Patent ID: 8368972

Claim:
A surface-emitting semiconductor laser comprising: a substrate; a columnar structure that is formed on a main surface of the substrate, the columnar structure having: a first semiconductor multi-layered reflector of a first conductivity type that is formed on the substrate, an active region that is formed on the first semiconductor multi-layered reflector, a second semiconductor multi-layered reflector of a second conductivity type, which is different from the first conductivity type, that is formed on the active region, and a current-confining layer that is formed in the columnar structure and that includes a conductive area surrounded with an oxidized area which is selectively oxidized; an annular first electrode that is formed on a top of the columnar structure, that is electrically connected to the second semiconductor multi-layered reflector, and that defines a light-emitting window; a first dielectric film that is formed of a material with a first refractive index n 1 and that covers the light-emitting window, a laser light generated at the surface-emitting semiconductor laser passing through the material with the first refractive index n 1 ; and a second dielectric film that is formed of a material with a second refractive index n 2 and that is formed on the first dielectric film, the laser light generated at the surface-emitting semiconductor laser passing through the material with the second refractive index n 2 , wherein the second dielectric film has an asymmetrical shape having a long axis and a short axis on a plane parallel to the main surface of the substrate, the second dielectric film is located at a position overlapping with the conductive area, the second refractive index n 2 is greater than the first refractive index n 1 , a thickness of the first dielectric film is an odd multiple of λ/4·n 1 (where λ is an oscillation wavelength of the laser light), and a thickness of the second dielectric film is an odd multiple of λ/4·n 2 .