Single-mode low threshold current multi-hole vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers

A multi-hole vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) operating in stable single mode with a low threshold current was produced by introducing multi-leaf scallop holes on the top distributed Bragg-reflector of an oxidation-confined 850 nm VCSEL. The single-mode output power of 2.6 mW, threshold current of 0.6 mA, full width of half maximum lasing spectrum of less than 0.1 nm, side mode suppression ratio of 28.4 dB, and far-field divergence angle of about 10? are obtained. The effects of different hole depths on the optical characteristics are simulated and analysed, including far-field divergence, spectrum and lateral cavity mode. The single-mode performance of this multi-hole device is attributed to the large radiation loss from the inter-hole spacing and the scattering loss at the bottom of the holes, particularly for higher order modes.