8×18 top emitting independently addressable surface emitting laser arrays with uniform threshold current and low threshold voltage

Fabrication of 8×18 independently addressable vertical cavity surface emitting laser arrays (VC-SELA) with uniform threshold current, threshold voltage, and high optical output power is reported. The top surface emitting array contains GaAs multiquantum well active regions and exhibits uniform characteristics over a 4×9 mm2 area. The cw threshold current is ≊4.2∓0.2 mA, the threshold voltage is 2.65∓0.1 V, and the output optical power is greater than 2 mW for the individual elements of the array. To realize these large VC-SELAs, a novel ion implantation mask fabrication was developed.