Vertical cavity surface emitting laser, method for fabricating vertical cavity surface emitting laser

A method for fabricating a vertical cavity surface emitting laser comprising:

• preparing an epitaxial substrate, the epitaxial substrate including a lower semiconductor laminate for a lower distributed Bragg reflecting region, a semiconductor laminate for an active layer, and an upper semiconductor laminate for an upper distributed Bragg reflecting region;
• forming a mask on the epitaxial substrate, the mask having a pattern defining a post for the vertical cavity surface emitting laser;
• etching the upper semiconductor laminate and the semiconductor laminate of the epitaxial substrate with the mask to form a substrate product, and the substrate product having an upper part of the post;
• exposing the upper part of the substrate product to an oxidizing atmosphere;
• and
• after exposing the upper part of the substrate product to the oxidizing atmosphere, etching the lower semiconductor laminate to form a lower part of the post,
• the upper semiconductor laminate having a semiconductor layer of III-V compound semiconductor containing aluminum as a group III constituent element,
• the semiconductor layer reaching a side of the post,
• exposing the upper part of the substrate product to an oxidizing atmosphere including producing a current confining structure from the semiconductor layer, and
• the current confining structure having an insulating portion and a current aperture portion of the III-V compound semiconductor.