1.3-μm-range GaInNAsSb-GaAs VCSELs

1.3-μm-range GaInNAsSb vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) with the doped mirror were investigated. GaInNASb active layers that include a small amount of Sb can be easily grown in a two-dimensional manner as compared with GaInNAs due to the suppression of the formation of three-dimensional growth in MBE growth. The authors obtained the lowest J_th per well (150 A/cm²/well) for the edge-emission type lasers due to the high quality of GaInNAsSb quantum wells. Using this material for the active media, the authors accomplished the first continuous wave operation of 1.3-μm-range GaInNAsSb VCSELs. For the reduction of the threshold voltage and the differential resistance, they used the doped mirror grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). By three-step growth, they obtained 1.3-μm GaInNAs-based VCSELs with the low threshold current density (3.6 kA/cm²), the low threshold voltage (1.2 V), and the low differential resistance (60 Ω) simultaneously for the first time. The back-to-back transmission was carried out up to 5 Gb/s. Further, the uniform operation of 10-ch VCSEL array was demonstrated. The maximum output power of 1 mW was obtained at 20°C by changing the reflectivity of the front distributed Bragg reflector mirror. GaInNAsSb VCSELs were demonstrated to be very promising material for realizing the 1.3-μm signal light sources, and the usage of the doped mirror grown by MOCVD is the best way for 1.3-μm VCSELs.