Single-mode holey vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser with ultra-narrow beam divergence

We demonstrated oxide-confined 850-nm vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) with a two-dimensional petal-shaped holey structure composed of several annular-sector-shaped holes. Four types of devices with different hole numbers were designed and fabricated. The measured results showed that the larger hole number was beneficial to purifying the lasing mode, and realizing the single-mode operation. The side mode suppression ratio (SMSR) exceeded 30 dB throughout the entire drive current. Mode selective loss mechanism was used to explain the single-mode characteristic. The single-mode devices possessed good beam profiles, and the lowest divergence angle was as narrow as 3.2 degrees (full width at half maximum), attributed to the graded index profile and the shallow etching in the top distributed Bragg reflector (DBR).

Reduced divergence angle of photonic crystal vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser

The reduced divergence angle of the photonic crystal vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (PC-VCSEL) was investigated in both theory and experiment. The photonic crystal waveguide possessed the weakly guiding waveguide characteristic, which accounted for the reduction of the divergence angle. The three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain method was used to simulate the designed PC-VCSEL, and a calculated divergence angle of 5.2 degrees was obtained. The measured divergence angles of our fabricated PC-VCSEL were between 5.1 degrees and 5.5 degrees over the entire drive current range, consistent with the numerical results. This is the lowest divergence angle of the fabricated PC-VCSEL ever reported.

Theoretical investigation on quantum well lasers with extremely low vertical beam divergence and low threshold current

A specially designed quantum well laser for achieving extremely low vertical beam divergence was reported and theoretically investigated. The laser structure was characterized by two low index layers inserted between the waveguide layers and the cladding layers. The additional layers were intended to achieve wide optical spread in the cladding layers and strong confinement in the active region. This enabled significant reduction of beam divergence with no sacrifice in threshold current density. The numerical results showed that lasers with extremely low vertical beam divergence from 20 degrees down to 11 degrees and threshold current density of less than 131 A/cm(2) can be easily achieved by optimization of the structure parameters. Influences of individual key structure parameters on beam divergence and threshold current density are analyzed. Attention is also paid to the minimum cladding layer thicknesses needed to maintain low threshold current densities and low internal loss. The near and far field patterns are given and discussed. (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics.

Small-divergence singlemode emitting tapered distributed-feedback quantum cascade lasers

A tapered distributed feedback quantum cascade laser emitting at lambda similar to 8.1 mu m is reported. Utilising a tapered waveguide structure with a surface metal grating, the device exhibited singlemode operation over the temperature range of 100 to 214 K, with sidemode suppression ratio > 20 dB and a nearly diffraction limited far-field beam divergence angle of 5.4 degrees.

Narrow-beam divergence 1.55μm laser diodes with integrated self-aligned spotsize conVerter

This paper describes the high performance of narrow-beam divergence spot size converter (SSC) integrated separately confined heterostructure (SCH) LD. The upper optical confinement layer (OCL) and the butt-coupled tapered thickness waveguide were regrown simultaneously, which not only offered the separated optimization of the active region and the integrated spotsize converter, but also reduced the difficulty of the butt-joint selective regrowth. The threshold current was as low as 5.4 mA, the output power at 55 mA was 10.1 mW, the vertical and horizontal far field divergence angles were as low as 9°and 15°, and the 1-dB misalignment tolerances were 3.6 and 3.4μm, respectively.

A Single Mode 980nm InGaAs/GaAs/AlGaAs Large Optical Cavity Quantum Well Laser with Low Vertical Divergence Angle

To achieve high optical power as well as low vertical divergence angle, a new kind of optimized large optical cavity (LOC) structure is applied to a ridge waveguide 980nm InGaAs/GaAs/AlGaAs multi-quantum well laser. The optical power density in the waveguide is successfully reduced. The maximum output power is more than 400mW with a slope efficiency of 0.89W/A and the far-field vertical divergence angle is lowered to 23°.

High efficiency, low vertical divergence angle 980nnn Al-free active region lasers with novel large optical cavity and asymmetrical cladding layers

980nm InGaAs/InGaAsP/AlGaAs strained quantum well lasers,vitta novel large optical cavity and asymmetrical claddings was fabricated bg MOCVD. Very high differential quantum efficiency elf 90% (1.15W/A) and low vertical divergence angle of 24 degrees at long cavity length were obtained for 100 mu m stripe lasers. The differential quantum efficiency is up to 94% (1.20) at cavity length of 500 mu m.

Effect of self-generated magnetic fields on fast-electron beam divergence in solid targets

The collimating effect of self-generated magnetic fields on fast-electron transport in solid aluminium targets irradiated by ultra-intense, picosecond laser pulses is investigated in this study. As the target thickness is varied in the range of 25 mu m to 1.4 mm, the maximum energies of protons accelerated from the rear surface are measured to infer changes in the fast-electron density and therefore the divergence of the fast-electron beam transported through the target. Purely ballistic spreading of the fast-electrons would result in a much faster decrease in the maximum proton energy with increasing target thickness than that measured. This implies that some degree of 'global' magnetic pinching of the fast-electrons occurs, particularly for thick (>400 mu m) targets. Numerical simulations of electron transport are in good agreement with the experimental data and show that the pinching effect of the magnetic field in thin targets is significantly reduced due to disruption of the field growth by refluxing fast-electrons.

