Center for Quantum Devices - Journal Articles and Conference Proceedings

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26.	Progress in monolithic, broadband, widely tunable midinfrared quantum cascade lasers Manijeh Razeghi Wenjia Zhou Ryan McClintock Donghai Wu Steven Slivken Optical Engineering 57(1), 011018-- December 1, 2017 We present recent progress on the development of monolithic, broadband, widely tunable midinfrared quantum cascade lasers. First, we show a broadband midinfrared laser gain realized by a heterogeneous quantum cascade laser based on a strain balanced composite well design of Al_0.63In_0.37As∕Ga_0.35In_0.65As∕ Ga_0.47In_0.53As. Single mode emission between 5.9 and 10.9 μm under pulsed mode operation was realized from a distributed feedback laser array, which exhibited a flat current threshold across the spectral range. Using the broadband wafer, a monolithic tuning between 6.2 and 9.1 μm was demonstrated from a beam combined sampled grating distributed feedback laser array. The tunable laser was utilized for a fast sensing of methane under pulsed operation. Transmission spectra were obtained without any moving parts, which showed excellent agreement to a standard measurement made by a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer. reprint
27.	High performance monolithic, broadly tunable mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers WENJIA Zhou, DONGHAI Wu, RYAN McCLINTOCK, STEVEN SLIVKEN, AND MANIJEH RAZEGH1 Optica 4(10), p. 1228-- October 10, 2017 Mid-infrared lasers, emitting in the spectral region of 3-12 µm that contains strong characteristic vibrational transitions of many important molecules, are highly desirable for spectroscopy sensing applications. High-efficiency quantum cascade lasers have been demonstrated with up to watt-level output power in the mid-infrared region. However, the wide wavelength tuning that is critical for spectroscopy applications still largely relies on incorporating external gratings, which have stability issues. Here, we demonstrate a monolithic, broadly tunable quantum cascade laser source emitting between 6.1 and 9.2 µm through an on-chip integration of a sampled grating distributed feedback tunable laser array and a beam combiner. High peak power up to 65 mW has been obtained through a balanced high-gain active region design, efficient waveguide layout, and the development of a broadband antireflection coating. Nearly fundamental transversemode operation is achieved for all emission wavelengths with a pointing stability better than 1.6 mrad (0.1 °). The demonstrated laser source opens new opportunities for mid-infrared spectroscopy. reprint
28.	Recent progress of quantum cascade laser research from 3 to 12 μm at the Center for Quantum Devices MANIJEH RAZEGHI,* WENJIA ZHOU,STEVEN SLIVKEN,QUAN-YONG LU,DONGHAI WU, AND RYAN MCCLINTOC Applied Optics Vol. 56, No. 31 -- October 10, 2017 The quantum cascade laser (QCL) is becoming the leading laser source in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) range, which contains two atmospheric transmission windows and many molecular fingerprint absorption features. Since its first demonstration in 1994, the QCL has undergone tremendous development in terms of the output power, wall plug efficiency, wavelength coverage, tunability and beam quality. At the Center for Quantum Devices, we have demonstrated high-power continuous wave operation of QCLs covering a wide wavelength range from 3 to 12 μm, with power output up to 5.1 W at room temperature. Recent research has resulted in power scaling in pulsed mode with up to 203 W output, electrically tunable QCLs based on monolithic sampled grating design, heterogeneous QCLs with a broad spectral gain, broadly tunable on-chip beam-combined QCLs, QCL-based mid-IR frequency combs, and fundamental mode surface emitting quantum cascade ring lasers. The developed QCLs will be the basis for a number of next-generation spectroscopy and sensing systems. reprint
