Impact of photon lifetime on thermal rollover in 850-nm high-speed VCSELs

We present an empirical thermal model for VCSELs based on extraction of temperature dependence of macroscopic VCSEL parameters from CW measurements. We apply our model to two, oxide-confined, 850-nm VCSELs, fabricated with a 9-mu m inner-aperture diameter and optimized for high-speed operation. We demonstrate that for both these devices, the power dissipation due to linear heat sources dominates the total self-heating. We further show that reducing photon lifetime down to 2 ps drastically reduces absorption heating and improves device static performance by delaying the onset of thermal rollover. The new thermal model can identify the mechanisms limiting the thermal performance and help in formulating the design strategies to ameliorate them.