Turnable distributed feedback-laser

• US 5,048,049 A
• Filed: 12/18/1990
• Issued: 09/10/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: II-VI Delaware, Inc. (Coherent Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Amann, Markus C.
• Primary Examiner(s): EPPS, GEORGIA Y
• Application Number:
  US07/629,017
• Time in Patent Office: 266 Days
• Field of Search: 372/96, 372/46, 372/20, 372/47, 372/50
• US Class Current: 372/96
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 20/00 Nanooptics, e.g. quantum optics or photonic crystals
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/06206 Controlling the frequency of the radiation, e.g. tunable twin-guide lasers [TTG]
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/12 the resonator having a periodic structure, e.g. in distributed feedback [DFB] lasers comprising a photonic bandgap structure H01S5/11; surface-emitting lasers H01S5/18
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/3428 layer orientation perpendicular to the substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/34306 emitting light at a wavelength longer than 1000nm, e.g. InP based 1300 and 1500nm lasers

Abstract

A tunable distributed feedback laser which has an active region and a tuning region which are arranged transversely relative to each other and which can be separately driven in common via a central layer 4.

Claims

1. A tunable distributive feedback of semiconductor material formed on a substrate which is doped for electrical conduction of a first conductivity type, comprising a strip-shaped sequence of semiconductor layers grown one upon another and comprising an active layer for generating emission, a tuning layer formed of a material which has a different energy band gap between the valency band and the conduction band from the material of said active layer, and a central layer doped for a conductivity type opposite to the conductivity type of said substrate and formed between said active layer and said tuning layer, comprising further a grating created by a boundary surface between two layer with different refractive indexes, and lateral regions joining said strip-shaped layer sequence laterally and being doped for the same conductivity type as said central layer and having lateral dimensions so as to provide efficient lateral limitation of the current path.

2. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 1 wherein a cover layer which is doped for a conductivity type which is opposite to the conductivity type of said central layer is formed on the side of the layer sequence which faces away from said substrate.

3. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 1 or claim 2 comprising an antimelt-back layer which is formed on said active layer on the side which faces away from said substrate.

4. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein said active layer is on the side of said central layer which faces toward said substrate, and said grating is formed by a boundary surface of said tuning layer.

5. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein said tuning layer is on the side of said central layer which faces toward said substrate;

and in said grating is formed by a boundary surface of said tuning layer.

6. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein said active layer is located on the side of said central layer which faces toward said substrate, a grating layer is provided between said active layer and said substrate, and said grating is formed by a boundary surface of said grating layer which faces toward said substrate.

7. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 4 a buffer layer formed of the same material as said substrate and doped for the same conductivity type as said substrate is formed on said substrate, and the remaining layers are formed on said buffer layer.

8. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 1 or claim 2 at least one layer from the group of said active layer and said tuning layer has a structure from the group of quantum well structure, multi-quantum well structure and separate confinement hetero-structure (SCH).

9. A tunable distributive feedback according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein said main contact layer which is highly doped with the same conductivity type as said substrate is applied on the cover layer, said layer sequence is etched to be strip-shaped, said layer sequence is laterally framed by lateral regions which are grown onto the substrate up to the height of the surface of said main contact layer which faces away from said substrate, said lateral regions are doped for the same conductivity type as said central layer, said lateral regions are dimensioned so as to provide lateral limitation of the current path, electrically insulating passivation regions are formed adjacent to said lateral regions and terminating so as to be flush with the surface, the principal side of the substrate which faces away from the overgrown principal side is provided with said substrate contact said main contact layer is provided with said main contact, and at least one lateral region is provided with said lateral contact.

10. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 9, wherein a lateral contact layer is formed on the surface of said lateral region for lateral contact, said lateral contact layer is highly doped for the same conductivity type as said lateral region, and said lateral contact is respectively applied on said lateral contact layer.

11. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 10, wherein a diffusion region which is adjacent to a part of the surface of said semiconductor layer which is provided with the middle contact is formed, said diffusion region has a conductivity type opposite the conductivity type of said lateral regions, and said diffusion region electrically insulates said middle contact from said lateral regions (8).

12. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim, 1 or claim 2 in which the conductivity type of said substrate is p-type and the conductivity type of said central layer is n-type.

13. A tunable DFB laser according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the conductivity type of the said substrate is n-type, and the conductivity type of said central layer is p-type.

14. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 9 wherein said substrate, said central layer, said cover layer and said lateral regions are formed of binary material, and said remaining layers are formed of quaternary material.

15. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 14, wherein said binary material is InP and said quaternary material is InGaAsP.

16. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 14 wherein said binary material is InP and said quaternary material is AIGaInAs.

17. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 10 wherein said substrate is GaAs;

and in that the remaining layers are Al_x Ga_1-x As (0×

1).

18. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 9 wherein said substrate is GaSb;

and the remaining layers are composed of the system GaSb/GaInAlAsSb.

19. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 9 wherein said substrate is GaAs;

and the remaining layers are InGaAsP.

20. A tunable distributive feedback laser according to claim 1 comprising electrically insulating passivation regions joining said lateral regions laterally and procuring said lateral limitation of the current path.