METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SURFACE EMITTING LASER, AND SURFACE EMITTING LASER, SURFACE EMITTING LASER ARRAY, OPTICAL SCANNING DEVICE AND IMAGE FORMING APPARATUS

• US 20140130975A1
• Filed: 07/12/2013
• Published: 05/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Shouji, Hiroyoshi, Sato, Shunichi, Itoh, Akihiro, Harasaka, Kazuhiro
• Granted Patent: US 8,809,089 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 156/280
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 37/14 characterised by the properties of the layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 2301/176 Specific passivation layers on surfaces other than the emission facet
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0282 Passivation layers or treatments
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/04254 characterised by the shape
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18313 by oxidizing at least one of the DBR layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/1835 Non-circular mesa
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18355 having a defined polarisation
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18358 containing spacer layers to adjust the phase of the light wave in the cavity
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18369 based on dielectric materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18377 comprising layers of different kind of materials, e.g. combinations of semiconducting with dielectric or metallic layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/18391 Aperiodic structuring to influence the near- or far-field distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/3202 grown on specifically orientated substrates, or using orientation dependent growth
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/423 having a vertical cavity

Abstract

A disclosed method of manufacturing a surface emitting laser includes laminating a transparent dielectric layer on an upper surface of a laminated body; forming a first resist pattern on an upper surface of the dielectric layer, the first resist pattern including a pattern defining an outer perimeter of a mesa structure and a pattern protecting a region corresponding to one of the relatively high reflection rate part and the relatively low reflection rate part included in an emitting region; etching the dielectric layer by using the first resist pattern as an etching mask; and forming a second resist pattern protecting a region corresponding to an entire emitting region. These steps are performed before the mesa structure is formed.

Claims

1-13. -13. (canceled)

14. A method of manufacturing a surface emitting laser, the surface emitting laser including:

a laminated body in which a lower reflection mirror, a resonance structure,and an upper reflection mirror are laminated on a substrate, the resonance structure including an active layer, the upper reflection mirror including a selectively-oxidized layer, and

a mesa structure formed in the laminated body and providing an emitting section, the emitting section including a current confined structure and an emitting region, the current confined structure including a relatively high reflection rate part and a relatively low reflection rate part, the method comprising;

a first dielectric layer laminating step of laminating a first transparent dielectric layer on an upper surface of the laminated body; and

a resist pattern forming step of forming first and second resist patterns simultaneously on an upper surface of the first transparent dielectric layer,

wherein the first resist pattern includes a pattern configured to define an outer perimeter of the mesa structure and a pattern configured to protect a region corresponding to one of the relatively high reflection rate part and the relatively low reflection rate part included in the emitting region, and

wherein the second resist pattern is configured to protect a region corresponding to all of the emitting region,

wherein the first dielectric layer laminating step and the resist pattern forming step are performed before the mesa structure is formed.

15. The method of manufacturing a surface emitting laser according to claim 14, further comprising:

a second dielectric layer laminating step of, after the current confined structure is formed, laminating a second transparent dielectric layer on an upper surface of the laminated body, the second transparent dielectric layer having an optical thickness of either an even multiple of (oscillation wavelength/4) or (oscillation wavelength/4)+(and even multiple of (oscillation wavelength/4),

wherein, in the first dielectric layer laminating step, the first transparent dielectric layer having an optical thickness of an odd multiple of (oscillation wavelength/4) is laminated.

16. The method of manufacturing a surface emitting laser according to claim 15,

wherein a material of the first dielectric layer is a same as a material of the second dielectric layer.

17. The method of manufacturing a surface emitting laser according to claim 15,

wherein a material of the first dielectric layer is different from a material of the second dielectric layer.