High Power Diode Lasers

Abstract

The invention relates to ridge waveguide semiconductor diode lasers that include a substrate, a first cladding layer near the substrate, a second cladding layer near the first cladding layer, and an active layer between the first cladding layer and the second cladding layer and extending the distance between a first facet and a second facet of the diode laser. The diode laser includes a cap layer located near the second cladding layer, a ridge formed in the cap layer and the second cladding layer, and a contact layer applied at least at the ridge for injecting current into the active layer. The contact layer contacts the cap layer in a contact region having a length that is less than the distance between the first facet and the second facet such that the cap layer includes an unpumped facet region. Methods to make the new lasers are also described.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.