Polarization Control in High Peak Power, High Brightness VCSEL

A VCSEL device comprising one or more VCSEL constructed on a common substrate, each VCSEL comprising:

• a first and a second reflectors forming a cavity having periodic resonant optical modes exhibiting nodes and antinodes;
• a gain region positioned between the first and second reflectors, said gain region including;
• a plurality of gain segments in tandem, each gain segment located in physical space coinciding with a different one of an antinode of the periodic resonant optical modes, wherein each gain segment includes one or more quantum wells bounded by confinement regions, one on either side,
• a tunnel junction positioned between adjacent gain segments, and
• one or more current confining apertures located within the gain region in a position that is one selected from the group consisting of, between one or more of the gain segments, between the gain region and the first reflector, the gain region and the second reflector, and a suitable combination thereof, and
• first and second electrical contact regions providing electrical connection to first and second electrical terminals of the VCSEL device, respectively;
• and
• a third reflector placed at a distance away from the VCSEL device to set up an extended cavity to facilitate high power and high brightness laser emission.