Light emitting devices

• US 20050145877A1
• Filed: 02/07/2005
• Published: 07/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Luminus Devices Incorporated (Sanan Optoelectronics Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Luminus Devices Incorporated (Sanan Optoelectronics Company Limited)
• Inventors: Erchak, Alexei A.
• Granted Patent: US 7,459,845 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/103
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2933/0083 Periodic patterns for optical field-shaping in or on the semiconductor body or semiconductor body package, e.g. photonic bandgap structures
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/0093 Wafer bonding; Removal of the growth substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/20 with a particular shape, e.g. curved or truncated substrate

Abstract

Light-emitting devices, and related components, systems and methods are disclosed.

Claims

1-57. -57. (canceled)

58. A light-emitting device, comprising:

a multi-layer stack of materials including a light-generating region and a first layer supported by the light-generating region so that, during use of the light-emitting device, light generated by the light-generating region can emerge from the light-emitting device via a surface of the first layer,

wherein the light-emitting device has an edge which is at least about one millimeter long, and the light-emitting device is designed so that a wall plug efficiency of the light-emitting device is substantially independent of the length of the edge of the length of the edge.

59. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the surface of the first layer has features with a size of less than about λ

/5, where λ

is a wavelength of light that can be generated by the light-generating region and that can emerge from the light-emitting device via the surface of the first layer.

60. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the length of the edge is at least about 1.5 millimeters.

61. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the length of the edge is at least about two millimeters.

62. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the length of the edge is at least about 2.5 millimeters.

63. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the length of the edge is at least about three millimeters.

64. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the light-emitting device includes at least one additional edge having a length of at least about one millimeter.

65. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein at least about 90% of the total amount of light generated by the light-generating region that emerges from the light-emitting device emerges from the light-emitting device via the surface of the first layer.

66. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein at least about 95% of the total amount of light generated by the light-generating region that emerges from the light-emitting device emerges from the light-emitting device via the surface of the first layer.

67. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the multi-layer stack of materials comprises a multi-layer stack of semiconductor materials.

68. The light-emitting device of claim 67, wherein the first layer comprises a layer of n-doped semiconductor material, and the multi-layer stack further includes a layer of p-doped semiconductor material.

69. The light-emitting device of claim 68, wherein the light-generating region is between the layer of n-doped semiconductor material and the layer of p-doped semiconductor material.

70. The light-emitting device of claim 58, further comprising a support that supports the multi-layer stack of materials.

71. The light-emitting device of claim 70, further comprising a layer of reflective material that is capable of reflecting at least about 50% of light generated by the light-generating region that impinges on the layer of reflective material, the layer of reflective material being between the support and the multi-layer stack of materials.

72. The light-emitting device of claim 71, wherein the first layer comprises a layer of an n-doped material, the multi-layer stack of materials further includes a layer of p-doped material, and a distance between the layer of p-doped semiconductor material and the layer of reflective material is less than a distance between the layer of n-doped semiconductor material and the layer of reflective material.

73. The light-emitting device of claim 72, further comprising a p-ohmic contact layer between the layer of p-doped material and the layer of reflective material.

74. The light-emitting device of claim 58, further including a current-spreading layer between the first layer and the light-generating region.

75. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the multi-layer stack of materials comprise semiconductor materials.

76. The light-emitting device of claim 75, wherein the semiconductor materials are selected from the group consisting of Ill-V semiconductor materials, organic semiconductor materials and silicon.

77. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the surface of the first layer has a dielectric function that varies spatially according to a pattern that does not extend into the light-generating region.

78. The light-emitting device of claim 58, that does not extend beyond the first layer.

79. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the surface of the first layer has a dielectric function that varies spatially according to a pattern that extends beyond the first layer.

80. The light-emitting device of claim 58, further comprising electrical contacts configured to inject current into the light-emitting device.

81. The light-emitting device of claim 80, wherein the electrical contacts are configured to vertically inject electrical current into the light-emitting device.

82. The light-emitting device of claim 58, wherein the light-emitting device is selected from the group consisting of light-emitting diodes, lasers, optical amplifiers, and combinations thereof.