Optical semiconductor element and method of manufacturing optical semiconductor element

• US 11,075,315 B2
• Filed: 04/17/2019
• Issued: 07/27/2021
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hamamatsu Photonics KK
• Original Assignee: Hamamatsu Photonics KK
• Inventors: Hitaka, Masahiro, Ito, Akio, Dougakiuchi, Tatsuo, Fujita, Kazuue, Edamura, Tadataka
• Primary Examiner(s): Rahman, Moin M
• Application Number:
  US16/386,604
• Publication Number:
  US 20190326466A1
• Time in Patent Office: 832 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/255 Details, e.g. use of specially adapted sources, lighting or optical systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2201/0612 Laser diodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/022408 for devices characterised by at least one potential jump barrier or surface barrier
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/03046 including ternary or quaternary compounds, e.g. GaAlAs, InGaAs, InGaAsP
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/035236 Superlattices; Multiple quantum well structures
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/09 Devices sensitive to infrared, visible or ultraviolet radiation H01L31/101 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/173 formed in, or on, a common substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/1844 comprising ternary or quaternary compounds, e.g. Ga Al As, In Ga As P
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0208 Semi-insulating substrates
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0262 Photo-diodes, e.g. transceiver devices, bidirectional devices H01S5/0265 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0264 for monitoring the laser-output
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0287 Facet reflectivity
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/0425 Electrodes, e.g. characterised by the structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/1085 Oblique facets
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/141 using a wavelength selective device, e.g. a grating or etalon H01S5/146 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/22 having a ridge or stripe structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/3401 having no PN junction, e.g. unipolar lasers, intersubband lasers, quantum cascade lasers
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/3402 intersubband lasers, e.g. transitions within the conduction or valence bands
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/34313 with a well layer having only As as V-compound, e.g. AlGaAs, InGaAs
• CPC Class Codes: H01S 5/34346 characterised by the materials of the barrier layers

Abstract

An optical semiconductor element includes a semiconductor substrate, a first laminated structure provided on a front surface of the semiconductor substrate, and a second laminated structure provided on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate, the first laminated structure includes a first quantum cascade region, the second laminated structure includes a dummy region having the same layer structure as the first quantum cascade region, a second quantum cascade region provided on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate via the dummy region, and one of the first quantum cascade region and the second quantum cascade region is a quantum cascade laser, and the other of the first quantum cascade region and the second quantum cascade region is a quantum cascade detector.

Claims

1. An optical semiconductor element comprising:

a semiconductor substrate;

a first laminated structure provided on a front surface of the semiconductor substrate; and

a second laminated structure provided on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate,

wherein the first laminated structure includes a first quantum cascade region having a layer structure,

the second laminated structure includes (i) a dummy region having the same layer structure as the first quantum cascade region and (ii) a second quantum cascade region provided on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate with the dummy region disposed therebetween, and

one of the first quantum cascade region and the second quantum cascade region is a quantum cascade laser, and the other of the first quantum cascade region and the second quantum cascade region is a quantum cascade detector.

2. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 1, wherein the first quantum cascade region is the quantum cascade laser, and the second quantum cascade region is the quantum cascade detector.

3. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 2,

wherein the semiconductor substrate is an n-type or p-type semiconductor substrate,

the first quantum cascade region includes a first active layer and a first contact layer provided on a side opposite to the semiconductor substrate with respect to the first active layer,

the second quantum cascade region includes a second active layer and a second contact layer provided on a side opposite to the semiconductor substrate with respect to the second active layer,

the first active layer is electrically connected to each of the first contact layer and the semiconductor substrate, and

the second active layer is electrically connected to each of the second contact layer and a third contact layer corresponding to the first contact layer in the dummy region.

4. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 3, further comprising:

a first electrode layer provided on a front surface of the first contact layer;

a second electrode layer provided on a back surface of the semiconductor substrate;

a third electrode layer provided on a front surface of the second contact layer; and

a fourth electrode layer provided in a region in which a portion on the second contact layer side relative to the third contact layer is not provided on a front surface of the third contact layer due to the portion being configured as a ridge structure.

5. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 1, wherein the first quantum cascade region is the quantum cascade detector, and the second quantum cascade region is the quantum cascade laser.

6. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 5,

wherein the semiconductor substrate is a semi-insulating substrate,

the first quantum cascade region includes a first active layer, a first contact layer provided on a side opposite to the semiconductor substrate with respect to the first active layer, and a second contact layer provided on the semiconductor substrate side with respect to the first active layer,

the second quantum cascade region includes a second active layer and a third contact layer provided on the side opposite to the semiconductor substrate with respect to the second active layer,

the first active layer is electrically connected to each of the first contact layer and the second contact layer, and

the second active layer is electrically connected to each of the third contact layer and a fourth contact layer corresponding to the first contact layer in the dummy region.

7. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 6, further comprising:

a first electrode layer provided on a front surface of the first contact layer;

a second electrode layer provided in a region in which a portion on the first contact layer side relative to the second contact layer is not provided on a front surface of the second contact layer due to the portion being configured as a ridge structure;

a third electrode layer provided on a front surface of the third contact layer; and

a fourth electrode layer provided in a region in which a portion on the third contact layer side relative to the fourth contact layer is not provided on a front surface of the fourth contact layer due to the portion being configured as a ridge structure.

8. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 1, wherein a light incidence surface of the quantum cascade detector is a surface inclined with respect to a resonance direction of the quantum cascade laser.

9. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 2, wherein a light incidence surface of the quantum cascade detector is a surface inclined with respect to a resonance direction of the quantum cascade laser.

10. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 5, wherein a light incidence surface of the quantum cascade detector is a surface inclined with respect to a resonance direction of the quantum cascade laser.

11. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 1, wherein a light incidence surface of the quantum cascade detector is shifted in a direction parallel to the front surface of the substrate and perpendicular to a resonance direction of the quantum cascade laser.

12. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 2, wherein a light incidence surface of the quantum cascade detector is shifted in a direction parallel to the front surface of the substrate and perpendicular to a resonance direction of the quantum cascade laser.

13. The optical semiconductor element according to claim 5, wherein a light incidence surface of the quantum cascade detector is shifted in a direction parallel to the front surface of the substrate and perpendicular to a resonance direction of the quantum cascade laser.

14. A method of manufacturing an optical semiconductor element according to claim 1, the method comprising:

a step of forming a laminated structure including the first laminated structure and the second laminated structure on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate; and

a step of forming the first laminated structure and the second laminated structure by performing etching on the laminated structure.

15. A method of manufacturing an optical semiconductor element according to claim 2, the method comprising:

a step of forming a laminated structure including the first laminated structure and the second laminated structure on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate; and

a step of forming the first laminated structure and the second laminated structure by performing etching on the laminated structure.

16. A method of manufacturing an optical semiconductor element according to claim 5, the method comprising:

a step of forming a laminated structure including the first laminated structure and the second laminated structure on the front surface of the semiconductor substrate; and

a step of forming the first laminated structure and the second laminated structure by performing etching on the laminated structure.