Invited column-“Infrared semiconductor lasers”
2018, 47(10): 1003001.
doi: 10.3788/IRLA201847.1003001
Quantum cascade laser (QCL) has been widely applied in directed infrared countermeasures (DIRCM) system, free space optical communication (FSOC) and gas sensing since it has advantages of high efficiency, compact volume, low electrical consumption and wide wavelength tunability. In this paper, the progress in QCLs made over the last 20 years was reviewed. The principle of emission and overview of QCL was demonstrated in the introduction. The design of active region for high output power QCL aiming at DIRCM was described in the first part. In the second part, the progress in distributed-feedback QCLs for gas sensing was introduced. In the third part, the research of high brightness QCL phase locked arrays was demonstrated. In the fourth part, the high speed QCL for FSOC was discussed. Finally, a new device, QCL frequency comb was introduced for its crucial influence on mid-infrared frequency comb.
2018, 47(10): 1003002.
doi: 10.3788/IRLA201847.1003002
Mid-infrared semiconductor lasers possess the advantages of small volume and high efficiency and have important application prospects in the field of environmental detection, space communication and military defense. However, the output power of mid-infrared semiconductor laser device is low, which limits its application in the above fields. Laser beam combining technology is an important approach to enhance the power of mid-infrared semiconductor lasers. In this paper, several beam combining methods and the latest progress of mid-infrared semiconductor lasers were introduced in detail.
2018, 47(10): 1003003.
doi: 10.3788/IRLA201847.1003003
The mid-infrared lasers of 3-4 m can be widely used in industrial gas detection, medical treatment and free space optical communication. At present, the antimonide semiconductor interband cascade laser is an ideal scheme for realizing 3-4 m in the middle infrared band. The interband cascade laser (ICL) may be considered the hybrid of a conventional diode laser that generates photons via electron-hole recombination, and an intersubband-based quantum cascade laser (QCL) that stacks multiple stages for enhanced current efficiency. This paper gives an overview of the basic working principle of inter-band cascade lasers, and describes the development history of major inter-band cascade lasers, including the University of Oklahoma, the US Naval Laboratory, and the University of Woodsburg. The performance of the interband cascade laser developed by the Institute of Semiconductors of the Chinese Academy of Sciences is also included. By analyzing the difficulties in designing and preparing the laser, the technical solution to further improve the performance of this kind of lasers is expounded.
2018, 47(10): 1003004.
doi: 10.3788/IRLA201847.1003004
GaSb based optically pumped semiconductor disk lasers (OP-SDLs) attracts considerable attention in novel mid-infrared laser device research field for their potential excellent beam quality and high output power. The epitaxy structure and basic principle of GaSb based OP-SDLs wafers were summarized. The development of GaSb based OP-SDLs at 2 m wavelength was reviewed respectively by analyzing the aspects of wavelength extending, power scaling, line-width narrowing, short-pulse generation and effective thermal management. The technical development direction and application prospects of this type of laser were discussed.
