Tunable semiconductor laser device based on piezoelectric heterostructures

Abstract

Summary form only given. The tuning of a semiconductor laser diode (LD) is usually achieved by tuning a dispersive intracavity element, such as a grating or a distributed Bragg reflector, through the LD gain spectrum. Instead, in this work, we seek to tune the LD by directly shifting the LD gain spectrum using the quantum confined Stark effect (QCSE) during lasing. The device we propose here is original in the sense that it is the injected carriers themselves that create in the heart of the structure a space-charge electric field which in turn modulates the laser wavelength through QCSE. To obtain this we make use of the piezoelectric effect present in strained epitaxial layers grown on a high index surface, such as for example (111).