Array of coupled optical waveguides
AssigneeSiemens Aktiengesellschaft
InventorsMarkus-Christian Amann, Bernhard Stegmueller, Franz Kappeler
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Abstract
An array of coupled waveguides in the form of MCRW laser diodes and/or passive waveguides are coupled to one another by optical waves of the TM-mode occurring in semiconductor regions between the waveguides that have a reduced thickness d, the neighboring waveguides being provided at a spacing a.
Claims11
An improved array of coupled metal clad ridge waveguide lasers on a semiconductor body having a plurality of individual ridge-shaped waveguides located adjacent to and laterally spaced from one another, a second semiconductor layer of said semiconductor body being provided above a first laser active waveguide layer, the improvement comprising:
- a continuous metal cladding layer extending above and in contact with portions forming upper portions of said ridge-shaped waveguides, said portions forming ohmic contacts with said metal cladding layer;
- said second semiconductor layer having zones that are free of said portions forming upper portions of said ridge-shaped waveguides, said zones being of reduced thickness laterally of and between two neighboring ones of said waveguides,
- said metal cladding layer extending above said zones of said second semiconductor layer;
- said neighboring waveguides being spaced apart so that leakage waves of TM wave-mode occur in said reduced thickness semiconductor layer to optically couple said neighboring waveguides by TM-mode waves.
An array of coupled metal clad ridge waveguide lasers, comprising:
- a semiconductor body including a plurality of layers, said plurality of layers including an optically transmissive laser-active first layer and a second semiconductor layer located above said laser-active first layer;
- and
- a plurality of substantially parallel metal clad ridge waveguide lasers formed in said semiconductor body for conducting TE mode waves, said metal clad ridge waveguide lasers including individual ridge-shaped waveguides, said ridge-shaped waveguides include portions forming upper portions of said ridge-shaped waveguides and ohmic contacts,
- regions between said ridge-shaped waveguides being free of said portions forming upper portions of said waveguides and having a reduced thickness sufficient to cause TM-type leakage waves laterally of said ridge-shaped waveguides to optically couple neighboring ones of said waveguides, said neighboring waveguides being spaced from one another a predetermined distance, and
- a continuous metal cladding layer extending above and in contact with said portions forming upper portions of said ridge-shaped waveguides, said metal cladding layer forming ohmic contacts with said upper portions, said continuous metal cladding layer extending above said regions between said waveguides.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.