Vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers fabricated by vacuum integrated processing

The authors report on the fabrication of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) using vacuum processing techniques. The upper monolithic distributed Bragg reflector around the laser cavity is dry etched down to the top of the active region, followed by in situ contact deposition on the mesa sidewall, providing a short current path through the p-type mirror. These etched VCSELs exhibit lower series resistance, lower threshold voltage, greater thermal dissipation, and higher maximum output power than conventional planar VCSELs made from the same material.>