Donor-Induced Layer Disordering via Silicon Diffusion in Aluminum-Gallium Arsenide - Gallium-Arsenide Quantum-Well Heterostructures, and Disorder-Defined Index-Guided Stripe Geometry Laserdiodes

The use of Si diffusion to disorder Al(,x)Ga(,1-x)As-GaAs quantum-well heterostructures (QWHs) and quantum-well (QW) p-n junction lasers is described. Under the proper diffusion conditions Si produces n-type conductivity in Al(,x)Ga(,1-x)As layers, and will counterdope (to n-type) initially p-type Al(,x)Ga(,1-x)As regions which form the top confining layer of p-n QW laser that is grown on an n-type GaAs substrate. Si diffusion is masked with a Si(,3)N(,4) layer which can be patterned using standard photolithography and plasma etching, thus producing an arbitrary pattern of Si-diffused and disordered regions adjacent to masked, as-grown crystal. The current confinement due to the Si doping, in combination with the refractive index step that results from Si-induced intermixing of Al(,x)Ga(,1-x)As-GaAs QW layers is effective in producing stripe-geometry index-guided laser diodes. Single-stripe index-guided lasers are described, with stripe widths as narrow as 6 and 3 (mu)m. These devices lase continuously at room temperature at a threshold current of 22 mA (6-(mu)m stripe) and 11 mA (3-(mu)m stripe) and operate in the lowest-order transverse mode.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Electrical Engineering

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2014

Author dc:creator

• Gavrilovic, Paul

• Physics, Condensed Matter

Identifier

(UMI)AAI8600191

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/69319