Above-room-temperature operation of IV–VI microcavity lasers

We report on above-room-temperature operation of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers emitting in the mid-infrared. The stimulated emission is generated in PbTe quantum wells embedded in IV–VI microcavities by optically pumping with fs laser pulses. The spectrum of the laser modes is broadened and blue shifted due to dynamic band filling. At a wavelength of View the MathML source, laser operation is obtained up to a temperature of 30°C, limited by the detuning of the microcavity resonance and the quantum well emission.