Optically and thermally isolated surface emitting laser diodes

Abstract: A surface-emitting laser ("SEL") array (100,200,300,400) having improved optical isolation and heat conduction is constructed from a light generation layer (130,430) and first and second mirror layers (115,415,114,414) that sandwich the light generation layer (130,430). The first mirror (115,415) and second mirror (114,414) reflect light generated in the light generation layer (130,430) back toward the light generation layer (130,430). The first mirror (115,415) includes a plurality of light isolation regions (125-128,202,301,302,440), each light isolation region (125-128,202,301,302,440) extending through the first mirror. The light isolation regions (125-128,202,301,302,440) divide the light generation layer (130,430) into a plurality of light generation regions. Each light generation region corresponds to one of the SELs. Each light isolation region (125-128,202,301,302,440) is positioned to prevent light generated in one of the light generation regions from propagating into a neighbouring light generation region. In one embodiment of the present invention, the light isolation regions are constructed by providing trenches (125-128) that extend from the surface of the SEL array through the first mirror (115,415). The trenches may be filled with a light absorbing material. The trenches may also be filled with a heat conducting material thereby providing an improved heat dissipation path for heat generated by the SELs. The light isolation regions (125-128,202,301,302,440) may also be generated by ion-implanting regions between the SELs or by disordering (440) one of the mirrors in the regions between the SELs.

Description: The present invention relates to lasers, and more particularly, to optically and thermally isolated individual surface emitting laser diodes in an array of such diodes. Semiconductor laser diodes were originally fabricated in a manner that led to a diode structure that was parallel to the surface of the semiconductor wafer. In this structure, light is emitted from the edge of the structure such that the light was also emitted parallel to the surface of the semiconductor wafer. Unfortunately, this structure does not lend itself to the cost-effective fabrication of two-dimensional arrays of laser diodes. A second class of laser diodes is fabricated such that the laser structure is perpendicular to the surface of the semiconductor wafer and the light is emitted perpendicular to the surface. These laser diodes are commonly known as surface emitting lasers (SELs). These lasers are better suited for the fabrication of arrays of laser for displays, light sources, optical scanners, and data links for optical scanners. In closely packed arrays of laser diodes, thermal and optical isolation can be significant problems. An SEL is typically fabricated by sandwiching a light emitting layer between two mirror regions. Each mirror region is constructed by depositing alternating layers of different refractive indices to form a Bragg mirror. In an array of such SELs, the individual SELs are constructed from common light generation and mirror layers. The locations of the individual SELs are determined by various electrodes and implant regions introduced after the fabrication of the common layers. The layers in the Bragg mirror adjacent to the light generation layer can act as a light pipe for transporting light generated in one SEL to an adjacent SEL. This coupling is particularly troublesome in arrays of cells having one SEL and a corresponding photodiode that monitors the light output of the SEL in its cell. In this case, the photodiode cannot distinguish light from an SEL in an adjacent cell from light generated by the SEL in its cell. Hence, an erroneous monitoring signal may be generated by the light leaking from the adjacent cell. The coupling of light from one SEL to another can also degrade the performance of the receiving SEL. The power generated in individual SELs may be sufficient to raise the temperature of an adjacent SEL. Since the characteristics of the individual SELs vary with temperature, it would be advantageous to isolate the SELs thermally as well as optically as much as possible. In addition, it would be advantageous to provide a means for removing heat from the individual SELs to prevent the temperature of the entire array from reaching unacceptable levels. In the article: "IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, vol. 27, no. 6, 1 June 1991, pages 1332-1346" there is disclosed a surface emitting laser array (SEL array) comprising a plurality of surface emitting lasers (SELs), said SEL array comprising: a light generation layer for generating light in response to light passing therethrough, first mirror means for reflecting light generated in said light generation layer toward said light generation layer, second mirror means for reflecting light generated in said light generation layer toward said light generation layer, said first and second mirror means being located on opposite sides of said light generation layer, and a plurality of isolation regions dividing said light generation layer into a plurality of light generation regions, each light generation region corresponding to one of said SELs. Broadly, it is the object of the present invention to provide an improved SEL array. It is a further object of the present invention to provide an SEL, array in which the individual SELs are isolated optically. It is a still further object of the present invention to provide an SEL