Calculated threshold currents of nitride- and phosphide-based quantum-well lasers

We have calculated the room temperature gain-current characteristics for a 360 nm wavelength, 80 /spl Aring/ GaN-Al/sub 0.14/Ga/sub 0.86/N and a red-emitting, 80 /spl Aring/ Ga/sub 0.51/In/sub 0.49/P-(Al/sub 0.44/Ga/sub 0.56/)/sub 0.51/In/sub 0.49/P quantum well laser structures, including many body effects. Although the carrier density and spontaneous current are much higher (by a factor of 4 and 3, respectively) in the nitride structures for a given local gain, the higher confinement factor at short wavelengths means the intrinsic threshold current of these devices is predicted to be approximately twice that of red lasers with the same optical loss.