Tapered 4.7 μm quantum cascade lasers with highly strained active region composition delivering over 4.5 watts of continuous wave optical power

A strain-balanced, Al0.78In0.22As/In0.72Ga0.28As/InP quantum cascade laser structure, designed for light emission at 4.7 mu m using the non-resonant extraction design approach, was grown by molecular beam epitaxy. Laser devices were processed in tapered buried heterostructure geometry and then mounted on AlN/SiC composite submounts using hard solder. A 10 mm long laser with 7.5 mu m-wide central section tapered up to 20 mu m at laser facets generated over 4.5W of single-ended CW/RT optical power at 283K. Maximum wallplug efficiency of 16.3% for this laser was reached at 4W level. Reliability of over 2,000h has been demonstrated for an air-cooled system delivering optical power of 3W in a collimated beam with overall system efficiency exceeding 10%. (C)2012 Optical Society of America