Improved coupling efficiency of a strained InGaAs-AlGaAs quantum-well laser into a fiber Bragg grating

Abstract

We describe a highly efficient coupling of up to 78% into a single mode fiber (SMF) by utilizing a low-divergence-angle InGaAs-AlGaAs laser and a new high-NA aspheric lens, resulting in the coupled optical output of over 300 mW with a kink-free performance. The kink-free 300 mW of fiber-coupled power is the largest power reported from a diode laser wavelength stabilized using a fiber Bragg grating. A 3% fiber Bragg grating makes the optical output stabilize at a wavelength of 1.016 μm for an optical output power up to 310 mW and without any distinct decrease of the optical output. The coupling tolerance for lateral offsets is improved by utilizing a thermal-diffused expanded-core technique even in the case of using a high-NA coupling aspheric lens. We have also achieved a 300-mW fiber-coupled wavelength-stabilized InGaAs-AlGaAs semiconductor laser butterfly module using a fiber Bragg grating.