Patent Publication Number: US-7723745-B2

Title: Horizontal emitting, vertical emitting, beam shaped, distributed feedback (DFB) lasers by growth over a patterned substrate

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of the following commonly-assigned application: 
     U.S. Utility application Ser. No. 11/067,957, filed Feb. 28, 2005, by Claude C. A. Weisbuch, Aurelien J. F. David, James S. Speck, and Steven P. DenBaars, entitled “Horizontal emitting, vertical emitting, beam shaped, DISTRIBUTED FEEDBACK (DFB) lasers by growth over A patterned substrate,” , now U.S. Pat. No. 7,345,298, issued Mar. 18, 2008, 
     which application is incorporated by reference herein. 
     This application is related to the following and commonly-assigned applications: 
     U.S. Utility application Ser. No. 10/938,704, filed Sep. 10, 2004, by Carole Schwach, Claude C. A. Weisbuch, Steven P. DenBaars, Henri Benisty, and Shuji Nakamura, entitled “WHITE, SINGLE OR MULTI-COLOR LIGHT EMITTING DIODES BY RECYCLING GUIDED MODES,” now U.S. Pat. No. 7,223,998, issued May 29, 2007, 
     U.S. Utility application Ser. No. 11/067,910, filed on Feb. 28, 2005, by Claude C. A. Weisbuch, Aurelien J. F. David, James S. Speck and Steven P. DenBaars, entitled “SINGLE OR MULTI-COLOR HIGH EFFICIENCY LIGHT EMITTING DIODE (LED) BY GROWTH OVER A PATTERNED SUBSTRATE,” now U.S. Pat. No. 7,291,864, issued Nov. 6, 2007, and 
     U.S. Utility application Ser. No. 11/067,956, filed on Feb. 28, 2005, by Claude C. A. Weisbuch, Aurelien J. F. David and Steven P. DenBaars, entitled “HIGH EFFICIENCY LIGHT EMITTING DIODE (LED) WITH OPTIMIZED PHOTONIC CRYSTAL EXTRACTOR,” 
     which applications are incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING SPONSORED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 
     The present invention was made under support from the University of California, Santa Barbara Solid State Lighting and Display Center member companies, including Stanley Electric Co., Ltd., Mitsubishi Chemical Corp., Rohm Co., Ltd., Cree, Inc., Matsushita Electric Works, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., and Seoul Semiconductor Co., Ltd. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention is related to lasers, and more particularly, to horizontal emitting, vertical emitting, beam shaped, distributed feedback (DFB) lasers by growth over a patterned substrate. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     A laser diode is a semiconductor device that emits light in a stimulated manner when electrically biased in the forward direction. The feedback required to reach auto-oscillation is provided by mirrors, usually obtained by cleaved facets, or by mirror-coated facets for horizontal in-plane lasers, or by dielectric multi-layer mirrors for vertical surface emitting lasers (VCSELs). Some lasers incorporate a dispersive element, such as a grating, providing distributed feedback (DFB) to achieve single mode emission. 
     Lasers generally comprise a chip of semiconducting material impregnated, or doped, with impurities to create a structure called a pn junction. When biased forwardly, electrons are injected into the junction from the n-region and holes are injected from the p-region, usually in a thin emitting layer called a quantum well (QW). The electrons and holes in the quantum well release energy in the form of photons as they recombine. The wavelength of the light, and therefore its color, depends on the bandgap energy of the materials forming the pn junction. 
     As semiconductor materials have improved, the efficiency of semiconductor devices has also improved and new wavelength ranges have been used. Gallium nitride (GaN) based lasers are probably the most promising in a variety of applications. GaN provides efficient illumination in the ultraviolet (UV) to amber spectrum when alloyed with varying concentrates of indium (In), for example. 
     Unfortunately, besides huge materials challenges, nitride lasers are difficult to manufacture. Cleaved facets have a low reflectivity, due to the low refractive index of nitrides. In addition, cleavage is hard to achieve because a sapphire substrate is typically used with nitride lasers. 
     To obtain good nitride lasers, it is necessary to obtain good mirrors using a planar fabrication technique. Other desirable properties include vertical emission, high power, single mode emission, etc. However, these properties, especially vertical emission, are extremely hard to obtain, as the high quality mirrors required for vertical cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) prove extremely difficult to manufacture. 
