SBIR-STTR Award

Surface emitting semiconductor lasers eliminate the necessity for facet cleaving and allow for wafer scale testing, which increase the manufacturing yield and reduces the cost. However, in the mid-infrared, surface emitting semiconductor lasers are significantly underdeveloped compared to edge emitting devices. The proposed research will investigate the feasibility of using ring-cavity surface-emitting quantum cascade lasers for power scaling at a wavelength of 4.5 0x81 m. This approach allows for two-dimensional integration of multiple emitters on a single chip. A single mode emitting spectrum, excellent beam quality, and high power can be simultaneously achieved with this technology.

Benefit:
The proposed research is intended to solve one of the key technology issues regarding power scaling of mid-infrared semiconductor lasers in room temperature continuous wave operation. Existing technologies using longer cavity or tapered cavity are eventually limited by catastrophic mirror damage or thermal stress due to uneven temperature distribution. The proposed quantum cascade ring lasers overcome these limitations by moving from edge emitting to surface emitting, while at the same time reducing the manufacturing cost. The proposed high power mid-infrared laser sources are highly attractive for standoff spectroscopy, free-space communication and infrared countermeasure systems, in which cost, size, and weight are prime factors. Upon completion of the project, an inexpensive, compact, and lightweight mid-infrared laser source will be available for a much broader range of applications.

Keywords:
Surface Emitting, Surface Emitting, Quantum Cascade Laser, ring cavity, distributed feedback

Surface emitting semiconductor lasers eliminate the necessity for facet cleaving and allow for wafer scale testing, which increase the manufacturing yield and reduces the cost. However, in the mid-infrared, surface emitting semiconductor lasers are significantly underdeveloped compared to edge emitting devices. The proposed STTR Phase II research is to demonstrate a prototype using ring-cavity surface-emitting quantum cascade laser (QCL) array for power scaling at a wavelength of 4.5 microns. This approach allows for two-dimensional integration of multiple emitters on a single chip. A single mode emitting spectrum, excellent beam quality, and high power can be simultaneously achieved with this technology. The proposed high power mid-infrared laser sources are highly attractive for standoff spectroscopy, free-space communication and infrared countermeasure systems, in which cost, size, and weight are prime factors. Upon completion of the project, an inexpensive, compact, and lightweight mid-infrared laser source will be available for a much broader range of applications.

Benefit:
The proposed research is intended to solve one of the key technology issues regarding power scaling of mid-infrared semiconductor lasers in room temperature continuous wave operation. Existing technologies using longer cavity or tapered cavity are eventually limited by catastrophic mirror damage or thermal stress due to uneven temperature distribution. The proposed quantum cascade ring lasers overcome these limitations by moving from edge emitting to surface emitting, while at the same time reducing the manufacturing cost. The proposed high power mid-infrared laser sources are highly attractive for standoff spectroscopy, free-space communication and infrared countermeasure systems, in which cost, size, and weight are prime factors. Upon completion of the project, an inexpensive, compact, and lightweight mid-infrared laser source will be available for a much broader range of applications.

Keywords:
Surface Emitting, Quantum Cascade Laser, distributed feedback, ring cavity