Red-light-emitting laser diodes operating cw at room temperature

Heterojunction laser diodes of AlGaAs have been prepared with threshold current densities substantially below those previously achieved at room temperature in the 7200–8000-Å spectral range. These devices operate cw with simple oxide-isolated stripe contacts to 7400 Å, which extends cw operation for the first time into the visible (red) portion of the spectrum.