29.	Broadband, Tunable, and Monolithic Quantum Cascade Lasers M. Razeghi, Q. Y. Lu, N. Bandyopadhyay, W. Zhou, D. Heydari, Y. Bai, and S. Slivken. Semiconductor lasers; (140.3600) Lasers, tunable-- May 19, 2017 This article describes the state of research and recent developments related to broadband quantum cascade lasers. Monolithic tuning and system development is also discussed. reprint
30.	Dispersion compensated mid-infrared quantum cascade laser frequency comb with high power output Q. Y. Lu, S. Manna, S. Slivken, D. H. Wu, and M. Razeghi AIP Advances 7, 045313 -- April 26, 2017 Chromatic dispersion control plays an underlying role in optoelectronics and spectroscopy owing to its enhancement to nonlinear interactions by reducing the phase mismatching. This is particularly important to optical frequency combs based on quantum cascade lasers which require negligible dispersions for efficient mode locking of the dispersed modes into equally spaced comb modes. Here, we demonstrated a dispersion compensated mid-IR quantum cascade laser frequency comb with high power output at room temperature. A low-loss dispersive mirror has been engineered to compensate the device’s dispersion residue for frequency comb generation. Narrow intermode beating linewidths of 40 Hz in the comb-working currents were identified with a high power output of 460 mW and a broad spectral coverage of 80 cm^-1. This dispersion compensation technique will enable fast spectroscopy and high-resolution metrology based on QCL combs with controlled dispersion and suppressed noise. reprint
31.	High efficiency quantum cascade laser frequency comb Quanyong Lu, Donghai Wu, Steven Slivken & Manijeh Razeghi Scientific Reports 7, Article number: 43806-- March 6, 2017 An efficient mid-infrared frequency comb source is of great interest to high speed, high resolution spectroscopy and metrology. Here we demonstrate a mid-IR quantum cascade laser frequency comb with a high power output and narrow beatnote linewidth at room temperature. The active region was designed with a strong-coupling between the injector and the upper lasing level for high internal quantum efficiency and a broadband gain. The group velocity dispersion was engineered for efficient, broadband mode-locking via four wave mixing. The comb device exhibits a narrow intermode beatnote linewidth of 50.5 Hz and a maximum wall-plug efficiency of 6.5% covering a spectral coverage of 110 cm⁻¹ at λ ~ 8 μm. The efficiency is improved by a factor of 6 compared with previous demonstrations. The high power efficiency and narrow beatnote linewidth will greatly expand the applications of quantum cascade laser frequency combs including high-precision remote sensing and spectroscopy. reprint
32.	Breakthroughs Bring THz Spectroscopy, Sensing Closer to Mainstream Manijeh Razeghi, Quanyong Lu, Santanu Manna, Donghai Wu & Steven Slivken Photnics Spectra, December Issue, pp. 48-- December 1, 2016 The terahertz (THz) electromagnetic spectrum (1 to 10 THz), sitting between the infrared wavelengths on the higher frequency side and microwaves on the lower frequency side, lies unique and important properties. THz waves can pass through a number of materials, including synthetics, textiles, paper and cardboard. Many biomolecules, proteins, explosives or narcotics feature characteristic absorption I ines - so-called spectral "fingerprints" - at frequencies between 1 and 10 THz.
33.	Quntum Cascade Laser Breakthrough for Advanced Remote Detection Manijeh Razeghi, Wenjia Zhou, Donghai Wu, Ryan McClintock, and Steven Slivken Photonics Spectra, November issue-- November 1, 2016 The atoms in a molecule can bend, stretch and rotate with respect to one another, and these excitations are largely optically active. Most molecules, from simple to moderately complex, have a characteristic absorption spectrum in the 3- to 14-µrn wavelength range that can be uniquely identified and quantified in real time. Infrared spectroscopy has been used to study these absorption features and develop different molecular "fingerprints."
