Tailoring of high power VCSEL arrays
AssigneeII-Vi Delaware, Inc.
InventorsGiuseppe Tandoi, Norbert Lichtenstein, Lukas Mutter, Andre Bisig
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Abstract
Modification of the topology of selected regions of individual VCSEL devices during fabrication is utilized to provide an array output beam with specific characteristics (e.g., “uniform” output power across the array). These physical features include at least the width of the metal aperture, the width of the oxide aperture, and/or the geometry of the contact ring structure on the top of the VCSEL device. The modifications may also function to adjust the numerical apertures (NAs) of the devices, the beam waist, wallplug efficiency, and the like.
Claims20
A method of controlling optical properties of an array of vertical cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) devices, each individual VCSEL device comprising a pair of distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs), an active region disposed between the pair of DBRs, an oxide layer formed in proximity to the active region with a central oxide aperture defining properties of an emitted beam, a dielectric layer formed over an upper DBR of the pair of DBRs and having a contact ring opening, and a metal contact layer disposed over the dielectric layer and into the contact ring opening, the metal contact layer including a central aperture defining an emission window of the VCSEL, the method including the steps of:
- a) determining an optical output property of the VCSEL array to be controlled;
- b) selecting one or more physical features of a VCSEL device to be modified to provide the optical output property determined in step a), the one or more physical features selected from the group consisting of:
- the metal contact layer aperture and contact ring opening geometry;
- and
- c) modifying geometries of selected physical features of individual VCSEL devices forming the VCSEL array in combination with modifying a diameter of the central oxide aperture to provide the optical output property determined in step a).
An array of vertical cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) devices, the array exhibiting physical features tailored to provide a predetermined optical array output property, the array comprising
- a plurality of individual VCSEL devices, each device comprising a pair of distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs), an active region disposed between the pair of DBRs, an oxide layer formed in proximity to the active region and having a central oxide aperture defining properties of an emitted beam, a dielectric layer formed over an upper DBR of the pair of DBRs and having a contact ring opening, and a metal contact layer disposed over the dielectric layer and into the contact ring opening, the metal contact layer including an aperture defining an emission window of the VCSEL,
- wherein selected ones of the metal layer apertures and contact openings in the dielectric layer of selected ones of the plurality of VCSEL devices are configured to provide the desired optical array output property.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.