GaInAs/AlInAs Heteropair Quantum Cascade Laser Operating at a Wavelength of 5.6 μm and Temperature of Above 300K

A quantum cascade laser based on a strain-compensated Ga0.4In0.6As/Al0.58In0.42As heteropair is developed, which operates in a pulse mode in the wavelength range of 5.5–5.6 µm at a temperature of up to 350 K. Such characteristics are obtained due to increased quantum well depth and a two-phonon depopulation mechanism for the lower laser level. The laser epitaxial heterostructure was grown by the MOVPE method. Investigation by the high-resolution X-ray diffraction technique confirmed a high quality of the heterostructure. The threshold current density is 1.6 kA/cm2 at 300 К. The characteristic temperature is T0 = 161 K for the temperature range of 200–350 K. For a laser of size 20 µm × 3 mm with cleaved mirrors, the maximum pulse power is 1.1 W at 80 K and 130 mW at 300 K. Keywords: quantum cascade laser, GaInAs/AlInAs heteropair, MOVPE, the middle IR spectrum