Surface-emitting laser element

A surface-emitting laser element comprising:

• a translucent substrate;
• an n-type semiconductor layer provided on the substrate;
• an active layer provided on the n-type semiconductor layer;
• a p-type semiconductor layer provided on the active layer;
• an air-hole layer that is a photonic crystal layer included in the n-type semiconductor layer and including air holes disposed with two-dimensional periodicity in a plane parallel to the active layer,
• a light reflection layer provided on the p-type semiconductor layer and including a reflection surface;
• and
• a translucent conductor layer provided between the reflection surface and the p-type semiconductor layer,
• wherein a light emission surface is provided on a back surface of the substrate,
• the air-hole layer has a diffraction surface that is a wave source when light standing in the air-hole layer is diffracted in a direction orthogonal to the air-hole layer,
• a weakening region where a separation distance between the diffraction surface and the reflection surface is provided such that a light intensity of interference light generated by interference of first diffracted light diffracted from the diffraction surface to the light emission surface side and second diffracted light diffracted from the diffraction surface to the light reflection layer side and reflected by the reflection surface is lower than a light intensity of the first diffracted light is provided, and
• a strengthening region where a separation distance between the diffraction surface and the reflection surface is provided such that the light intensity of the interference light is higher than the light intensity of the first diffracted light is provided.