Narrow sized laser diode

• US 9,088,135 B1
• Filed: 06/27/2013
• Issued: 07/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyocera SLD Laser Incorporated (Kyocera Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Soraa Laser Diode, Inc. (Kyocera Corporation)
• Inventors: Raring, James W., Huang, Hua
• Primary Examiner(s): Matthews, Colleen A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Forde, Delma R
• Application Number:
  US13/928,805
• Time in Patent Office: 754 Days
• Field of Search: 372/49.01, 372/43.01, 372/50.1, 372/44.011, 372/44.01, 438/7, 438/31, 438/32, 438/65, 438/106, 257/76, 257/78, 257/98
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48091 Arched
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48465 the other connecting portion not on the bonding area being a wedge bond, i.e. ball-to-wedge, regular stitch
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00014 the subject-matter covered by the group, the symbol of which is combined with the symbol of this group, being disclosed without further technical details
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0014 Measuring characteristics or properties thereof measuring techniques per se G01J, G01K, G01N, G01R
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0042 On wafer testing, e.g. lasers are tested before separating wafer into chips
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0202 Cleaving
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0203 Etching
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0234 Up-side down mountings, e.g. Flip-chip, epi-side down mountings or junction down mountings
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/02345 Wire-bonding
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/02375 Positioning of the laser chips
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/1082 with a special facet structure, e.g. structured, non planar, oblique
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/22 having a ridge or stripe structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/3013 AIIIBV compounds
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/3202 grown on specifically orientated substrates, or using orientation dependent growth
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/32025 non-polar orientation
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/320275 semi-polar orientation
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/32341 blue laser based on GaN or GaP
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/34333 with a well layer based on Ga(In)N or Ga(In)P, e.g. blue laser

Abstract

Gallium and nitrogen containing optical devices operable as laser diodes are disclosed. The devices include a gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member, which may be semipolar or non-polar. The devices include a chip formed from the gallium and nitrogen substrate member. The chip has a width and a length. The devices have a cavity oriented substantially parallel to the length of the chip, a dimension of less than 120 microns characterizing the width of the chip, and a pair of etched facets configured on the cavity of the chip. The pair of etched facets includes a first facet configured at a first end of the cavity and a second facet configured at a second end of the cavity.

Claims

1. A gallium and nitrogen containing optical device operable as a laser diode, the device comprising:

a gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member;

a chip formed from the gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member, the chip having a width and a length, the width of the chip being a distance between sides of the chip and the length of the chip being a distance between ends of the chip, the chip also having a p-type region and an n-side contact opposite the p-type region;

a ridge waveguide configured to emit laser light, the ridge waveguide oriented substantially parallel to the length of the chip, the ridge waveguide having a width that is less than the width of the chip, where the width of the chip is 70 microns or less;

a pair of facets configured on the ends of the chip, the pair of facets including a first facet configured at a first end of the chip and a second facet configured at a second end of the chip;

one or more wirebonding pads coupled to the n-side contact; and

a submount coupled to the chip such that the p-type region of the chip is facing the submount.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the width of the chip is less than 70 microns and greater than 20 microns.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the laser diode is configured for testing at the wafer level to characterize properties selected from threshold current density, a voltage versus current relationship, a light out versus current relationship, and a combination of any of the foregoing.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the laser diode is operable at a wavelength selected from 430 nm to 480 nm, from 480 nm to 535 nm, and from 390 nm to 430 nm.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the pair of facets comprise a pair of etched facets.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member has a semipolar surface orientation selected from the (20-21), (20-2-1), (30-31), (30-3-1), and (11-22) plane orientations, or an offcut of any of the foregoing orientations.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member has a nonpolar surface orientation or an offcut thereof.

22. The device of claim 5, wherein the etched facets are formed by a dry etching method selected from reactive ion etching (RIE), inductively plasma coupled etching (ICP), and chemical assisted ion beam etching (CAIBE).

23. The device of claim 1, wherein the pair of facets comprise a pair of cleaved facets.

8. A gallium and nitrogen containing optical device operable as a laser diode, the device comprising:

a gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member;

a chip formed from the gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member, the chip having a width and a length, the width of the chip being a distance between sides of the chip and the length of the chip being a distance between ends of the chip, the chip also having a p-type region and an n-side contact opposite the p-type region;

a ridge waveguide configured to emit laser light, the ridge waveguide oriented substantially parallel to the length of the chip, the ridge waveguide having a width that is less than the width of the chip, where the width of the chip is less than 120 microns;

one or more wirebonding pads disposed on the n-side contact of the chip for coupling wires to the chip; and

a submount coupled to the chip such that the p-type region of the chip is facing the submount.

