[en] A thin layer of sputtered SiO₂ film was deposited on AlGaAs/AlGaInAs multiple quantum well (MQW) samples and a subsequent rapid thermal annealing (RTA) was carried out. Photoluminescence (PL) studies showed a 60 meV band-gap shift for the AlGaAs/AlGaInAs MQW. An interdiffusion length of 10.7 Angst corresponding to the above band-gap shift in the MQW was obtained using transfer matrix method (TMM). An apparent diffusion coefficient was evaluated to be 1.43x10^-16 cm²/s. We also calculated the energy levels of the AlGaAs/GaAs MQW with four single wells using TMM and compared the calculated results with the experimental values from the PL measurements. The comparison shows good agreement. To see the influence of RTA condition on PL characteristics of the wells at different depth beneath the surface of the sample, we annealed the SiO₂ film covered AlGaAs/GaAs MQW at 650-780 deg. C for 20-80 s. A subsequent PL measurement shows that the photoluminescence characteristics of the four single quantum wells behave differently with the change of RTA condition. The PL intensities of the wells close to the surface and the bottom of the AlGaAs/GaAs MQW are sensitive to the RTA condition while those of the wells in the middle of the MQW show little variations with the change of RTA conditions

[en] Ga_0.6In_0.4P/(Al_0.8Ga_0.2)_0.4In_0.6P strain-compensated multiple quantum wells (SCMQW) and Ga_0.5In_0.5P/(Al_0.4Ga_0.6)_0.5In_0.5P unstrained MQW were grown by MOVPE to investigate the shift of photoluminescence (PL) peak wavelength and the carrier lifetime caused by strain effect in SCMQW. The PL peaks of SCMQW and unstrained MQW were 608 and 628 nm, respectively. From the rocking curve of SCMQW, it indicated that the active layers of SCMQW were not zero net strain. The residual strain caused the emission intensity of SCMQW to be about four times weaker than that of unstrained MQW. The carrier lifetimes of SCMQW and unstrained MQW were measured to be 3 and 6.02 ns, respectively. It was conjectured that the residual strain in SCMQW induced a decrease in the carrier lifetime by a factor of two with respect to that of unstrained MQW

[en] We experimentally investigate and analyze the electrical and optical characteristics of InGaAs/GaAs conventional quantum well laser diode and the quantum well laser diode with slightly-doped tunnel junction. It was found that the laser with slightly-doped tunnel junction has a nonlinear S-shape current-voltage characteristic. The internal quantum efficiencies of the laser with slightly-doped tunnel junction and the conventional laser are 21 and 87.3%, respectively. This suggests that the slightly-doped tunnel junction increased the barrier width and free carrier absorption, thus could reduce the electron tunneling probability and increase the internal loss. Furthermore, compared with the conventional laser, it was found that we could achieve 15 nm broadband spectrum from the laser with slightly-doped tunnel junction, due to the lasing dynamics reflecting the current dynamics. The results show that the slightly-doped tunnel junction plays a crucial role in the laser diode performances, which may lead to the realization of more applications.

[en] A 100-μm-long electroabsorption modulator monolithically integrated with passive waveguides at the input and output ports is fabricated through ion implantation induced quantum well intermixing, using only a two-step low-pressure metal-organic vapor phase epitaxial process. An InGaAsP/InGaAsP intra-step quantum well is introduced to the active region to improve the modulation properties. In the experiment high modulation speed and high extinction ratio are obtained simultaneously, the electrical-to-optical frequency response (E/O response) without any load termination reaches to 22 GHz, and extinction ration is as high as 16 dB.

[en] The effects of the multimode diluted waveguide on quantum efficiency and saturation behavior of the evanescently coupled uni-traveling carrier (UTC) photodiode structures are reported. Two kinds of evanescently coupled uni-traveling carrier photodiodes (EC-UTC-PD) were designed and characterized: one is a conventional EC-UTC-PD structure with a multimode diluted waveguide integrated with a UTC-PD; and the other is a compact EC-UTC-PD structure which fused the multimode diluted waveguide and the UTC-PD structure together. The effect of the absorption behavior of the photodiodes on the efficiency and saturation characteristics of the EC-UTC-PDs is analyzed using 3-D beam propagation method, and the results indicate that both the responsivity and saturation power of the compact EC-UTC-PD structures can be further improved by incorporating an optimized compact multimode diluted waveguide.

[en] A 1.65-μm three-section distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) laser for CH_4 gas sensors is reported. The DBR laser has a wide tunable range covering the R3 and R4 methane absorption line manifolds. The wavelength tunability properties, temperature stability and laser linewidth are characterized and analyzed. Several advantages were demonstrated compared with traditional DFB lasers in harmonic detection. (semiconductor devices)

[en] We present a single-mode laser on a p-InP substrate suitable for bonding on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafer. The laser can realize single mode lasing with etching perturbing slots by standard photolithography and an inductively coupled-plasma (ICP) etching technique without any regrowth steps. The parameters were designed using the simulation tool “cavity modeling framework” (CAMFR). The single mode of 1539 nm wavelength at the threshold current of 130 mA with the maximum output power of 3.9 mW was obtained at 10 °C in continuous-wave operation. The simple technology, low cost and the single-mode characteristics make the broad area slotted single-mode FP laser a promising light source on the silicon-based optical interconnection applications. (paper)

[en] High output powers and wide range tuning have been achieved in a sampled grating distributed Bragg reflector laser with an integrated semiconductor optical amplifier. Tilted amplifier and anti-reflection facet coating are used to suppress reflection. We have demonstrated sampled grating DBR laser with a tuning range over 38 nm, good wavelength coverage and peak output powers of more than 9 mW for all wavelengths.

[en] Photoluminescence (PL) and lasing properties of InAs/GaAs quantum dots (QDs) with different growth procedures prepared by metalorganic chemical vapour deposition are studied. PL measurements show that the low growth rate QD sample has a larger PL intensity and a narrower PL line width than the high growth rate sample. During rapid thermal annealing, however, the low growth rate sample shows a greater blueshift of PL peak wavelength. This is caused by the larger InAs layer thickness which results from the larger 2–3 dimensional transition critical layer thickness for the QDs in the low-growth-rate sample. A growth technique including growth interruption and in-situ annealing, named indium flush method, is used during the growth of GaAs cap layer, which can flatten the GaAs surface effectively. Though the method results in a blueshift of PL peak wavelength and a broadening of PL line width, it is essential for the fabrication of room temperature working QD lasers. (condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties)

[en] Silicon-based photonic integration has attracted the interest of semiconductor scientists because it has high luminous efficiency and electron mobility. Breakthroughs have been made in silicon-based integrated lasers over the past few decades. Here we review three main methods of integration of III–V materials on Si, namely direct growth, bonding, and selective-area hetero-epitaxy. The III–V materials we introduced mainly include materials such as GaAs and InP. The lasers are mainly lasers of related communication bands. We also introduced the advantages and challenges of the three methods. (paper)