Abstract

It is well appreciated that the polarisation characteristics of vertical-cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) exhibit significant differences to those of edge-emitting semiconductor lasers [1], In general, the polarisation of the fundamental transverse mode can change with the injected current. It has been noted that strong birefringence can arise in nominally isotropic VCSELs, for example, due to strain-induced during the fabrication process and due to non-uniformity of the injection current profile [2]. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate that relatively small refractive index anisotropies are adequate for polarisation mode control in these devices.

© 1996 Optical Society of America