Cleaved facet (Ga,Al,In)N edge-emitting laser diodes grown on semipolar bulk gallium nitride substrates

• US 8,541,869 B2
• Filed: 02/12/2008
• Issued: 09/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Regents of the University of California (University of California)
• Original Assignee: Regents of the University of California (University of California)
• Inventors: Nakamura, Shuji, Speck, James S., DenBaars, Steven P., Tyagi, Anurag
• Primary Examiner(s): Sarkar, Asok K
• Assistant Examiner(s): WARD, ERIC A
• Application Number:
  US12/030,099
• Publication Number:
  US 20080191223A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,051 Days
• Field of Search: 257 79-103, 257 9- 39, 257428-466, 257613-616, 257618-628, 257/E33.003, 257/E33.025, 257/E33.028, 257/E33.03, 257/E33.033, 438 22- 47, 438106-127, 438460-465, 438478-509, 438/973, 117 11- 83, 372 4301- 5023
• US Class Current: 257/627
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 20/00 Nanooptics, e.g. quantum optics or photonic crystals
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0202 Cleaving
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/22 having a ridge or stripe structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/2201 in a specific crystallographic orientation
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/3216 quantum well or superlattice cladding layers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/34333 with a well layer based on Ga(In)N or Ga(In)P, e.g. blue laser

Abstract

A III-nitride edge-emitting laser diode is formed on a surface of a III-nitride substrate having a semipolar orientation, wherein the III-nitride substrate is cleaved by creating a cleavage line along a direction substantially perpendicular to a nonpolar orientation of the III-nitride substrate, and then applying force along the cleavage line to create one or more cleaved facets of the III-nitride substrate, wherein the cleaved facets have an m-plane or a-plane orientation.

Claims

1. An optoelectronic device, comprising:

a III-nitride semiconductor light emitting device formed on a surface of a III-nitride substrate having a semipolar orientation, wherein the III-nitride substrate is a semipolar bulk III-nitride substrate and the III-nitride substrate is cleaved along a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of the III-nitride substrate having the semipolar orientation, in order to create one or more cleaved facets, wherein the substrate has a cleavage line along a direction substantially perpendicular to a nonpolar orientation of the substrate for the cleaved facets.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the III-nitride semiconductor light emitting device is an edge-emitting laser diode.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the semipolar bulk III-nitride substrate is a semipolar bulk gallium nitride substrate.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the cleaved facets have an m-plane or a-plane orientation.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the III-nitride substrate is thinned to facilitate cleaving.

6. A process for fabricating an optoelectronic device, comprising:

forming a III-nitride semiconductor light emitting device on a surface of a III-nitride substrate having a semipolar orientation, wherein the III-nitride substrate is a semipolar bulk III-nitride substrate; and

cleaving the III-nitride substrate along a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of the III-nitride substrate having the semipolar orientation, in order to create one or more cleaved facets;

wherein the cleaving step comprises creating a cleavage line along a direction substantially perpendicular to a nonpolar orientation of the substrate, and then applying force along the cleavage line to create the cleaved facets.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the III-nitride semiconductor light emitting device is an edge-emitting laser diode.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the semipolar bulk III-nitride substrate is a semipolar bulk gallium nitride substrate.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the cleaved facets have an m-plane or a-plane orientation.

10. The method of claim 6, further comprising thinning the III-nitride substrate to facilitate cleaving.