Short-wavelength laser diodes based on AlInAs/AlGaAs self-assembled quantum dots

Self-assembled quantum dots (QDs) of highly strained InAlAs have been grown by molecular beam epitaxy in separate-confinement p-i-n heterostructures on (001) GaAs substrates. Results from a systematic study of samples with varying amounts of deposited material relates the observed emission peaks with QD levels, wetting layer states, or barrier materials. For samples with high-QD concentration, lasing is observed in the upper-QD shells. A sample with contact layers improving carrier and optical confinement operates up to room temperature and displays lowered threshold current densities. A threshold current density of similar to 4 A/cm(2) is measured for this structure at T = 5 K and continuous-wave operation is obtained up to T similar to 77 K. A material gain larger than 1.7 x 10(4) cm(-1) is measured for this single-layer structure. Lasing is observed in the upper-QD shells for small gain media, and progresses towards the QD lower states for longer cavity lengths representing an emission shift of 45 meV. A minor dependence of the threshold on QD density is found for samples having densities between 20 and hundreds of QDs per micron squared. For samples with multiple QD layers displaying vertical self-assembling, an increase in the emission linewidth is observed compared with single-layer samples and multilayer samples with uncorrelated growth. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-8979(00)04803-9].