Design and development of distributed feedback transistor lasers

Dixon, Forest P.

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/16840 Copy

Description

Title

Design and development of distributed feedback transistor lasers

Author(s)

Dixon, Forest P.

Issue Date

2010-08-20T17:59:30Z

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Feng, Milton

Doctoral Committee Chair(s)

Feng, Milton

Committee Member(s)

• Holonyak, Nick, Jr.
• Hsieh, Kuang-Chien
• Cheng, Keh-Yung

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)

• Transistor laser
• Distributed feedback
• Nanoimprint lithography

Abstract

The transistor laser is a unique three-port device that operates simultaneously as a transistor and a laser. With quantum wells incorporated in the base regions of heterojunction bipolar transistors, the transistor laser possesses advantageous characteristics of fast base spontaneous carrier lifetime, high differential optical gain, and electrical-optical characteristics for direct “read-out” of its optical properties. These devices have demonstrated many useful features such as high-speed optical transmission without the limitations of resonance, non-linear mixing, frequency multiplication, negative resistance, and photon-assisted switching. To date, all of these devices operate as multi-mode lasers without any type of wavelength selection or stabilizing mechanisms. Stable single-mode distributed feedback diode laser sources are important in many applications including spectroscopy, as pump sources for amplifiers and solid-state lasers, for use in coherent communication systems, and now as TLs potentially for integrated optoelectronics. The subject of this work is to expand the future applications of the transistor laser by demonstrating the theoretical background, process development and device design necessary to achieve singlelongitudinal- mode operation in a three-port transistor laser. A third-order distributed feedback surface grating is fabricated in the top emitter AlGaAs confining layers using soft photocurable nanoimprint lithography. The device produces continuous wave laser operation with a peak wavelength of 959.75 nm and threshold current of 13 mA operating at -70 °C. For devices with cleaved ends a side-mode suppression ratio greater than 25 dB has been achieved.

Graduation Semester

2010-08

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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/16840

Copyright and License Information

Copyright Forest P. Dixon

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