The design and fabrication of an inp-based transistor-injected quantum cascade laser

Kaufman, Robert Bruce

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/110866 Copy

Description

Title

The design and fabrication of an inp-based transistor-injected quantum cascade laser

Author(s)

Kaufman, Robert Bruce

Issue Date

2021-04-27

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Dallesasse, John M

Department of Study

Electrical & Computer Eng

Discipline

Electrical & Computer Engr

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

M.S.

Degree Level

Thesis

Keyword(s)

• transistor-injected quantum cascade laser
• TI-QCL
• quantum cascade laser
• QCL

Abstract

The mid-wave infrared (MWIR) and long-wave infrared (LWIR) spectral ranges have been garnering attention for their application in a variety of fields including chemical sensing and free-space communication. Efficient and compact coherent sources in these wavelength ranges are important for enabling practical solutions to these problems. While quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) present one appealing solution for these infrared sources, inherent limitations related to efficiency and operational control leave room for improvement. The transistor-injected quantum cascade laser (TI-QCL) presents a novel three-terminal QCL design that seeks to address these restrictions in order to provide a more practical and efficient solution to the MWIR and LWIR problem space. By placing the active cascade region within the base-collector space charge region of a heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT), independent control of injection current and cascade region bias is achievable. This decouples the lasing wavelength from the optical power, fixing an inherent limitation of traditional QCLs. In this work, two types of InP-based TI-QCL devices targeting for 7.3 μm and 8.27 μm emissions are designed and fabricated in order to characterize device performance and identify and device improvements. Fundamental operating principles of the TI-QCL are summarized and aspects of TI-QCL epitaxial and physical design are discussed, highlighting some of the unique considerations required for the novel devices. The fabrication process is detailed and device characterization results are analyzed to help inform electrical performance and future improvements. Knowledge obtained from the research done on these two TI-QCL devices has pushed the concept closer to realization. More efficient and functional coherent MWIR and LWIR sources may enable improvements and potentially new spaces for MWIR and LWIR applications.

Graduation Semester

2021-05

Type of Resource

Thesis

Permalink

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/110866

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2021 Robert Bruce Kaufman

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