Monolithic integration via a universal damage enhanced quantum-well intermixing technique

• Published in: IEEE journal of selected topics in quantum electronics Vol. 4; no. 4; pp. 636 - 646
• Main Authors: McDougall, S.D., Kowalski, O.P., Hamilton, C.J., Camacho, F., Bocang Qiu, Maolong Ke, De La Rue, R.M., Bryce, A.C., Marsh, J.H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: IEEE 01.07.1998
• Subjects: Absorption; III-V semiconductor materials; Laser tuning; Materials reliability; Monolithic integrated circuits; Optical materials; Optical waveguides; Quantum well lasers; Quantum wells; Waveguide lasers
• ISSN: 1077-260X; 1558-4542
• DOI: 10.1109/2944.720474

A novel technique for quantum-well intermixing is demonstrated, which has proven a reliable means for obtaining postgrowth shifts in the band edge of a wide range of III-V material systems. The technique relies upon the generation of point defects via plasma induced damage during the deposition of sputtered SiO/sub 2/, and provides a simple and reliable process for the fabrication of both wavelength tuned lasers and monolithically integrated devices. Wavelength tuned broad area oxide stripe lasers are demonstrated in InGaAs-InAlGaAs, InGaAs-InGaAsP, and GaInP-AlGaInP quantum well systems, and it is shown that low absorption losses are obtained after intermixing. Oxide stripe lasers with integrated slab waveguides have also enabled the production of a narrow single lobed far field (3/spl deg/) pattern in both InGaAs-InAlGaAs, and GaInP-AlGaInP devices. Extended cavity ridge waveguide lasers operating at 1.5 /spl mu/m are demonstrated with low loss (/spl alpha/=4.1 cm/sup -1/) waveguides, and it is shown that this loss is limited only by free carrier absorption in waveguide cladding layers. In addition, the operation of intermixed multimode interference couplers is demonstrated, where four GaAs-AlGaAs laser amplifiers are monolithically integrated to produce high output powers of 180 mW in a single fundamental mode. The results illustrate that the technique can routinely be used to fabricate low-loss optical interconnects and offers a very promising route toward photonic integration.