Semiconductor laser diode mode properties arising from engineered photonic crystals
North, William Keith
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/121355
Description
Title
Semiconductor laser diode mode properties arising from engineered photonic crystals
Author(s)
North, William Keith
Issue Date
2023-07-12
Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)
Choquette, Kent D
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Choquette, Kent D
Committee Member(s)
Lee, Minjoo L
Goddard, Lynford L
Dragic, Peter D
Department of Study
Electrical & Computer Eng
Discipline
Electrical & Computer Engr
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Optical coupling
Phased arrays
Semiconductor laser arrays
Vertical cavity surface emitting lasers
Abstract
Semiconductor lasers are an essential technology that finds widespread use in numerous applications. The performance of these lasers depends on their modal characteristics, which, in turn, are determined by the laser cavity's design. As a result, the laser cavity plays a critical role in tailoring the device to a specific application. This work explores modifications to the cavity through dual-element coupled vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) arrays, photonic crystal surface emitting lasers (PCSEL), and topological cavity surface emitting lasers (TCSEL), all of which use photonic crystals. Our analysis of the VCSEL array reveals that the device operates in three distinct regimes: a single independent local mode, a region of two modes that are primarily localized into a specific cavity, and a region of two supermodes whose fields extend across both elements. When we focus our analysis on the coherently-coupled region, we identify two supermodes that create a photon-photon resonance, which enhances the digital modulation in these devices. We also investigate PCSELs and TCSELs for use in high-brightness applications, where a buried dielectric photonic crystal is used to create a photonic bandgap which is scalable while maintaining a single mode. We discuss the requirements for device fabrication, define mask layouts, and optimize design parameters. Overall, this work presents a comprehensive analysis of various modifications to a semiconductor laser diode cavity and highlights their potential for emerging applications.
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