Patent ID: 7356061

Claim:
A multi-beam semiconductor laser comprising an active layer, two cladding layers on either side of the active layer in a thickness direction, electrode layers formed outside of the cladding layers, a current-blocking region formed from an insulating layer at an interface between one of the two cladding layers and the electrode layer, a striped current path formed in the current-blocking region, and a plurality of light-emitting portions defining laser oscillating regions formed in the active layer along the current path, wherein reflective mirrors are disposed at either end surface of the laser oscillating region in the active layer formed along the striped current path, a reflective mirror located at a front surface has a reflectance sufficiently high to prevent emission of a laser beam from the front surface, and a wavelength demultiplexer is disposed at a location in each of the plurality of laser oscillating regions so as to change the direction of propagation of only laser oscillating wavelength beams for emission from the laser oscillating regions; wherein a spacing between a plurality of laser beams, the propagation paths of which are changed by the plurality of laser oscillating regions and the wavelength demultiplexers disposed within the plurality of laser oscillating regions, is adjusted according to the location of each of the plurality of wavelength demultiplexers in the laser oscillating region.