AlGaAs-GaAs and AlGaAs-GaAs-InGaAs vertical cavity surface emitting lasers with Ag mirrors

Abstract
We describe vertical cavity surface emitting lasers of GaAs active regions (0.7 μm thick) emitting at 0.85 μm and of In0.1Ga0.9As‐GaAs active regions emitting at 0.90 μm. The vertical cavity is formed using an AlxGa1−xAs‐AlAs quarter‐wave stack as the n‐type mirror and the metal Ag as the p‐type mirror. The Ag mirror has potential for reduced series resistance, reduced thermal resistance, and more simplified device processing over other mirror structures for vertical cavity laser diodes. Current thresholds for pulsed room‐temperature operation as low as 16 kA/cm2 for the GaAs and 51 kA/cm2 for the In0.1Ga0.9As‐GaAs devices have been measured.