Abstract

Selective area quantum well intermixing (QWI) has recently emerged as a powerful technique for the monolithic integration of optoelectronic devices, such as lasers, modulators and waveguides. Monolithically-integrated multiple-wavelength lasers for use as wavelength division multiplexing sources have been demonstrated in both GaAs/AlGaAs and InP/InGaAsP material systems, using one-step techniques to achieve varying degrees of intermixing across a sample. In order to design and optimise such devices, it is necessary to understand the effect of QWI on the semiconductor’s complex dielectric coefficients. Of particular interest are the changes in gain spectra caused by the intermixing process. Theoretical predictions of gain spectra as a function of the degree of intermixing have been made [1], but to date there have been no corresponding experimental measurements. Using the method of Blood et al. [2], gain spectra have been measured in as-grown and intermixed GaAs/AIGaAs quantum well lasers.

© 1998 IEEE