Features of laser diodes' radiation in different temperature intervals

Abstract

In the literature there is practically no information on the change in the characteristics of the emission spectrum of industrial semiconductor laser diodes in a wide range of temperatures, including cryogenic temperatures. Nevertheless, this information is decisive when choosing specific laser diodes for industrial devices. An experimental study of features of the emission spectra of laser semiconductor diodes in the temperature range 50–300 K has been conducted. The material used in the laser diodes' manufacture is a compound based on the solid quaternary AlGaInP solution. The radiation spectrum has been investigated using a monochromator MDR-23 with a CCD detector installed. The study has proved that the temperature of the laser diode operation determines the nature of the radiation spectrum, in particular the predominance of stimulated or induced radiation has taken place, the range of wavelengths of radiation changes as well. It is believed that in the temperature range from 50 to 300 K in the volume of the laser diode material some processes are realized, as a result of which the value of the forbidden band width changes, it decreases by approximately 4.2–4.5 % from the value corresponding to the temperature of 50 K. The calculation of the value of the temperature coefficient of the change in the forbidden band width has shown that in the temperature range from 50 to 300 K the meaning of βvaries in absolute value by 2–3 times. A new experimental method for determining ionization energies of exciton levels has been proposed. It is of practical use for monitoring the electro-physical parameters of semiconductor materials used in the manufacture of industrial semiconductor lasers. The advantage of the proposed method is the ability to obtain qualitative and quantitative information about the exciton spectrum of the laser diode material directly in the region of the p–n-junction where the laser radiation is formed

Keywords

• semiconductor laser diodes
• emission spectra
• bandgap width
• temperature effect
• exciton energy