Monolithically-Pumped Erbium-Doped Waveguide Amplifiers and Lasers

• US 20080267237A1
• Filed: 04/18/2008
• Published: 10/30/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: University of Notre DAME Du Lac
• Original Assignee: University of Notre DAME Du Lac
• Inventors: Huang, Mingjun, Hall, Douglas
• Application Number:
  US12/105,624
• Publication Number:
  US 20080267237A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 372/45.01
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 13/048 Silica-free oxide glass compositions
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/23 Oxides C03C17/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2217/228 Other specific oxides
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2217/242 with rare earth metals
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2218/32 After-treatment
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 25/6286 Ion implantation
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02178 the material containing aluminium, e.g. Al2O3
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02233 of the semiconductor substrate or a semiconductor layer
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02255 formation by thermal treatment H01L21/02252 takes precedence; after treatment of an insulating film H01L21/3105 and subgroups
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02321 introduction of substances into an already existing insulating layer H01L21/02227 and subgroups take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/02351 treatment by exposure to corpuscular radiation, e.g. exposure to electrons, alpha-particles, protons or ions
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/31155 by ion implantation
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/31666 of AIII BV compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 2301/02 ASE (amplified spontaneous emission), noise; Reduction thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0632 Thin film lasers in which light propagates in the plane of the thin film
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0637 Integrated lateral waveguide, e.g. the active waveguide is integrated on a substrate made by Si on insulator technology (Si/SiO2)
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/0941 of a laser diode
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/1608 erbium
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/17 amorphous, e.g. glass
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 3/175 phosphate glass
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/026 : Monolithically integrated components, e.g. waveguides, monitoring photo-detectors, drivers stabilisation of output H01S5/06
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18308 : having a special structure for lateral current or light confinement
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/2004 : Confining in the direction perpendicular to the layer structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/40 : Arrangement of two or more semiconductor lasers, not provided for in groups H01S5/02 - H01S5/30 H01S5/50 takes precedence

Abstract

Disclosed is a method of doping an oxide. The example method includes forming at least one of an AlGaAs oxide or an InAlP oxide on a GaAs substrate, and incorporating Erbium into the at least one AlGaAs oxide or InAlP oxide via ion implantation to form an Erbium-doped oxide layer. The example method also includes annealing the substrate and the at least one AlGaAs oxide or InAlP oxide.

Claims

1. A method of doping an oxide, comprising:

forming at least one of an AlGaAs oxide or an InAlP oxide on a substrate;

incorporating Erbium into the at least one AlGaAs oxide or InAlP oxide via ion implantation to form an Erbium-doped oxide layer; and

annealing the substrate and the at least one AlGaAs oxide or InAlP oxide.

2. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 1, wherein ion implantation occurs after forming the AlGaAs oxide to eliminate photoluminescence-quenching As complexes.

3. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 1, further comprising controlling at least one of an Al concentration, a Ga concentration, or an As concentration of the AlGaAs oxide.

4. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 1, further comprising controlling at least one of an In concentration, an Al concentration, or a P concentration of the InAlP oxide.

5. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 1, wherein the annealing is performed between 500 and 800 degrees Celsius.

6. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 1, wherein the Erbium is incorporated at a dosage of at least 1×

10⁺¹⁵ cm<sup>−

2</sup>.

7. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 1, further comprising placing the Erbium-doped oxide layer between a lower semiconductor layer and an upper semiconductor layer to form an optical waveguide.

8. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 1, wherein the substrate is GaAs.

9. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 7, wherein an interface between the Erbium-doped oxide layer and the lower semiconductor layer, and an interface between the Erbium-doped oxide layer and the upper semiconductor layer comprise a large refractive index sufficient to confine light.

10. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 7, wherein the upper semiconductor layer comprises deposited SiO₂, the upper semiconductor layer forming a waveguide cladding.

11. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 7, further comprising forming an electrical contacting layer under the lower semiconductor layer and a vertical resonant cavity under the electrical contacting layer to facilitate pump light oscillation inside the vertical resonant cavity.

12. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 11, wherein the vertical resonant cavity comprises a top metal mirror and a bottom distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) mirror, the mirrors surrounding an InGaAs quantum well heterostructure (QWH).

13. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 12, further comprising forming a p-n diode active region around the QWH, the active region generating light for pump excitation of Erbium ions.

14. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 13, further comprising co-doping the at least one AlGaAs oxide or InAlP oxide with Ytterbium to facilitate absorption of QWH broadband emission.

15. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 14, wherein the active region operates in an incoherent emission regime below a lasing current threshold.

16. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 11, wherein the optical waveguide functions as at least one of a monolithically pumped amplifier, a broadband amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) light source, or a laser.

17. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 16, wherein the laser operates in at least one of a continuous wave (cw) mode or a pulsed mode.

18. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 17, further comprising at least one of Q-switching or mode-locking to operate in the pulsed mode.

19. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 16, wherein the at least one amplifier or laser comprises a wavelength of approximately 1.53 microns.

20. A method of doping an oxide as defined in claim 16, wherein the at least one amplifier or ASE light source comprises a full-width-half-maximum optical emission bandwidth between 40 nm and 60 nm.

21. An Erbium-doped waveguide device, comprising:

at least one oxide formed on a substrate, the oxide doped with Erbium after oxidation to minimize photoluminescence-quenching As complexes; and

a lower semiconductor layer and an upper semiconductor layer, the upper and lower layers surrounding the Erbium-doped oxide to form an optical waveguide therein.

22. An Erbium-doped waveguide device as defined in claim 21, wherein the at least one oxide comprises at least one of AlGaAs oxide or InAlP oxide.

23. An Erbium-doped waveguide device as defined in claim 22, wherein the AlGaAs oxide comprises an Aluminum ratio of x and a Gallium ratio of 1−

x.

24. An Erbium-doped waveguide device as defined in claim 21, wherein the substrate comprises GaAs.

25. An Erbium-doped waveguide device as defined in claim 21, wherein the device comprises:

an electrical contacting layer under the lower semiconductor layer; and

a vertical cavity under the electrical contacting layer to facilitate an optical pump.

26. An Erbium-doped waveguide device as defined in claim 25, wherein the waveguide device comprises at least one of a monolithically pumped amplifier, a broadband amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) light source, or a laser.