Buried dielectric quasi-photonic-crystal surface-emitting lasers

We report a quasi-photonic-crystal surface-emitting laser (QPCSEL) that employs sub-micron, low-index buried dielectric features surrounded by high-index epitaxial semiconductor to form the quasi-photonic-crystal layer. We demonstrate photopumped lasing from a buried dielectric QPCSEL at room temperature with emission wavelength at 1.5 μm. QPCSELs replace the conventional periodic refractive index pattern with a quasi-periodic photonic crystal, which produces single mode emission. Our buried dielectric approach enables solid-state integration of the photonic crystal while preserving the complex patterned geometry during epitaxial semiconductor regrowth.