Finite element analysis of semiconductor laser arrays

This article presents the analysis of semiconductor laser arrays based on the finite element method, with emphasis on nonuniform structures where the channel width and/or refractive index can vary across the array. The results show that the variation of channel width will have the same effect on the near‐field intensity profile as the variation of channel refractive index. Based on this finding, a laser array structure devised to achieve a highly desirable uniform intensity distribution for the lowest‐order mode is also presented.