     The present invention aims at solving these challenges by using device growth techniques over a patterned substrate, wherein the pattern provides the function of a mirror, optical confinement layer, grating, wavelength selective element, beam shaping element or beam directing element. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention discloses an integrated optics structure, such as a laser, comprised of a sapphire substrate, a buffer layer formed of nitride materials, such as GaN, grown on the substrate, one or more patterned layers formed on the buffer layer and one or more active layers formed on or between the patterned layers, for example by Lateral Epitaxial Overgrowth (LEO), and including one or more light emitting species. Each patterned layer comprises a patterned, perforated or pierced mask (made of insulating, semiconducting or metallic material) and materials filling holes in the mask. The patterned layer, due to a large index difference with the active layer and/or variations of the refractive index between the mask and materials filling holes in the mask, acts as a mirror, optical confinement layer, grating, wavelength selective element, beam shaping element or beam directing element. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Referring now to the drawings in which like reference numbers represent corresponding parts throughout: 
         FIG. 1A  is a cross-sectional side view and  FIG. 1B  is a top plan view of a laser device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional side view of a laser with separate gain and mirror regions according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional side view of a laser with separate gain, mirror and diffracting outcoupling mirror regions according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional side view illustrating light extraction of the laser guided mode by diffraction by a patterned layer acting as a diffraction grating according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional side view of a laser with separate gain, mirror and extraction regions, with varying growth depths defined by the etching of the patterned layer, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  illustrates various geometries that can be used as for the patterns, perforations or piercings in the mask of the patterned layer, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional side view of the active region of a device having a plurality of patterned layers according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional side view of a coupled-cavity laser according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional side view of an anti-reflection (AR) outcoupler of a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 10A  is a cross-sectional side view and  FIG. 10B  is a top plan view of a transverse waveguiding portion of a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA) according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 11  is a perspective side view that illustrates waveguiding by a variation of silica coverage according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional side view of a laser cavity defined between two patterned layers according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 13  is a flowchart illustrating the fabrication steps performed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     In the following description of the preferred embodiment, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration a specific embodiment in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. 
     Overview 
     The present invention describes new laser structures created using simplified fabrication processing. The simplified fabrication processing preferably comprises planar fabrication processing, which means that the laser structures can be easily manufactured at low cost. 
     Preferably, the laser structure is comprised of a substrate, a buffer layer grown on the substrate, one or more patterned layers deposited on the buffer layer and comprising a patterned, perforated or pierced mask (made of insulating, semiconducting or metallic material) and materials filling holes in the mask, and one or more active layers grown on or between the patterned layers, for example by Lateral Epitaxial Overgrowth (LEO), and including one or more light emitting species. The patterned layer, due to a high index difference with the active layer material and/or variations in the refractive index between the mask and materials filling holes in the mask, acts as an optical confinement layer, an efficient mirror (e.g., a so-called photonic crystal mirror), a diffraction grating towards the surface (e.g., an outcoupler), a wavelength selective (distributed feedback) element, a beam shaping element, or a beam directing element. 
     The mask of the patterned layer is perforated or pierced by an array of small holes, and thus can act as a growth mask for the active layer, which yields high quality epitaxial material in the subsequent LEO growth of the active layer. Moreover, a plurality of patterned layers can be used to ensure better materials and opto-electronic properties. 
     For example, the lasers can emit horizontally in the device plane if the patterned layer acts as a mirror, or emit vertically outside the device plane by having guided light shaped into extracted light, if the patterned layer acts as a buried diffraction grating. Further, a patterned layer that is a buried grating can perform as a distributed feedback (DFB) grating for single wavelength emission. In addition, the patterned layer can perform as a beam shaping or directing element. 
     Technical Description 
       FIG. 1A  is a cross-sectional side view and  FIG. 1B  is a top plan view of a laser device  10  with a 300 nm active layer  12  comprised of a nitride material such as GaN formed on a 300 nm patterned layer  14 , which is deposited on a 5 micron buffer layer  16  comprised of a nitride material such as GaN, which is grown on a substrate  18  comprised of sapphire. The patterned layer  14  is formed of a patterned, pierced or perforated mask  20  of SiO 2  with a nitride material such as GaN filling the holes  22  of the mask  20 . 
     The patterned layer  14  uses the patterned SiO 2  mask  20  as an essential component to define the laser and its components. Specifically, the patterned layer  14  has a large average index difference with the active layer  12  and/or the patterned layer  14  has variations in a refractive index between the patterned mask  20  and materials filling holes  22  in the patterned mask  20 , such that the patterned layer  14  acts as a mirror, optical confinement layer, grating, wavelength selective element, beam shaping element or beam directing element. The laser  10  therefore requires the specific design of the patterned layer  14  and a precisely grown thin active GaN layer  12  with optimally-positioned light emitting species, such as quantum wells  24 . 
       FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional side view of a laser  26  with separate gain  28  and mirror  30 ,  32  regions having different patterns in the patterned layer  14 . The modulation of the index of refraction in regions  30 ,  32  of the patterned layer  14  in this structure performs as a mirror, thus providing the feedback for laser auto-oscillation. This can be obtained by having suitable parameters of the patterned layer  14 . 
       FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional side view of a laser  34  with separate gain  36 , mirror  38  and diffracting outcoupling mirror  40  regions having different patterns in the patterned layer  14 . Outcoupling occurs through diffraction of light by region  40  towards the air, provided that the right diffraction conditions are fulfilled. 
       FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional side view illustrating light extraction from the laser from guided modes by diffraction by the patterned layer  14 . At least a portion of the patterned layer  14  acts as a diffraction grating and the laser  10  emits guided light outside a device plane by having guided light  42  shaped into extracted light  44  using the diffraction grating. 
     Parameters of the active layer  12  and patterned layer  14  can be varied from structure to structure, or varied across one structure, to produce different functions (e.g., an in-plane mirror, extracting grating and/or waveguiding). The parameters include the thickness of the active layer  12  and patterned layer  14 , as well as the shape, size and/or period of the holes in the patterned layer  14 . For example, the patterned layer  14 , due to a large index difference with the active layer  12 , modifies an emission pattern of the light emitting species in the active layer  12 , in order to increase or decrease the relative amount of light emitted in guided, radiative or leaky modes. 
     Moreover, one or more properties of the patterned layer  14  may be spatially varied across the structure. These properties of the patterned layer  14  can comprise thickness, radius of the holes  22  in the mask  20 , shape of the holes  22  in the mask  20 , periodicity of a pattern of holes  22  in the mask  20 , or non-periodicity of a pattern of holes  22  in the mask  20 , etc. 
       FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional side view of a laser  46  with separate gain  48  and mirror  50 ,  52  regions, with varying growth depths defined by the etching of the mask of the patterned layer  14 . In addition to the added design possibilities offered by the varying SiO 2  thickness of the mask of the patterned layer  14 , the mask functions as a growth mask for the active layer  12 , which is grown by LEO, such that control of growth speed through hole diameter of the patterned layer  14  and growth conditions allows diminished overlap of the guided mode with the active layer  12  materials (i.e., quantum wells  24 ) within the mirrors  50 ,  52 , where the quantum wells  24  can be displaced vertically or compositionally, thus diminishing the absorption loss in the mirrors  50 ,  52 , which is a highly desirable feature. Specifically, the patterned layer  14  comprises confining regions  50 ,  52  having designed growth such that absorption is diminished or suppressed in regions adjacent to an amplifying region  48 . 
     Various geometries can be used as for the patterns, perforations or piercings in the patterned layer  14 . The simplest geometries are trenches of various periods and filling factors, which may be linear or shaped, illustrated as  54  and  56  in  FIG. 6 . The geometries can also use holes organized in square or rectangular arrays, e.g., so-called periodic photonic crystals, illustrated as  58  and  60 , respectively, in  FIG. 6 . More complex geometries also lead to more efficient light extraction, such as Archimedean tilings, illustrated as  62  in  FIG. 6 . Finally, even random patterns with a characteristic correlation length in the vicinity of the wavelength can also act as efficient light outcouplers. The vertical shape of the holes can also be used as a design parameter, for instance providing a blaze effect, illustrated as  56  in  FIG. 6 . 
     There are various types of lasers that can be fabricated using the present invention, and many possible implementations of such lasers. For example, a plurality of patterned layer  14  growths can be used to improve the materials quality, as shown in  FIG. 7 , which is a cross-sectional side view of the active region of a device  10  having a plurality of patterned layers  14 . 
     In another example, the mask of the patterned layers  14  can be made of various materials, including metals, dielectrics or semiconductors. What is required is that the index of refraction for the patterned layer  14  is different enough from that of the active layer  12  and allows high quality LEO. 
     In yet another example, using a patterned layer  14  with the proper design (i.e. period), at least a portion of the patterned layer  14  acts as a distributed feedback (DFB) grating for single wavelength emission of light from the laser  10 , wherein the DFB action is obtained from the gain region so that the laser  10  emits in a single mode. 
       FIG. 8  illustrates a laser  64  having first and second laser cavities  66 ,  68  positioned on opposite sides of a coupling mirror  70  and between first and second mirrors  72 ,  74 . In this embodiment, the patterned layer  14  defines a plurality of coupled cavities  66 ,  68  that comprise a compound cavity with new spectral properties. For example, this laser  64  could be used to achieve single-mode operation. 
     Another useful device is a master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA), which is a high-power light source. The various elements of the MOPA can be designed in the patterned layer  14 : master oscillator (MO) back mirror and coupling mirror, power amplifier (PA) active region, and anti-reflection (AR) outcoupler. (See, e.g., the Suhara et al. publication set forth below for a device description.)  FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional side view of an AR outcoupler  76  of a MOPA, which is comprised of an initial region  78 , anti-reflection region  80  that performs mode conversion with reflection, and vertical extractor  82  that is the final outcoupler. 
