Doping engineering: Next step toward room temperature performance of terahertz quantum cascade lasers

Lander Gower, Nathalie; Levy, Shiran; Piperno, Silvia; Addamane, Sadhvikas J.; Reno, John L.; Albo, Asaf

doi:10.1116/6.0003160

Doping engineering: Next step toward room temperature performance of terahertz quantum cascade lasers

Journal Article · Mon Jan 08 23:00:00 EST 2024 · Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology B

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1116/6.0003160· OSTI ID:2311238

^[1]; Levy, Shiran ^[1]; ^[1]; ^[2]; ^[2]; ^[1]

Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan (Israel)
Sandia National Laboratory (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States). Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies

We hereby offer a comprehensive analysis of various factors that could potentially enable terahertz quantum cascade lasers (THz QCLs) to achieve room temperature performance. We thoroughly examine and integrate the latest findings from recent studies in the field. Our work goes beyond a mere analysis; it represents a nuanced and comprehensive exploration of the intricate factors influencing the performance of THz QCLs. Through a comprehensive and holistic approach, we propose novel insights that significantly contribute to advancing strategies for improving the temperature performance of THz QCLs. This all-encompassing perspective allows us not only to present a synthesis of existing knowledge but also to offer a fresh and nuanced strategy to improve the temperature performance of THz QCLs. We draw new conclusions from prior works, demonstrating that the key to enhancing THz QCL temperature performance involves not only optimizing interface quality but also strategically managing doping density, its spatial distribution, and profile. This is based on our results from different structures, such as two experimentally demonstrated devices: the spit-well resonant-phonon and the two-well injector direct-phonon schemes for THz QCLs, which allow efficient isolation of the laser levels from excited and continuum states. In these schemes, the doping profile has a setback that lessens the overlap of the doped region with the active laser states. Our work stands as a valuable resource for researchers seeking to gain a deeper understanding of the evolving landscape of THz technology. Furthermore, we present a novel strategy for future endeavors, providing an enhanced framework for continued exploration in this dynamic field. This strategy should pave the way to potentially reach higher temperatures than the latest records reached for T_max of THz QCLs.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); Israel Science Foundation (ISF)

Grant/Contract Number:: NA0003525

OSTI ID:: 2311238

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 2311270

Report Number(s):: SAND--2024-02025J

Journal Information:: Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology B, Journal Name: Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology B Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 42; ISSN 2166-2746

Publisher:: American Vacuum Society / AIPCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

References (44)

Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers as Enabling Quantum Technology Vitiello, Miriam Serena; De Natale, Paolo Advanced Quantum Technologies, Vol. 5, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1002/qute.202100082	journal	November 2021
Quantum-Cascade Lasers in Medicine and Biology (Review) Abramov, P. I.; Kuznetsov, E. V.; Skvortsov, L. A. Journal of Applied Spectroscopy, Vol. 86, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10812-019-00775-8	journal	March 2019
From Terahertz Imaging to Terahertz Wireless Communications Huang, Yi; Shen, Yaochun; Wang, Jiayou Engineering, Vol. 22 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eng.2022.06.023	journal	March 2023
Non-invasive detection technologies of solid foreign matter and their applications to lyophilized pharmaceutical products: A review Achouri, Inès E.; Rhoden, Alan; Hudon, Sophie Talanta, Vol. 224 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2020.121885	journal	March 2021
Terahertz semiconductor-heterostructure laser Köhler, Rüdeger; Tredicucci, Alessandro; Beltram, Fabio Nature, Vol. 417, Issue 6885 https://doi.org/10.1038/417156a	journal	May 2002
Terahertz quantum-cascade lasers Williams, Benjamin S. Nature Photonics, Vol. 1, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2007.166	journal	September 2007
High-power portable terahertz laser systems Khalatpour, Ali; Paulsen, Andrew K.; Deimert, Chris Nature Photonics, Vol. 15, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41566-020-00707-5	journal	November 2020
Self-consistent theory of the gain linewidth for quantum-cascade lasers Banit, F.; Lee, S. -C.; Knorr, A. Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 86, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1851004	journal	January 2005
Effect of doping concentration on the performance of terahertz quantum-cascade lasers Liu, H. C.; Wächter, M.; Ban, D. Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 87, Issue 14 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.2067699	journal	October 2005
186 K operation of terahertz quantum-cascade lasers based on a diagonal design Kumar, Sushil; Hu, Qing; Reno, John L. Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 94, Issue 13 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3114418	journal	March 2009
Temperature dependence of the key electro-optical characteristics for midinfrared emitting quantum cascade lasers Botez, D.; Kumar, S.; Shin, J. C. Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 97, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3478836	journal	August 2010
Non-equilibrium Green’s function calculation for GaN-based terahertz-quantum cascade laser structures Yasuda, H.; Kubis, T.; Hosako, I. Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 111, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4704389	journal	April 2012
Investigating temperature degradation in THz quantum cascade lasers by examination of temperature dependence of output power Albo, Asaf; Hu, Qing Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 106, Issue 13 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4916961	journal	March 2015
Carrier leakage into the continuum in diagonal GaAs/Al _0.15 GaAs terahertz quantum cascade lasers Albo, Asaf; Hu, Qing Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 107, Issue 24 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4937455	journal	December 2015
Room temperature negative differential resistance in terahertz quantum cascade laser structures Albo, Asaf; Hu, Qing; Reno, John L. Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 109, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4961617	journal	August 2016
Two-well terahertz quantum cascade lasers with suppressed carrier leakage Albo, Asaf; Flores, Yuri V.; Hu, Qing Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 111, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4996567	journal	September 2017
Broadening mechanisms and self-consistent gain calculations for GaN quantum cascade laser structures Wang, Ke; Grange, Thomas; Lin, Tsung-Tse Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 113, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5029520	journal	August 2018
Split-well direct-phonon terahertz quantum cascade lasers Albo, Asaf; Flores, Yuri V.; Hu, Qing Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 114, Issue 19 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5089854	journal	May 2019
Thermoelectrically cooled THz quantum cascade laser operating up to 210 K Bosco, L.; Franckié, M.; Scalari, G. Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 115, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5110305	journal	July 2019
Self-consistent gain calculations and carrier transport analysis for split-well direct-phonon terahertz quantum cascade lasers Lander Gower, Nathalie; Piperno, Silvia; Albo, Asaf AIP Advances, Vol. 10, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0015952	journal	November 2020
Enhanced operating temperature in terahertz quantum cascade lasers based on direct phonon depopulation Khalatpour, Ali; Tam, Man Chun; Addamane, Sadhvikas J. Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 122, Issue 16 https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0144705	journal	April 2023
Two-well injector direct-phonon terahertz quantum cascade lasers Lander Gower, Nathalie; Levy, Shiran; Piperno, Silvia Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 123, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0155250	journal	August 2023
Terahertz quantum-cascade lasers for high-resolution absorption spectroscopy of atoms and ions in plasmas Lü, X.; Röben, B.; Biermann, K. Semiconductor Science and Technology, Vol. 38, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6641/acb1cd	journal	January 2023
Nonequilibrium Green’s function theory for transport and gain properties of quantum cascade structures Lee, S. -C.; Wacker, A. Physical Review B, Vol. 66, Issue 24 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.66.245314	journal	December 2002