array in which the individual SELs are isolated thermally. It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an SEL array in which heat generated by the individual SELs is removed from the array. According to the present invention, there is provided an SEL array comprising a plurality of SELs, said SEL array comprising: a light generation layer for generating light in response to light passing therethrough; first mirror means for reflecting light generated in said light generation layer toward said light generation layer; second mirror means for reflecting light generated in said light generation layer toward said light generation layer, said first and second mirror means being located on opposite sides of said light generation layer; and a plurality of isolation regions, each said isolation region extending through said first mirror means, said isolation regions dividing said light generation layer into a plurality of light generation regions, each light generation region corresponding to one of said SELs, each said isolation region comprising a trench containing light transmission impeding and heat conducting material thermally connected to heat sinking means so as to prevent light and heat generated in one of said light generation regions from propagating into a neighbouring light generation region. The trenches provide an improved heat dissipation path for heat generated by the SELs. Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional SEL; Fig.2 is a perspective view of one embodiment of an SEL array according to the present invention, but not showing the material in the trenches; Fig.3 is a cross-sectional view of the array shown in Figure 2; Fig.4 is a cross-section of a trench used to construct an optical isolation region of an SEL array according to the present invention; and Fig.5 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the present invention utilizing a heat conducting layer to transfer heat from the SEL array to a heat sink. The present invention may be more easily understood with reference to Figure 1 which is a cross-sectional view of a conventional SEL 10. Since construction of SELs is well known to those skilled in the laser arts, it will not be described in detail here. For the purposes of this discussion, it is sufficient to note that SEL 10 may be viewed as a p-i-n diode having a top mirror region 18, a light generation region 14, and bottom mirror region 19. These regions are constructed on a substrate 12. Electrical power is applied between electrodes 22 and 27. The various layers are constructed by epitaxial growth. The active region is typically constructed from one or more quantum wells of InGaAs, GaAs, AlGaAs, or InAlGaAs which is separated from mirror regions 18 and 19 by spacers 15 and 16 respectively. The choice of material depends on the desired wavelength of the light emitted by the SEL. In addition, devices based on bulk active regions are known to the art. This layer 14 may be viewed as a light generation layer which generates light due to spontaneous and stimulated emission via the recombination of electrons and holes generated by forward biasing the p-i-n diode. The mirror regions are constructed from alternating layers of which layers 20 and 21 are typical. These layers have different indices of refraction. The thickness of each layer is chosen to be one quarter of the wavelength of the light. The stacks form Bragg mirrors. The stacks are typically constructed from alternating layers of AlAs and GaAs or AlGaAs. To obtain the desired reflectivity, 20 to 30 pairs of layers are typically required. The layers in the upper mirror region 18 are typically doped to be p-type semiconductors and those in the lower mirror region 19 are doped to be n-type semiconductors. Substrate 12 is preferably n-type contact. Bottom electrode 27 is preferably an n-ohmic contact. However, n-i-p diode structures may also be constructed by growing the structures on a p-substrate or a semi-insulating substrate with a p-layer deposited thereon. The current flow between electrodes 22 and 27 is confined to region 24 by implanting regions 25 and 26 to convert the regions to regions of high resistivity. This is typically accomplished by implanting with hydrogen ions. It should be noted that SEL 10 is not shown to scale in Figure 1. In particular, the mirror regions and active regions have been expanded to provide clarity in the drawing. In practice, the thickness of region 12 is typically 150 µm compared to about 10 µm for the mirror and active regions. Window 30 in top electrode 22 is approximately 10 µm in diameter while bottom electrode 27 covers the bottom of the substrate. An array of SELs according to the present invention can be constructed by first depositing the layers making up the bottom mirror region, active region, and top mirror region on a substrate and then dividing the layers into individual SELs. Figure 2 is a perspective view of an array of SELs created in this manner. The array is constructed on a substrate 112 and then divided into individual SELs of which SEL 104 is typical. Refer now to Figure 3 which is cross-sectional view of array 100 through line 101-102 shown in Figure 2. Array 100 is constructed from a bottom mirror region 114, an active region 130 and a top mirror region 115. These regions are deposited on substrate 112 prior to implanting top mirror region 115 with implant regions such as implant region 124. The top electrodes 123 are then deposited on the surface of the top mirror region 115. A continuous bottom electrode 122 is used