Open AccessSingle-mode high-power interband cascade lasers for mid-infrared absorption spectroscopy
Author(s) -
Carl Borgentun,
Clifford Frez,
Ryan M. Briggs,
Mathieu Fradet,
Siamak Forouhar
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.23.002446
Subject(s) - optics , laser , materials science , cascade , spectroscopy , optoelectronics , absorption (acoustics) , wavelength , tunable laser , optical power , infrared , physics , chemistry , chromatography , quantum mechanics
For high-sensitivity absorption spectroscopy, single-mode light sources capable of emitting high optical output power in the 3 to 5 µm wavelength range are vital. Here, we report on interband cascade lasers that emit 20 mW of optical power in a single spectral mode at room temperature and up to 40 mW at 0 °C using second-order laterally coupled Bragg gratings for distributed feedback. The lasers employ a double-ridge design with a narrow 3-µm-wide top ridge to confine the optical mode and a 9-µm-wide ridge for current confinement. The lasers were developed for an integrated cavity output spectroscopy instrument for stratospheric detection of hydrogen chloride at a wavelength of 3.3746 µm and emit at the target wavelength with more than 34 mW of single-mode power.