Electrooptically wavelength-tunable resonant cavity optoelectronic device for high-speed data transfer

• US 20050271092A1
• Filed: 06/02/2005
• Published: 12/08/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Innolume GmbH
• Original Assignee: Nl-Nanosemiconductor GmbH
• Inventors: Shchukin, Vitaly, Ledentsov, Nikolai
• Granted Patent: US 7,369,583 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 372/20
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/28 Interference filters
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0078 for frequency filtering
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0607 by varying physical parameters other than the potential of the electrodes, e.g. by an electric or magnetic field, mechanical deformation, pressure, light, temperature
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/1021 Coupled cavities H01S5/14 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18302 comprising an integrated optical modulator
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18311 using selective oxidation
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/1833 with more than one structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18341 Intra-cavity contacts
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/2027 Reflecting region or layer, parallel to the active layer, e.g. to modify propagation of the mode in the laser or to influence transverse modes

Abstract

A device contains at least one wavelength-tunable element controlled by an applied voltage and at least two resonant cavities, where the resonant wavelength of the tunable element is preferably elecrooptically tuned using the quantum confined Stark effect around the resonant wavelength of the other cavity or cavities, resulting in a modulated transmittance of the system. A light-emitting medium is preferably introduced into one of the cavities, permitting the optoelectronic device to work as an intensity-modulated light-emitting diode or diode laser by applying an injection current. The device preferably contains at least three electric contacts to apply a forward or a reverse bias and may operate as a vertical cavity surface emitting light-emitter or modulator or as a tilted cavity light emitter or modulator. Adding a few modulator sections enables applications in semiconductor optical amplifiers, frequency converters or lock-in optical amplifiers.

Claims

1. A semiconductor optoelectronic device comprising:

a) at least two resonant cavities comprising a first resonant cavity and a second resonant cavity;

b) at least one modulator region which electrooptically tunes a resonant wavelength of the second cavity with respect to a resonant wavelength of the first cavity;

c) at least one light generating element comprising a gain region, which generates light when a forward bias is applied to the gain region; and

d) at least three electric contacts which apply bias to the modulator region and to the light generating element independently;

wherein tuning varies an optical transmittance of the device, such that an output optical power is varied.

2. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the modulator region tunes the resonant wavelength of the second cavity using a quantum confined Stark effect by applying a reverse bias to tune a resonant component of a refractive index of the modulator region.

3. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the modulator region tunes the resonant wavelength of the second cavity using an exciton bleaching effect by injection of nonequilibrium carriers by applying a forward bias.

4. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the modulator region tunes the resonant wavelength of the second cavity by refractive index modulation via an injection of electon-hole plasma by applying a forward bias.

5. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the light generating element and the modulator region are located within the second cavity.

6. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 5, wherein a modulation of a refractive index of the modulator region changes the resonant wavelength of the second cavity with respect to the resonant wavelength of the first cavity, such that the output optical power is modulated.

7. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 5, wherein a population inversion is realized in the gain region, and the overall losses are low compared to gain to enable lasing.

8. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 7, wherein the device is selected from the group consisting of:

a) a vertical cavity surface emitting laser;

b) a tilted cavity laser;

c) a multi-section edge-emitting tilted cavity laser; and

d) a multi-section distributed feedback tilted cavity laser.

9. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the light generating element is placed in the first cavity and the modulator region is placed in the second cavity;

wherein a modulation of a refractive index of the modulator region changes the resonant wavelength of the second cavity with respect to the resonant wavelength of the first cavity, such that the optical output power is modulated.

10. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 9, wherein a population inversion is realized in the gain region, and the overall losses are low compared to gain to enable lasing.

11. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 10, wherein the device is selected from the group consisting of:

a) a vertical cavity surface emitting laser;

b) a tilted cavity laser;

c) a multi-section edge-emitting tilted cavity laser; and

d) a multi-section distributed feedback tilted cavity laser.

12. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the device modulates a transmittance of light through a filter comprising at least two coupled cavities by modulating a resonance of at least one of the coupled cavities.

13. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 12, wherein the device is selected from the group consisting of:

a) a vertical coupled-cavity waveguide;

b) a tilted cavity waveguide;

c) a multi-section planar waveguide; and

d) a multi-section distributed feedback planar waveguide.

14. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 13, further comprising at least two sections;

wherein the gain region is placed within a first section comprising the resonant cavities; and

wherein the device operates as a device selected from the group consisting of;

a) a wavelength-tunable semiconductor optical amplifier;

b) a lock-in optical amplifier; and

c) a frequency-convertor for incoming light.

15. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 1, wherein at least one element of the device is formed of materials selected from the group consisting of:

i) III-V semiconductor materials; and

ii) alloys based on III-V semiconductor materials;

wherein the III-V semiconductor materials are selected from the group of binary compounds of an element A, selected from the group consisting of Al, Ga, and In; and

an element B, selected from the group consisting of N, P, As, and Sb.

16. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 15, wherein at least one element of the structure is formed of materials selected from the group consisting of:

a) AlN;

b) GaN;

c) InN;

d) alloys of AlN, GaN, and InN.

17. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the resonant cavities operates as a filter element having a spectral band of high transmission.

18. The semiconductor optoelectronic device of claim 17, further comprising a modulator located within the modulator region, wherein the modulator controls a wavelength of laser light such that, when the wavelength of laser light is out of resonance with the spectral band of the filter element, a first intensity of outgoing laser light is low, and when the wavelength of laser light is in resonance with the spectral band of the filter element, a second intensity of outgoing laser light is high.

19. A method of controlling an intensity of laser light leaving a semiconductor optoelectronic device comprising a first resonant cavity and a second resonant cavity;

at least one modulator region;

at least one light generating element comprising a gain region, which generates light when a forward bias is applied to the gain region; and

at least three electric contacts, comprising the steps of;

a) applying a bias to the modulator region and to the light generating element independently with the electric contacts;

b) electrooptically tuning a resonant wavelength of the second cavity with respect to a resonant wavelength of the first cavity using the modulator region; and

c) varying an optical transmittance of the device, such that an output optical power is varied.