Electron transport in quantum wire superlattices Grange, Thomas Physical Review B, Vol. 89, Issue 16 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.89.165310	journal	April 2014
Contrasting influence of charged impurities on transport and gain in terahertz quantum cascade lasers Grange, Thomas Physical Review B, Vol. 92, Issue 24 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.92.241306	journal	December 2015
Frequency-Comb-Assisted Terahertz Quantum Cascade Laser Spectroscopy Bartalini, S.; Consolino, L.; Cancio, P. Physical Review X, Vol. 4, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.4.021006	journal	April 2014
THz Spectroscopy by Narrow Spectral Emission of Quantum Cascade Lasers for Medical Applications Hartnagel, Hans L.; Sirkeli, Vadim P.; Acedo, Pablo 2021 International Semiconductor Conference (CAS) https://doi.org/10.1109/CAS52836.2021.9604138	conference	October 2021
The Response of Split-Well Direct-Phonon THz Quantum-Cascade Laser Structures to Changes in Doping Gower, N. Lander; Piperno, S.; Albo, A. 2022 47th International Conference on Infrared, Millimeter and Terahertz Waves (IRMMW-THz) https://doi.org/10.1109/IRMMW-THz50927.2022.9895500	conference	August 2022
High Doping Concentration and Variable Al Composition THz Quantum Cascade Lasers with 1.39-Watt Operation Lin, Tsung-Tse; Wang, Li; Wang, Ke 2022 47th International Conference on Infrared, Millimeter and Terahertz Waves (IRMMW-THz) https://doi.org/10.1109/IRMMW-THz50927.2022.9895547	conference	August 2022
Doping Study of Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers Miyoshi, T.; Wang, K. X.; Lin, T. -T. 2022 47th International Conference on Infrared, Millimeter and Terahertz Waves (IRMMW-THz) https://doi.org/10.1109/IRMMW-THz50927.2022.9895737	conference	August 2022
Terahertz Frequency Sensing and Imaging: A Time of Reckoning Future Applications? Woolard, D. L.; Brown, R.; Pepper, M. Proceedings of the IEEE, Vol. 93, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1109/JPROC.2005.853539	journal	October 2005
Impact of Interface Roughness Scattering on the Performance of GaAs/Al _x Ga _1–x As Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers Flores, Yuri V.; Albo, Asaf IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, Vol. 53, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1109/JQE.2017.2689743	journal	June 2017
Erratum to “Impact of Interface Roughness Scattering on the Performance of GaAs/Al $_{\mathrm {\mathbf {x}}}$ Ga $_{\mathrm {\mathbf {1-x}}}$ As Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers” [Jun 17 Art. no. 2300208] Flores, Yuri V.; Albo, Asaf IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, Vol. 53, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1109/JQE.2017.2732404	journal	October 2017
Carrier Leakage Dynamics in Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers Albo, Asaf; Flores, Yuri V. IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, Vol. 53, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1109/JQE.2017.2740261	journal	October 2017
Defence and security applications of quantum cascade lasers Grasso, Robert J. SPIE Proceedings https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2238963	conference	September 2016
Terahertz quantum cascade lasers operating up to ∼ 200 K with optimized oscillator strength and improved injection tunneling Fathololoumi, S.; Dupont, E.; Chan, C. W. I. Optics Express, Vol. 20, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.20.003866	journal	January 2012
Quantum cascade lasers: from tool to product Razeghi, M.; Lu, Q. Y.; Bandyopadhyay, N. Optics Express, Vol. 23, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.23.008462	journal	January 2015
Split-well resonant-phonon terahertz quantum cascade laser Levy, Shiran; Lander Gower, Nathalie; Piperno, Silvia Optics Express, Vol. 31, Issue 14 https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.486446	journal	June 2023
Coherent terahertz laser feedback interferometry for hydration sensing in leaves Kashyap, Mayuri; Torniainen, Jari; Bertling, Karl Optics Express, Vol. 31, Issue 15 https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.490217	journal	July 2023
Extraction of the electron excess temperature in terahertz quantum cascade lasers from laser characteristics Lander Gower, Nathalie; Levy, Shiran; Piperno, Silvia Nanophotonics, Vol. 0, Issue 0 https://doi.org/10.1515/nanoph-2023-0617	journal	January 2024
The Significance of Carrier Leakage for Stable Lasing in Split-Well Direct Phonon Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers Lander Gower, Nathalie; Piperno, Silvia; Albo, Asaf Photonics, Vol. 7, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics7030059	journal	August 2020
The Effect of Doping in Split-Well Direct-Phonon THz Quantum-Cascade Laser Structures Lander Gower, Nathalie; Piperno, Silvia; Albo, Asaf Photonics, Vol. 8, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics8060195	journal	May 2021
Comparison of THz-QCL Designs Supporting Clean N-Level Systems Lander Gower, Nathalie; Piperno, Silvia; Albo, Asaf Photonics, Vol. 8, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics8070248	journal	June 2021

Similar Records

Two-well injector direct-phonon terahertz quantum cascade lasers

Journal Article · Tue Aug 08 00:00:00 EDT 2023 · Applied Physics Letters · OSTI ID:2311462

Analyzing the effect of doping concentration in split-well resonant-phonon terahertz quantum cascade lasers

Journal Article · Mon Mar 18 00:00:00 EDT 2024 · Optics Express · OSTI ID:2326298

Related Subjects

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION
doping
electronic band structure
laser level
oscillator strengths
phonon scattering
resonant tunneling
terahertz laser

Doping engineering: Next step toward room temperature performance of terahertz quantum cascade lasers

Citation Formats

References (44)

Similar Records

Related Subjects