Electrically-driven Photonic Crystal Lasers with Ultra-low Threshold

TL;DR

This paper reports the development of an electrically-driven photonic crystal nanolaser with an ultra-low threshold current of 10.2 μA emitting at 1540 nm, suitable for energy-efficient on-chip optical communication.

Contribution

It introduces a room-temperature, electrically-driven PhC nanolaser with ultra-low threshold current, fabricated on InP-based bonded on Si, with detailed analysis of its static, thermal, and disorder effects.

Findings

Achieved an ultra-low threshold current of 10.2 μA.

Demonstrated room-temperature operation at 1540 nm.

Analyzed effects of disorder and p-doping on Q-factor.

Abstract

Light sources with ultra-low energy consumption and high performance are required to realize optical interconnects for on-chip communication. Photonic crystal (PhC) nanocavity lasers are one of the most promising candidates to fill this role. In this work, we demonstrate an electrically-driven PhC nanolaser with an ultra-low threshold current of 10.2 {\mu}A emitting at 1540 nm and operated at room temperature. The lasers are InP-based bonded on Si and comprise a buried heterostructure active region and lateral p-i-n junction. The static characteristics and the thermal properties of the lasers have been characterized. The effect of disorder and p-doping absorption on the Q-factor of passive cavities was studied. We also investigate the leakage current due to the lateral p-i-n geometry by comparing the optical and electrical pumping schemes.