     For the amplifying region of the MOPA, the patterned mask of the patterned layer  14  can be used to define index guiding by having a varying mask filling factor, which in turns translates into a map of effective index. 
       FIG. 10A  is a cross-sectional side view of a transverse waveguiding portion  84  of the MOPA, which includes an amplifying or gain region  86  and confining regions  88 ,  90 . These confining regions  88 ,  90  can possibly have designed growth such that quantum well  24  absorption is diminished or suppressed in the regions  88 ,  90  adjacent to the amplifying region  86 . 
       FIG. 10B  is a top plan view of a MOPA  92 , which shows master oscillator  94 , power amplifier  96 , rear reflector  98 , intermediate mirror  100 , anti-reflective mirror  102  and outcoupler  104 . 
     Another embodiment of the present invention uses light conversion, wherein the laser  10  further comprises one or more secondary light emitting species that absorb and re-emit at least a portion of the light. The light emitted by the laser, or part of that light, can be absorbed by the secondary light emitting species, and then re-emitted at a different wavelength. This can, for example, be useful to produce white light sources. The secondary light emitting species can be placed in the active layer of the laser, in the material filling the holes in the patterned mask, or in other additional layers of the device. 
     While having been described with the example of nitride materials, this new laser fabrication scheme can be applied to any material that is amenable to such a growth technique. For example, in the structures described above, the various layers may be comprised of semiconductors, polymers, metals, ion-doped materials or organic molecules. Moreover, in semiconductor materials, the active region  12  can be quantum wells  24  as described, but also bulk materials or quantum wires or dots may be used. 
     Another large field of applications of this concept of designed overgrowth is that of integrated optics. The lateral modulation of the average effective modal index allowed by varying filling factor of the patterned layer, or by laterally varying the depth of the patterned layer leads to efficient low loss waveguiding, with many accessible design parameters. In addition, the periodic nature of the perforations can be used to rely on waveguiding through photonic bandgap effects. The power of the present implementation of integrated optics is that the active part of the devices is grown after the most critical fabrication step has been done, that of lithography and etching of the patterns. 
       FIG. 11  is a perspective side view that illustrates waveguiding  106  by a variation of silica coverage (in this case, silica columns). There can be missing columns, as in the figure, or variable periods, or variable fill factors. The pattern of varying silica contents creates a varying landscape for the index of refraction, which will confine and guide light propagating in the GaN waveguide grown on top of this structure  106 . 
       FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional side view that illustrates the use of two patterned layers  14 , one on each side of the active layer  12  region, in order to further confine the guided mode in the vertical direction. This can be useful as the mode of the laser should not overlap with regions of strong absorption, such as Mg-doped regions in the case of GaN-based laser diode. 
     Finally,  FIG. 13  is a flowchart illustrating the fabrication steps performed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     Block  108  represents the step of growing a buffer layer on a substrate. Preferably, the substrate is sapphire and the buffer layer is a nitride material. 
     Block  110  represents the step of depositing one or more patterned layers on top of the buffer, wherein each patterned layer is comprised a mask and materials filling holes in the patterned mask. Preferably, the patterned layers are nitride materials, the mask is comprised of an insulating, semiconducting or metallic material, and the materials filling holes in the mask are nitride materials. Each patterned layer acts as a mirror, optical confinement layer, grating, wavelength selective element, beam shaping element or beam directing element for the active layers. 
     Block  112  represents the step of forming one or more active layers on or between the patterned layers, wherein the active layers may include one or more light emitting species. Preferably, the active layers are nitride materials and are grown by LEO, wherein the mask functions as a growth mask for the active layers. 
     The end result of these steps is a structure using integrated optical elements, such as a laser, comprised of a substrate, a buffer layer grown on the substrate, one or more patterned layers deposited on top of the buffer, wherein each of the patterned layers is comprised of a mask and materials filling holes in the mask, and one or more active layers formed on or between the patterned layers, wherein the active layers may include of one or more light emitting species. 
     REFERENCES 
     The following references are incorporated by reference herein: 
     1. N. Eriksson, M. Hagberg and A. Larsson, “Highly directional grating outcouplers with tailorable radiation characteristics,” IEEE J. Quant. Electronics, vol. 32, 1038 (1996). 
     2. T. Suhara, M. Uemukai, N. Shimada and A. Larsson, “Broad area and MOPA lasers with integrated grating components for beam shaping and novel functions,” Proc. SPIE vol. 4995, 10 (2003). 
     CONCLUSION 
     This concludes the description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. The foregoing description of one or more embodiments of the invention has been presented for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. It is intended that the scope of the invention be limited not by this detailed description, but rather by the claims appended hereto.