in conjunction with the top electrodes to power the device. While the implant regions and positioning of the top electrodes 123 are sufficient to channel the currents, these are not sufficient to provide electrical isolation. In conventional SEL arrays, an additional implant region is used to isolate the various SELs from one another electrically. However, even with this additional implant region light generated in the active region of one SEL can propagate into a neighboring SEL. Photons leaving active region 130 in a direction sufficiently oblique to the mirror regions can be trapped between mirror regions 114 and 115, and hence, propagate into a neighboring region. In effect, the top and bottom mirror regions form the walls of a light pipe which trap photons generated in the light generation region at oblique angles. Such a photon is shown at 135 in Figure 3. To prevent this type of light propagation, trenches are etched between the SELs. Exemplary trenches are shown at 125-128 in Figure 3. These trenches intercept any light trapped between the mirror regions, and thus, prevent the propagation of light between SELs in the array. As will be discussed in more detail below, these trenches are also used to conduct heat out of the array. The trenches are filled with an opaque material such as an opaque material comprising a polyimide mixed with a dye that absorbs light at the wavelength generated by the active region. In the visible range, rhodamine 6G may be used. Photoresist may also be used to fill the trenches. The preferred material for filling the trenches is spin-on glass because it provides passivation. The glass may be doped with dyes. In many cases, the change in indices of refraction is sufficient to impede the transmission of the light. The trenches are filled with heat conducting material to form heat pipes for removing heat from the array. For example, the trenches can be coated with silicon carbide which is a dielectric material with good heat conducting properties. If an electrically conducting material such as gold or aluminum is used as the heat conducting material, the walls of the trenches must be coated with an insulator such as silicon carbide. A cross-sectional view of a filled trench is shown in Figure 4 at 200. A dielectric layer 201 is deposited on the walls of trench 200 prior to filling trench 200 with a heat conducting material 202. While the trenches shown in Figure 3 extend through both mirror regions into the substrate 112, for the purposes of optical isolation, the trenches need only extend to the active region so as to prevent the propagation of light trapped in the active region between the top and bottom mirror regions. The deeper trenches have the advantage of providing both electrical and optical isolation. The various trenches may be connected via a heat conducting layer or trace to an off-chip heat sink as illustrated in Figure 5. Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of an array 300 of SELs showing two filled trenches 301 and 302. The trenches are connected to a heat conducting layer 303 which conducts the heat from the trenches, and from the surface of the chip, to a heat sink 304. A thin dielectric layer 305 such as silicon carbide may be used to electrically isolate the heat conducting layer 303 from other electrically conducting structures on the surface of array 300 such as the top electrodes of the SELs. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that windows must be opened in layer 303 over the windows in the SELs to allow the light to exit the SELs.

Claims: A SEL (surface emitting laser) array (100,200,300) comprising a plurality of SELs, said SEL array (100,200,300) comprising: a light generation layer (130) for generating light in response to light passing therethrough; first mirror means (115) for reflecting light generated in said light generation layer (130) toward said light generation layer (130); second mirror means (114) for reflecting light generated in said light generation layer (130) toward said light generation layer (130), said first and second mirror means (114) being located on opposite sides of said light generation layer (130); and a plurality of isolation regions (202,301,302), each said isolation region (202,301,302) extending through said first mirror means (115), said isolation regions (202,301,302) dividing said light generation layer (130) into a plurality of light generation regions, each light generation region corresponding to one of said SELs, each said isolation region (202, 301, 302) comprising a trench (125-128; 301, 302) filled with light-transmission impeding and heat conducting material thermally connected to heat sinking means (303, 304) so as to prevent light and heat generated in one of said light generation regions from propagating into a neighbouring light generation region. A SEL array (100,200,300) according to Claim 1 wherein said heat sink means comprises a heat conducting layer (303) which conducts the heat from the trenches (301,302). A SEL array (100,200,300) according to Claim 2 and comprising a dielectric layer (305) in contact with a surface of said SEL array, said heat conducting layer (303) being in contact with said dielectric layer (305). A SEL array (100,200,300) according to claim 2 or 3, wherein said heat conducting layer is thermally connected to a heat sink (304).

Inventors: TAN MICHAEL R T, WANG SHIH-YUAN, TAN, MICHAEL R.T., WANG, SHIH-YUAN
Applicants: HEWLETT PACKARD CO, HEWLETT-PACKARD COMPANY
Application year: 1995
Main classification: H01S3
IPC codes: H01S5