34.	Engineering Multi-Section Quantum Cascade Lasers for Broadband Tuning Steven Slivken and Manijeh Razeghi Photonics 3, 41-- June 27, 2016 In an effort to overcome current limitations to electrical tuning of quantum cascade lasers, a strategy is proposed which combines heterogeneous quantum cascade laser gain engineering with sampled grating architectures. This approach seeks to not only widen the accessible spectral range for an individual emitter, but also compensate for functional non-uniformity of reflectivity and gain lineshapes. A trial laser with a dual wavelength core is presented which exhibits electroluminescence over a 750 cm⁻¹ range and discrete single mode laser emission over a 700 cm⁻¹ range. Electrical tuning over 180 cm⁻¹ is demonstrated with a simple sampled grating design. A path forward to even wider tuning is also described using more sophisticated gain and grating design principles. reprint
35.	Room temperature continuous wave, monolithic tunable THz sources based on highly efficient mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers Quanyong Lu, Donghai Wu, Saumya Sengupta, Steven Slivken, Manijeh Razeghi Nature Scientific Reports 6, Article number: 23595-- March 24, 2016 A compact, high power, room temperature continuous wave terahertz source emitting in a wide frequency range (ν ~ 1–5 THz) is of great importance to terahertz system development for applications in spectroscopy, communication, sensing, and imaging. Here, we present a strong-coupled strain-balanced quantum cascade laser design for efficient THz generation based on intracavity difference frequency generation. Room temperature continuous wave emission at 3.41 THz with a side-mode suppression ratio of 30 dB and output power up to 14 μW is achieved with a wall-plug efficiency about one order of magnitude higher than previous demonstrations. With this highly efficient design, continuous wave, single mode THz emissions with a wide frequency tuning range of 2.06–4.35 THz and an output power up to 4.2 μW are demonstrated at room temperature from two monolithic three-section sampled grating distributed feedback-distributed Bragg reflector lasers. reprint
36.	High power, electrically tunable quantum cascade lasers Steven Slivken; Manijeh Razeghi Proc. SPIE 9755, Quantum Sensing and Nano Electronics and Photonics-- February 13, 2016 Mid-infrared laser sources (3-14 μm wavelengths) which have wide spectral coverage and high output power are attractive for many applications. This spectral range contains unique absorption fingerprints of most molecules, including toxins, explosives, and nerve agents. Infrared spectroscopy can also be used to detect important biomarkers, which can be used for medical diagnostics by means of breath analysis. The challenge is to produce a broadband midinfrared source which is small, lightweight, robust, and inexpensive. We are currently investigating monolithic solutions using quantum cascade lasers. A wide gain bandwidth is not sufficient to make an ideal spectroscopy source. Single mode output with rapid tuning is desirable. For dynamic wavelength selection, our group is developing multi-section laser geometries with wide electrical tuning (hundreds of cm-1). These devices are roughly the same size as a traditional quantum cascade lasers, but tuning is accomplished without any external optical components. When combined with suitable amplifiers, these lasers are capable of multi-Watt single mode output powers. This manuscript will describe our current research efforts and the potential for high performance, broadband electrical tuning with the quantum cascade laser. reprint
37.	High power continuous operation of a widely tunable quantum cascade laser with an integrated amplifier S. Slivken, S. Sengupta, and M. Razeghi Applied Physics Letters 107, 251101-- December 21, 2015 Wide electrical tuning and high continuous output power is demonstrated from a single mode quantum cascade laser emitting at a wavelength near 4.8 μm. This is achieved in a space efficient manner by integrating an asymmetric sampled grating distributed feedback tunable laser with an optical amplifier. An initial demonstration of high peak power operation in pulsed mode is demonstrated first, with >5 W output over a 270 nm (113 cm⁻¹) spectral range. Refinement of the geometry leads to continuous operation with a single mode spectral coverage of 300 nm (120 cm⁻¹) and a maximum continuous power of 1.25 W. The output beam is shown to be nearly diffraction-limited, even at high amplifier current. reprint
