skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: 21 THz quantum-cascade laser operating up to 144 K based on a scattering-assisted injection design

Journal Article · · Optics Express
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.23.019689· OSTI ID:1214775
 [1];  [2];  [1]
  1. Lehigh Univ., Bethlehem, PA (United States)
  2. Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

A 2.1 THz quantum cascade laser (QCL) based on a scattering-assisted injection and resonant-phonon depopulation design scheme is demonstrated. The QCL is based on a four-well period implemented in the GaAs/Al0.15Ga0.85As material system. The QCL operates up to a heat-sink temperature of 144 K in pulsed-mode, which is considerably higher than that achieved for previously reported THz QCLs operating around the frequency of 2 THz. At 46 K, the threshold current-density was measured as ~ 745 A/cm2 with a peak-power output of ~10 mW. Electrically stable operation in a positive differential-resistance regime is achieved by a careful choice of design parameters. The results validate the robustness of scattering-assisted injection schemes for development of low-frequency (ν < 2.5 THz) QCLs.

Research Organization:
Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC04-94AL85000
OSTI ID:
1214775
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1512904
Report Number(s):
SAND-2015-9049J; OPEXFF
Journal Information:
Optics Express, Vol. 23, Issue 15; ISSN 1094-4087
Publisher:
Optical Society of America (OSA)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 16 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (20)

3.4-THz quantum cascade laser based on longitudinal-optical-phonon scattering for depopulation journal February 2003
Indirectly pumped 37 THz InGaAs/InAlAs quantum-cascade lasers grown by metal-organic vapor-phase epitaxy journal January 2012
An indirectly pumped terahertz quantum cascade laser with low injection coupling strength operating above 150 K journal May 2013
Terahertz quantum cascade lasers with >1 W output powers journal February 2014
1.9THz quantum-cascade lasers with one-well injector journal March 2006
A high carrier injection terahertz quantum cascade laser based on indirectly pumped scheme journal January 2014
Nonequilibrium Green’s function calculation for four-level scheme terahertz quantum cascade lasers journal April 2009
Quantum cascade lasers operating from 1.2to1.6THz journal September 2007
Terahertz quantum cascade lasers operating up to ∼ 200 K with optimized oscillator strength and improved injection tunneling journal January 2012
A 1.8-THz quantum cascade laser operating significantly above the temperature of ℏω/kB journal December 2010
Continuous wave operation of a superlattice quantum cascade laser emitting at 2 THz journal January 2006
A phonon scattering assisted injection and extraction based terahertz quantum cascade laser journal April 2012
Terahertz semiconductor-heterostructure laser journal May 2002
Terahertz quantum-cascade lasers journal September 2007
Low frequency terahertz quantum cascade laser operating from 1.6to1.8THz journal December 2006
Temperature performance of terahertz quantum-cascade lasers with resonant-phonon active-regions journal September 2014
Direct Nanoscale Imaging of Evolving Electric Field Domains in Quantum Structures journal November 2014
Ground state terahertz quantum cascade lasers journal October 2012
Coherence of resonant-tunneling transport in terahertz quantum-cascade lasers journal December 2009
Recent Progress in Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers journal January 2011

Cited By (2)

Simulating terahertz quantum cascade lasers: Trends from samples from different labs journal September 2016
Transient energy relaxation in scattering-assisted terahertz quantum cascade lasers journal March 2017

Figures / Tables (4)


Similar Records

Resonant-phonon-assisted THz quantum cascade lasers with metal-metal waveguides.
Journal Article · Tue Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 2004 · Proposed for publication in Semiconductor Science and Technology. · OSTI ID:1214775

Two-well injector direct-phonon terahertz quantum cascade lasers
Journal Article · Tue Aug 08 00:00:00 EDT 2023 · Applied Physics Letters · OSTI ID:1214775

High-temperature operation of broadband bidirectional terahertz quantum-cascade lasers
Journal Article · Mon Sep 12 00:00:00 EDT 2016 · Scientific Reports · OSTI ID:1214775