GaN crystals of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate is 5 μ

m to 30 μ

m.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein a value of an X-ray rocking curve full width at half maximum of a GaN (0002) plane in said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate is 0.2 degrees to 1.0 degree.

13. The method according to claim 9, wherein

said step (b) includes the steps of

(b-1) forming a first GaN layer on said base substrate,

(b-2) forming said DBR layer on said first GaN layer;

(b-3) forming said active layer on said DBR layer, and

(b-4) forming a second GaN layer on said active layer,

in said step (b-2), a first unit reflection layer formed of a group 13 nitride having a composition In_xA_1-xN (0≤

x<

1) and a second unit reflection layer made of GaN are deposited repeatedly and alternately to form said DBR layer, and

in said step (b-3), a first unit active layer formed of a group 13 nitride having a composition In_yGa_1-yN (0<

y<

1) and a second unit active layer made of GaN are deposited repeatedly and alternately while being doped with an n-type dopant to form said active layer of n type.

14. The surface-emitting device according to claim 9, wherein said grooves extend from a surface of said device toward said base substrate.

15. A surface-emitting device comprising:

a base substrate made of GaN and c-axis oriented; and

an emitter structure formed of a group 13 nitride semiconductor and provided on said base substrate,

wherein

said base substrate is an oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate,

said emitter structure is formed of a plurality of unit deposition parts, and each of said plurality of unit deposition parts is provided on said base substrate and includes a DBR layer having a distributed Bragg reflection structure and an active layer that has a multiple quantum well structure and generates excitation emission in response to irradiation with external laser light,

a c-axis orientation of each of said plurality of unit deposition parts conforms to the c-axis orientation of said base substrate located directly below said plurality of unit deposition parts, and

grooves are formed between said plurality of unit deposition parts, wherein the grooves are formed at random positions.

16. The surface-emitting device according to claim 15, wherein

each of said plurality of unit deposition parts is provided, on a corresponding crystal among crystals of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate, conforming to a c-axis orientation of said corresponding crystal, and

said grooves are located along grain boundaries on a main surface of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate.

17. The surface-emitting device according to claim 16, wherein an average in-plane particle size of each of GaN crystals of said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate is 5 μ

m to 30 μ

m.

18. The surface-emitting device according to claim 16, wherein a value of an X-ray rocking curve full width at half maximum of a GaN (0002) plane in said oriented polycrystalline free-standing substrate is 0.2 degrees to 1.0 degree.

19. The surface-emitting device according to claim 15, wherein

each of said unit deposition parts includes

a first GaN layer provided on said base substrate,

said active layer being n type and provided on said first GaN layer, and

a second GaN layer provided on said active layer, and

said active layer has said multiple quantum well structure in which a first unit active layer of n type having a composition In_yGa_1-yN (0<

y<

1) and a second unit active layer of n type made of GaN are deposited repeatedly and alternately.