38.	Ultra-broadband quantum cascade laser, tunable over 760 cm−1, with balanced gain N. Bandyopadhyay, M. Chen, S. Sengupta, S. Slivken, and M. Razeghi Opt. Express 23, 21159-21164 -- August 10, 2015 A heterogeneous quantum cascade laser, consisting of multiple stacks of discrete wavelength quantum cascade stages, emitting in 5.9-10.9 µm, wavelength range is reported. The broadband characteristics are demonstrated with a distributed-feedback laser array, emitting at fixed frequencies at room temperature, covering an emission range of ~760 cm⁻¹, which is ~59% relative to the center frequency. By appropriate choice of a strained AlInAs/GaInAs material system, quantum cascade stage design and spatial arrangement of stages, the distributed-feedback array has been engineered to exhibit a flat threshold current density across the demonstrated range. reprint
39.	Quantum cascade lasers: from tool to product M. Razeghi, Q. Y. Lu, N. Bandyopadhyay, W. Zhou, D. Heydari, Y. Bai, and S. Slivken Optics Express Vol. 23, Issue 7, pp. 8462-8475-- March 25, 2015 The quantum cascade laser (QCL) is an important laser source in the mid-infrared and terahertz frequency range. The past twenty years have witnessed its tremendous development in power, wall plug efficiency, frequency coverage and tunability, beam quality, as well as various applications based on QCL technology. Nowadays, QCLs can deliver high continuous wave power output up to 5.1 W at room temperature, and cover a wide frequency range from 3 to 300 μm by simply varying the material components. Broadband heterogeneous QCLs with a broad spectral range from 3 to 12 μm, wavelength agile QCLs based on monolithic sampled grating design, and on-chip beam QCL combiner are being developed for the next generation tunable mid-infrared source for spectroscopy and sensing. Terahertz sources based on nonlinear generation in QCLs further extend the accessible wavelength into the terahertz range. Room temperature continuous wave operation, high terahertz power up to 1.9 mW, and wide frequency tunability form 1 to 5 THz makes this type of device suitable for many applications in terahertz spectroscopy, imaging, and communication. reprint
40.	High brightness angled cavity quantum cascade lasers D. Heydari, Y. Bai, N. Bandyopadhyay, S. Slivken, and M. Razeghi Applied Physics Letters 106, 091105-- March 6, 2015 A quantum cascade laser (QCL) with an output power of 203 W is demonstrated in pulsed mode at 283 K with an angled cavity. The device has a ridge width of 300 μm, a cavity length of 5.8 mm, and a tilt angle of 12°. The back facet is high reflection coated, and the front facet is anti-reflection coated. The emitting wavelength is around 4.8 μm. In distinct contrast to a straight cavity broad area QCL, the lateral far field is single lobed with a divergence angle of only 3°. An ultrahigh brightness value of 156 MW cm²·sr^-1 is obtained, which marks the brightest QCL to date. reprint
41.	High power frequency comb based on mid-infrared quantum cascade laser at λ ~9μm Q. Y. Lu, M. Razeghi, S. Slivken, N. Bandyopadhyay, Y. Bai, W. J. Zhou, M. Chen, D. Heydari, A. Haddadi, R. McClintock, M. Amanti, and C. Sirtori Appl. Phys. Lett. 106, 051105-- February 2, 2015 We investigate a frequency comb source based on a mid-infrared quantum cascade laser at λ ∼9 μm with high power output. A broad flat-top gain with near-zero group velocity dispersion has been engineered using a dual-core active region structure. This favors the locking of the dispersed Fabry-Pérot modes into equally spaced frequency lines via four wave mixing. A current range with a narrow intermode beating linewidth of 3 kHz is identified with a fast detector and spectrum analyzer. This range corresponds to a broad spectral coverage of 65 cm⁻¹ and a high power output of 180 mW for ∼176 comb modes. reprint
