Research on Mid-Infrared External Cavity Quantum Cascade Lasers and Applications

Yuhang Ma; Keke Ding; Long Wei; Xuan Li; Junce Shi; Zaijin Li; Yi Qu; Lin Li; Zhongliang Qiao; Guojun Liu; Lina Zeng; Dongxin Xu

doi:10.3390/cryst12111564

Crystals (Nov 2022)

Research on Mid-Infrared External Cavity Quantum Cascade Lasers and Applications

Yuhang Ma,
Keke Ding,
Long Wei,
Xuan Li,
Junce Shi,
Zaijin Li,
Yi Qu,
Lin Li,
Zhongliang Qiao,
Guojun Liu,
Lina Zeng,
Dongxin Xu

Affiliations

Yuhang Ma: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Keke Ding: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Long Wei: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Xuan Li: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Junce Shi: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Zaijin Li: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Yi Qu: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Lin Li: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Zhongliang Qiao: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Guojun Liu: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Lina Zeng: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China
Dongxin Xu: Key Laboratory of Laser Technology and Optoelectronic Functional Materials of Hainan Province, Academician Team Innovation Center of Hainan Province, College of Physics and Electronic Engineering, Hainan Normal University, Haikou 571158, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst12111564
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 12, no. 11
p. 1564

Abstract

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In this paper, we review the progress of the development and application of external cavity quantum cascade lasers (ECQCLs). We concentrated on ECQCLs based on the wide tunable range for multi-component detection and applications. ECQCLs in the mid-infrared band have a series of unique spectral properties, which can be widely used in spectroscopy, gas detection, protein detection, medical diagnosis, free space optical communication, and so on, especially wide tuning range, the tuning range up to hundreds of wavenumbers; therefore, ECQCLs show great applications potential in many fields. In this paper, the main external cavity structures of ECQCLs are reviewed and compared, such as the Littrow structure, the Littman structure, and some new structures. Some new structures include the intra-cavity out-coupling structure, multimode interference (MMI) structure, and acousto-optic modulator (AOM) control structure. At the same time, the application research of ECQCLs in gas detection, protein detection, and industry detection are introduced in detail. The results show that the use of diffraction gratings as optical feedback elements can not only achieve wide tuning, but it also has low cost, which is beneficial to reduce the complexity of the laser structure. Therefore, the use of diffraction gratings as optical feedback elements is still the mainstream direction of ECQCLs, and ECQCLs offer a further new option for multi-component detection.

Published in Crystals

ISSN: 2073-4352 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science: Chemistry: Crystallography
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/crystals/

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