Design of in-well pumping semiconductor membrane lasers with a compound waveguide grating structure

• Published in: Optics and laser technology 2022-05, Vol.149, p.107925, Article 107925
• Main Authors: Cui, Wenda, Huang, Hanchang, Song, Changqing, Han, Kai, Wang, Hongyan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Gratings; High gain; Laser applications; Laser beams; Lasers; Membranes; Multi Quantum Wells; Nanostructure; Semiconductor lasers; Semiconductor membranes; Standing waves; Subwavelength structures; Waveguides
• ISSN: 0030-3992; 1879-2545
• DOI: 10.1016/j.optlastec.2022.107925

•The gain chip in this paper is designed with quantum wells (QWs) embedded in the compound dielectric waveguide grating (CDWG). Parameters of the grating profile and QWs are optimized to excite guided mode resonance (GMR) at both pump and laser wavelength. As a result, high reflections are realized, and a novel DBR-free semiconductor membrane laser is presented.•Pump and laser wavelengths are chosen by manipulating the nanostructure to realize in-well pumping. Furthermore, since light field localization arises in the QWs layer due to the GMR effect, quantum wells are arranged at the standing wave antinodes of the localized light field. Calculation result shows that the confinement factor achieves theoretical maximum of a resonant periodic gain (RPG) arrangement.•The membrane laser shows good thermal management and is able to realize kilowatt-level outputting power. Semiconductor membranes used as laser gain media provide wide spectral tuning and high gain. Rigorous coupled-wave analysis is used to propose an optically pumped semiconductor membrane laser based on a compound waveguide grating structure, which comprises a grating layer and a multi-quantum-well membrane. The pump and laser beams are reflected simultaneously by the nanostructure, and the light field is localized at the multi-quantum-well semiconductor layer. Good overlapping between standing wave antinodes and quantum wells is provided by manipulating nanostructure parameters, so efficient in-well pumping can be realized while the confinement factor reaches its theoretical maximum. The designed membrane laser also presents good thermal performances and the capability of kilowatt-level outputting power. This preliminary study promotes development of high-power-and-efficiency semiconductor lasers.