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Focused Ion Beam Lithography to Etch Nano-architectures into Microelectrodes
Published on: January 19, 2020
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Ultra-short stripe microlasers fabricated with a focused ion beam etching technique
Optics Letters
|January 16, 2025
Summary
Focused ion beam etching enables shorter Fabry-Perot (FP) lasers using InGaAs quantum dots. Etched facets perform similarly to cleaved ones, maintaining performance in pulsed operation up to 105°C.
Area of Science:
- Optoelectronics
- Materials Science
- Semiconductor Physics
Background:
- Fabry-Perot (FP) lasers are crucial optoelectronic devices.
- Miniaturization of FP lasers is desirable for advanced applications.
- Quantum dot active regions offer unique optical properties.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate the performance of ultra-short cavity FP lasers.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of focused ion beam (FIB) etching for mirror fabrication.
- Assess the impact of FIB-etched facets on laser performance.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of FP lasers with cavity lengths down to 50 µm.
- Utilized focused ion beam (FIB) etching for mirror formation.
- Employed high-density InGaAs quantum dots as the laser active region.
- Operated lasers in a pulsed regime and tested up to 105°C.
Main Results:
- Lasers operated in pulsed mode up to 105°C.
- FIB-etched facets showed similar emission wavelength and threshold current compared to cleaved facets.
- Estimated maximum modal gain was at least 240 cm⁻¹.
- No evidence of excited-state lasing was observed.
Conclusions:
- FIB etching is a viable method for fabricating mirrors in short-cavity FP lasers.
- Etched facets do not significantly increase non-radiative recombination rates.
- FIB-etched facets provide a reflection coefficient comparable to cleaved facets.
