Asymmetric quantum well broadband thyristor laser * * Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 61604144, 61504137). Zhen Liu and Jiaqi Wang contributed equally to this work.

Abstract

A broadband thyristor laser based on InGaAs/GaAs asymmetric quantum well (AQW) is fabricated by metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). The 3-μm-wide Fabry–Perot (FP) ridge-waveguide laser shows an S-shape I−V characteristic and exhibits a flat-topped broadband optical spectrum coverage of ~27 nm (Δ−10 dB) at a center wavelength of ~1090 nm with a total output power of 137 mW under pulsed operation. The AQW structure was carefully designed to establish multiple energy states within, in order to broaden the gain spectrum. An obvious blue shift emission, which is not generally acquired in QW laser diodes, is observed in the broadening process of the optical spectrum as the injection current increases. This blue shift spectrum broadening is considered to result from the prominent band-filling effect enhanced by the multiple energy states of the AQW structure, as well as the optical feedback effect contributed by the thyristor laser structure.