Low-threshold lasers based on a high-mobility semiconducting polymer

Progress toward electrically driven conjugated polymer lasers should benefit from the identification of materials that exhibit good charge transport properties coupled with large optical gain. Here, we report a detailed study of a blue-emitting fluorene-based polymer that combines a large hole mobility with desirable stimulated emission characteristics. Laser oscillation is achieved within distributed feedback structures and leads to low threshold, tunable lasers operating in the blue spectral region. Our results establish this material as an attractive gain medium with which to try and construct a polymer laser diode. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.