42.	Widely tunable room temperature semiconductor terahertz source Q. Y. Lu, S. Slivken, N. Bandyopadhyay, Y. Bai, and M. Razeghi Appl. Phys. Lett. 105, 201102-- November 17, 2014 We present a widely tunable, monolithic terahertz source based on intracavity difference frequency generation within a mid-infrared quantum cascade laser at room temperature. A three-section ridge waveguide laser design with two sampled grating sections and a distributed-Bragg section is used to achieve the terahertz (THz) frequency tuning. Room temperature single mode THz emission with a wide tunable frequency range of 2.6–4.2 THz (∼47% of the central frequency) and THz power up to 0.1 mW is demonstrated, making such device an ideal candidate for THz spectroscopy and sensing. reprint
43.	High power operation of λ ∼ 5.2–11 μm strain balanced quantum cascade lasers based on the same material composition N. Bandyopadhyay, Y. Bai, S. Slivken, and M. Razeghi Appl. Phys. Lett. 105, 071106 (2014)-- August 20, 2014 A technique based on composite quantum wells for design and growth of strain balanced Al_0.63In_0.37As/Ga_0.35In_0.65As/Ga_0.47In_0.53As quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), emitting in 5.2–11 μm wavelength range, is reported. The strained Al_0.63In_0.37As provides good electron confinement at all wavelengths, and strain balancing can be achieved through composite wells of Ga_0.35In_0.65As/Ga_0.47In_0.53As for different wavelength. The use of these fixed composition materials can avoid the need for frequent calibration of a MBE reactor to grow active regions with different strain levels for different wavelengths. Experimental results for QCLs emitting at 5.2, 6.7, 8.2, 9.1, and 11 μm exhibit good wall plug efficiencies and power across the whole wavelength range. It is shown that the emission wavelength can be predictably changed using the same design template. These lasers are also compatible with a heterogeneous broadband active region, consisting of multiple QCL cores, which can be produced in a single growth run. reprint
44.	Monolithic terahertz source Q. Y. Lu, N. Bandyopadhyay, S. Slivken, Y. Bai and M. Razeghi Nature Photonics \| Research Highlights -- July 31, 2014 To date, the production of continuous-wave terahertz (THz) sources based on intracavity difference-frequency generation from mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers operating at room temperature has proved elusive. A critical problem is that, to achieve a large nonlinear susceptibility for frequency conversion, the active region of the quantum cascade laser requires high doping, which elevates the lasing threshold current density. Now, Quan-Yong Lu and colleagues from Northwestern University in the USA have overcome this problem and demonstrated a room-temperature continuous-wave THz source based on difference-frequency generation in quantum cascade lasers. They designed quantum-well structures based on In_0.53Ga_0.47As/In_0.52Al_0.48As material system for two mid-infrared wavelengths. The average doping in the active region was about 2.5 × 10¹⁶ cm⁻³. A buried ridge, buried composite distributed-feedback waveguide with the Čerenkov phase-matching scheme was used to reduce the waveguide loss and enhance heat dissipation. As a result, single-mode emission at 3.6 THz was observed at 293 K. The continuous-wave THz power reached 3 μW with a conversion efficiency of 0.44 mW W⁻² from mid-infrared to THz waves. Using a similar device design, a THz peak power of 1.4 mW was achieved in pulse mode. reprint
45.	Continuous operation of a monolithic semiconductor terahertz source at room temperature Q. Y. Lu, N. Bandyopadhyay, S. Slivken, Y. Bai, and M. Razeghi Appl. Phys. Lett. 104, 221105 (2014)-- June 3, 2014 We demonstrate room temperature continuous wave THz sources based on intracavity difference-frequency generation from mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers. Buried ridge, buried composite distributed-feedback waveguide with Čerenkov phase-matching scheme is used to reduce the waveguide loss and enhance the heat dissipation for continuous wave operation. Continuous emission at 3.6 THz with a side-mode suppression ratio of 20 dB and output power up to 3 μW are achieved, respectively. THz peak power is further scaled up to 1.4 mW in pulsed mode by increasing the mid-infrared power through increasing the active region doping and device area. reprint