9. The device of claim 8, wherein a pair of etched facets are configured on the ends of the chip.

10. The device of claim 9, wherein the etched facets are formed by a dry etching method selected from reactive ion etching (RIE), inductively plasma coupled etching (ICP), and chemical assisted ion beam etching (CAIBE).

11. The device of claim 8, wherein the width of the chip is less than 110 microns.

12. The device of claim 8, wherein the width of the chip is less than 70 microns.

13. The device of claim 8, wherein the laser diode is configured for testing at the wafer level to characterize properties selected from threshold current density, a voltage versus current relationship, a light out versus current relationship, and a combination of any of the foregoing.

14. The device of claim 8, wherein the laser diode is operable at a wavelength from 430 nm to 480 nm.

15. The device of claim 8, wherein the laser diode is operable at a wavelength from 480 nm to 535 nm.

16. The device of claim 8, wherein the laser diode is operable at a wavelength from 390 nm to 430 nm.

17. The device of claim 8, wherein the gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member has a semipolar surface orientation selected from the (20-21), (20-2-1), (30-31), (30-3-1), and (11-22) plane orientations, or an offcut of any of the foregoing orientations.

18. The device of claim 8, wherein the gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member has a nonpolar surface orientation, or an offcut thereof.

19. A gallium and nitrogen containing optical device operable as a laser diode, the device comprising:

a gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member;

a chip formed from the gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member, the chip having a width and a length, the width of the chip being a distance between sides of the chip and the length of the chip being a distance between ends of the chip, the chip also having a p-type region and an n-side contact opposite the p-type region;

a ridge waveguide configured to emit laser light, the ridge waveguide oriented substantially parallel to the length of the chip, the ridge waveguide having a width that is less than the width of the chip, where the width of the chip is less than 120 microns;

a one or more wirebonding pads disposed on the n-side contact of the chip for coupling wires to the chip;

a pair of etched facets configured on the ends of the chip, the pair of etched facets including a first facet configured at a first end of the chip and a second facet configured at a second end of the chip; and

a submount coupled to the chip such that the p-type region of the chip is facing the submount.

20. A gallium and nitrogen containing optical device operable as a laser diode, the device comprising:

a gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member;

a chip formed from the gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member, the chip having a width and a length, the width of the chip being a distance between sides of the chip and the length of the chip being a distance between ends of the chip, the chip also having a p-type region and an n-side contact opposite the p-type region;

a ridge waveguide configured to emit laser light, the ridge waveguide oriented substantially parallel to the length of the chip and having a width that is less than the width of the chip, where the width of the chip is less than 110 microns;

one or more wirebonding pads disposed on the n-side contact of the chip for coupling wires to the chip;

a pair of etched facets configured on the ends of the chip, the pair of etched facets including a first facet configured at a first end of the chip and a second facet configured at a second end of the chip; and

a submount coupled to the chip such that the p-type region of the chip is facing the submount and the ridge waveguide is adjacent to the submount.

21. A gallium and nitrogen containing optical device operable as a laser diode, the device comprising:

a gallium and nitrogen containing substrate member;

the gallium and nitrogen substrate containing member having a surface orientation selected from the (20-21), (20-2-1), (30-31), (30-3-1), (11-22) semipolar orientation, and m-plane nonpolar orientation, or an offcut of any of the foregoing;

a chip formed from the gallium and nitrogen substrate member, the chip having a width and a length, the width of the chip being a distance between sides of the chip and the length of the chip being a distance between ends of the chip, the chip also having a p-type region and an n-side contact opposite the p-type region;

a ridge waveguide configured to emit laser light, the ridge waveguide oriented substantially parallel to the length of the chip, the ridge waveguide having a width that is less than the width of the chip, where the width of the chip is less than 120 microns;

one or more wirebonding pads disposed on the n-side contact of the chip for coupling wires to the chip;

a pair of facets configured on the ends of the chip, the pair of facets including a first facet configured at a first end of the chip and a second facet configured at a second end of the chip; and

a submount coupled to the chip such that a p-type region of the chip is facing the submount.