This Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I research project will develop a reliable, high power (1 to 10 W), stable, efficient, single-frequency surface-emitting semiconductor laser in the 9xx to 10xx nm range. The proposed device will have the capability for high speed (~ 40 Gbps), low chirp modulation at high powers by adjusting the phase of the optical fields entering an outcoupler grating. The technology roadmap for this loss-coupled distributed feedback (DFB)/distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) Phase-Shift Modulated (PSM) Grating-outcoupled Surface-Emitting (GSE) laser requires developing a quantum wire (QWR) Slab Coupled Optical Waveguide Laser (SCOWL) structure. These proposed devices represent an innovative approach to improving the efficiency of moderate power, low coherent sources to high power, coherent sources that can be used for laser displays, lidar or free space communication applications. Unlike VCSELs and edge-emitting semiconductor lasers, the technology roadmap for this grating-stabilized Phase-Shift Modulated (PSM) Grating-outcoupled Surface-Emitting (GSE) laser includes integration of the electronic circuitry and signal processing capability. The proposed device contains two major innovations: 1) very high single-frequency power with high reliability, and 2) very high-speed modulation at high power. The high power is achieved with a SCOWL concept.
The knowledge to develop such a device requires expertise in materials, optics, gratings, nanostructures, semiconductor processing, material growth, thermal transfer, high-speed electronics, packaging and systems. The advanced research proposed is an innovative photonics and electronics technology that has broad applications in telecommunications, information processing, data communications, fiber to the business and home, entertainment, instrumentation and computations. A very important application of 1064 nm and 920 nm single-frequency, diffraction-limited high power devices is frequency doubling to obtain green (532 nm) and blue (460nm) lasers for display and storage applications.
