# US 6,720,197 B2 · Surface-emitted laser and method of fabrication thereof

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- Number: US 6,720,197 B2
- Document ID: US6720197B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 09/873,236
- Filed: 2001-06-05
- Published: 2001-10-11
- Granted: 2004-04-13
- Earliest claimed: 1997-10-08
- Assignees: Seiko Epson Corporation
- Inventors: Takeo Kaneko
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US6720197B2

## CPC

- H01S 5/18308: {having a special structure for lateral current or light confinement}
- H01S 5/423: {having a vertical cavity}
- H01S 5/04254: {characterised by the shape}
- H01S 5/18338: {Non-circular shape of the structure}
- H01S 5/18394: {Apertures, e.g. defined by the shape of the upper electrode}
- H01S 5/2214: {based on oxides or nitrides}
- H01S 5/4081: {Near-or far field control}
- H01S 2301/18: Semiconductor lasers with special structural design for influencing the near- or far-field
- H01S: DEVICES USING THE PROCESS OF LIGHT AMPLIFICATION BY STIMULATED EMISSION OF RADIATION [LASER] TO AMPLIFY OR GENERATE LIGHT; DEVICES USING STIMULATED EMISSION OF ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION IN WAVE RANGES OTHER THAN OPTICAL

## Abstract

The present invention provides a surface-emitting laser wherein the transverse modes are controlled and phase-synchronized laser beams are emitted from a plurality of light-emitting portions to produce what appears to be a single laser beam, and a method of fabrication thereof. This laser comprises a columnar portion (20) forming part of a reflective mirror on a light-emitting side, an embedding layer (22) surrounding the periphery of the columnar portion (20), an upper electrode (23) formed on the columnar portion (20) and the embedding layer (22), and an insulating layer (18) formed below the columnar portion (20) and the embedding layer (22). A plurality of aperture portions (23a) are formed in the upper electrode (23) above the columnar portion (20), and aperture portions (18a) are formed in the insulation layer (18) at positions corresponding to the aperture portions (23a). The absolute refractive index of the embedding layer (22) is slightly smaller than that of the columnar portion (20), so that the transverse modes are controlled thereby.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method of fabricating a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser, comprising the steps of:
forming a single crystal layer at a position above an active layer but below a reflective mirror on a light-emitting side;
forming a non-single crystal insulation layer on said single crystal layer;
forming a plurality of insulation aperture portions in said insulation layer, to form exposed portions of said single crystal layer;
growing a multi-layer film non-selectively on said insulation layer that comprises said insulation aperture portions; and
forming an upper electrode on said multi-layer film, said upper electrode having electrode aperture portions corresponding to said insulation aperture portions,
said multi-layer film being made to be non-single crystal on said non-single crystal insulation layer and single crystal above said insulation aperture portions, and said multi-layer film including a conductive embedding layer above said non-single crystal insulation layer.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of fabricating a surface-emitting layer as defined in claim 1,
said growing a multi-layer film further including growing a multi-layer film having a low electrical resistance.

### Claim 3

A method of fabricating a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser, comprising the steps of:
forming a single crystal layer at a position above an active layer but below a reflective mirror on a light-emitting side;
forming a non-single crystal insulation layer on said single crystal layer;
forming a plurality of insulation aperture portions in said insulation layer, to form exposed portions of said single crystal layer;
growing a multi-layer film non-selectively on said insulation layer and directly on said exposed portions of said single crystal layer; and
forming an upper electrode on said multi-layer film, said upper electrode having electrode aperture portions corresponding to said insulation aperture portions,
said multi-layer film being made to be non-single crystal on said non-single crystal insulation layer and single crystal on said exposed portions of said single crystal layer, and said multi-layer film including a conductive embedding layer above said non-single crystal insulation layer.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The method of fabricating a surface-emitting laser as defined in claim 3, said growing a multi-layer film further including glowing a multi-layer film having a low electrical resistance.

### Claim 5

A method of fabricating a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser, comprising the steps of:
forming a single crystal layer above an active layer;
forming a non-single crystal insulation layer on said single crystal layer;
forming a plurality of insulation aperture portions in said insulation layer, to form exposed portions of said single crystal layer;
growing a multi-layer film non-selectively on said insulation layer and said exposed portions of said single crystal layer to form a reflective mirror on a light-emitting side and a conductive embedding layer around the reflective mirror; and
forming an upper electrode on said multi-layer film, said upper electrode having electrode aperture portions corresponding to said insulation aperture portions,
said multi-layer film being made to be non-single crystal for said conductive embedding layer on said non-single crystal insulation layer and single crystal for said reflective mirror on said exposed portions of said single crystal layer.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The method of fabricating a surface-emitting laser as defined in claim 5, said growing a multi-layer film further including growing a multi-layer film having a low electrical resistance.