Terahertz semiconductor-heterostructure laser

Rüdeger Köhler (), Alessandro Tredicucci, Fabio Beltram, Harvey E. Beere, Edmund H. Linfield, A. Giles Davies, David A. Ritchie, Rita C. Iotti and Fausto Rossi
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Rüdeger Köhler: NEST-INFM and Scuola Normale Superiore
Alessandro Tredicucci: NEST-INFM and Scuola Normale Superiore
Fabio Beltram: NEST-INFM and Scuola Normale Superiore
Harvey E. Beere: University of Cambridge
Edmund H. Linfield: University of Cambridge
A. Giles Davies: University of Cambridge
David A. Ritchie: University of Cambridge
Rita C. Iotti: INFM and Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Torino
Fausto Rossi: INFM and Dipartimento di Fisica, Politecnico di Torino

Nature, 2002, vol. 417, issue 6885, 156-159

Abstract: Abstract Semiconductor devices have become indispensable for generating electromagnetic radiation in everyday applications. Visible and infrared diode lasers are at the core of information technology, and at the other end of the spectrum, microwave and radio-frequency emitters enable wireless communications. But the terahertz region (1–10 THz; 1 THz = 1012 Hz) between these ranges has remained largely underdeveloped, despite the identification of various possible applications—for example, chemical detection, astronomy and medical imaging1,2,3,4. Progress in this area has been hampered by the lack of compact, low-consumption, solid-state terahertz sources5,6,7,8,9. Here we report a monolithic terahertz injection laser that is based on interminiband transitions in the conduction band of a semiconductor (GaAs/AlGaAs) heterostructure. The prototype demonstrated emits a single mode at 4.4 THz, and already shows high output powers of more than 2 mW with low threshold current densities of about a few hundred A cm-2 up to 50 K. These results are very promising for extending the present laser concept to continuous-wave and high-temperature operation, which would lead to implementation in practical photonic systems.

Date: 2002
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DOI: 10.1038/417156a

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