46.	Extended electrical tuning of quantum cascade lasers with digital concatenated gratings S. Slivken, N. Bandyopadhyay, Y. Bai, Q. Y. Lu, and M. Razeghi Appl. Phys. Lett. 103, 231110 (2013)-- December 6, 2013 In this report, the sampled grating distributed feedback laser architecture is modified with digital concatenated gratings to partially compensate for the wavelength dependence of optical gain in a standard high efficiency quantum cascade laser core. This allows equalization of laser threshold over a wide wavelength range and demonstration of wide electrical tuning. With only two control currents, a full tuning range of 500 nm (236 cm⁻¹) has been demonstrated. Emission is single mode, with a side mode suppression of >20 dB. reprint
47.	Room temperature compact THz sources based on quantum cascade laser technology M. Razeghi; Q.Y. Lu; N. Bandyopadhyay; S. Slivken; Y. Bai Proc. SPIE 8846, Terahertz Emitters, Receivers, and Applications IV, 884602 (September 24, 2013)-- November 24, 2013 We present the high performance THz sources based on intracavity difference-frequency generation from mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers. Room temperature single-mode operation in a wide THz spectral range of 1-4.6 THz is demonstrated from our Čerenkov phase-matched THz sources with dual-period DFB gratings. High THz power up to 215 μW at 3.5 THz is demonstrated via epi-down mounting of our THz device. The rapid development renders this type of THz sources promising local oscillators for many astronomical and medical applications. reprint
48.	Recent advances in mid infrared (3-5 μm) quantum cascade lasers Manijeh Razeghi; Neelanjan Bandyopadhyay; Yanbo Bai; Quanyong Lu; Steven Slivken Optical Materials Express, Vol. 3, Issue 11, pp. 1872-1884 (2013)-- November 2, 2013 Quantum cascade laser (QCL) is an important source of electromagnetic radiation in mid infrared region. Recent research in mid-IR QCLs has resulted in record high wallplug efficiency (WPE), high continuous wave (CW) output power, single mode operation and wide tunability. CW output power of 5.1 W with 21% WPE has been achieved at room temperature (RT). A record high WPE of 53% at 40K has been demonstrated. Operation wavelength of QCL in CW at RT has been extended to as short as 3μm. Very high peak power of 190 W has been obtained from a broad area QCL of ridge width 400μm. 2.4W RT, CW power output has been achieved from a distributed feedback (DFB) QCL. Wide tuning based on dual section sample grating DFB QCLs has resulted in individual tuning of 50cm-1 and 24 dB side mode suppression ratio with continuous wave power greater than 100 mW. reprint
49.	Room temperature terahertz quantum cascade laser sources with 215 μW output power through epilayer-down mounting Q. Y. Lu, N. Bandyopadhyay, S. Slivken, Y. Bai, and M. Razeghi Appl. Phys. Lett. 103, 011101 (2013)-- July 1, 2013 We report room temperature terahertz (THz) quantum cascade laser sources with high power based on difference frequency generation. The device is Čerenkov phase matched and spectrally purified with an integrated dual-period distributed-feedback grating. Symmetric current injection and epilayer-down mounting of the device onto a patterned submount are used to improve the electrical uniformity and heat removal, respectively. The epilayer-down mounting also allows for THz anti-reflective coating to enhance the THz outcoupling efficiency. Single mode emission at 3.5 THz with a side-mode suppression ratio and output power up to 30 dB and 215 μW are obtained, respectively. reprint
50.	Widely tuned room temperature terahertz quantum cascade laser sources Q.Y. Lu, N. Bandyopadhyay, S. Slivken, Y. Bai and M. Razeghi SPIE Proceedings, Vol. 8631, p. 863108-1, Photonics West, San Francisco, CA-- February 3, 2013 Room temperature THz quantum cascade laser sources with a broad spectral coverage based on intracavity difference frequency generation are demonstrated. Two mid-infrared active cores in the longer mid-IR wavelength range (9-11 micron)based on the single-phonon resonance scheme are designed with a second-order difference frequency nonlinearity specially optimized for the high operating fields that correspond to the highest mid-infrared output powers. A Čerenkov phase-matching scheme along with integrated dual-period distributed feedback gratings are used for efficient THz extraction and spectral purification. Single mode emissions from 1.0 to 4.6 THz with a side-mode suppression ratio and output power up to 40 dB and 32 μW are obtained, respectively. reprint

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