Effect of laser intensity on fast-electron-beam divergence in solid-density plasmas

Metal foil targets were irradiated with 1 mu m wavelength (lambda) laser pulses of 5 ps duration and focused intensities (I) of up to 4x10(19) W cm(-2), giving values of both I lambda(2) and pulse duration comparable to those required for fast ignition inertial fusion. The divergence of the electrons accelerated into the target was determined from spatially resolved measurements of x-ray K-alpha emission and from transverse probing of the plasma formed on the back of the foils. Comparison of the divergence with other published data shows that it increases with I lambda(2) and is independent of pulse duration. Two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations reproduce these results, indicating that it is a fundamental property of the laser-plasma interaction.

Numerical study of neutron beam divergence in a beam-fusion scenario employing laser driven ions

The most established route to create a laser-based neutron source is by employing laser accelerated, low atomic-number ions in fusion reactions. In addition to the high reaction cross-sections at moderate energies of the projectile ions, the anisotropy in neutron emission is another important feature of beam-fusion reactions. Using a simple numerical model based on neutron generation in a pitcher–catcher scenario, anisotropy in neutron emission was studied for the deuterium–deuterium fusion reaction. Simulation results are consistent with the narrow-divergence ( ∼ 70 ° full width at half maximum) neutron beam recently served in an experiment employing multi-MeV deuteron beams of narrow divergence (up to 30° FWHM, depending on the ion energy) accelerated by a sub-petawatt laser pulse from thin deuterated plastic foils via the Target Normal Sheath Acceleration mechanism. By varying the input ion beam parameters, simulations show that a further improvement in the neutron beam directionality (i.e. reduction in the beam divergence) can be obtained by increasing the projectile ion beam temperature and cut-off energy, as expected from interactions employing higher power lasers at upcoming facilities.

基于正交频率变换的高功率蓝绿全固态激光器

对多横模全固态激光器使用正交频率变换进行了分析,计算了频率转换效率与激光发散角的关系。使用双KTP晶体正交倍频的方法,对Nd∶YAG激光器输出的含有高阶横模的激光进行倍频实验研究。在1064 nm Nd∶YAG激光基波功率密度为121 MW/cm2时,其谐波转换效率达到75.5%。研究表明,对于光束质量较差的基波激光,采用正交频率变换的方式,适当选择晶体参数,同样可以获得较高效率的二次谐波输出。

侧面抽运国产Nd∶YAG陶瓷棒的激光特性

实验研究了激光二极管阵列(LDA)侧向抽运国产Nd∶YAG陶瓷棒的准连续及被动调Q激光输出特性。该陶瓷激光器采用LDA侧面紧密环绕均匀排布的抽运结构,陶瓷棒抽运区域长度为20 mm,其总尺寸为3 mm×35 mm,掺杂原子数分数为~1%。在千赫兹准连续运转条件下,当平-平谐振腔的输出耦合镜透过率为47.3%时,获得最大平均功率23 W的1064 nm激光输出,光束发散角为4.5 mrad,斜率效率达12%。在谐振腔内插入Cr4+∶YAG晶体作为被动调Q开关,成功地实现了陶瓷激光器千赫兹重复频率调Q激光脉冲输出,当Cr4+∶YAG晶体初始透过率为60%时,输出激光脉冲宽度(半峰全宽)可窄至14.5 ns,调Q动静比约为40%。

Kilohertz electro-optic Q-switched Nd : YAG ceramic laser

We investigate the lasing characteristics of a laser-diode-array side-pumped electro-optic Q-switched Nd:Y3Al5O12 ceramic laser operating at 1000 Hz pulse repetition rate. Using a YAG poltcrystalline rod with Nd3+ concentration at 1 at.% as the gain medium, pumping with 808 nm laser-diode-arrays, the Q-switched laser output at 1064 nm wavelength with 23 mJ pulse energy and less than 12 ns FWHM pulse width are obtained at a pumping power of about 400 W, the slope efficiency is around 15%, the output beam divergence angle is about 1.2 mrad.

Laser diode monolithically integrated with an electroabsorption modulator and dual-waveguide spot-size converter

A 1.60-mu m laser diode and electroabsorption modulator monolithically integrated with a dual-waveguide spot-size converter output for low-loss coupling to cleaved single-mode optical fiber is demonstrated. The devices emit in a single transverse and quasi-single longitudinal mode with a side mode suppression ratio of 25.6 dB. These devices exhibit a 3-dB modulation bandwidth of 16.0 GHz, and modulator extinction ratios of 16.2 dB dc. The beam divergence angle is about 7.3x10.6 deg, resulting in 3.0-dB coupling loss with cleaved single-mode optical fiber. (c) 2005 Society of Photo-optical Instrumentation Engineers.