High temperature silicon evanescent lasers

We present an electrically pumped silicon evanescent laser that utilizes a silicon waveguide and offset AlGaInAs quantum wells. The silicon waveguide is fabricated on a Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) wafer and is bonded with the AlGaInAs quantum well structure using low temperature 02 plasma-assisted wafer bonding. The optical mode in the hybrid waveguide is predominantly confined in the passive silicon waveguide and evanescently couples into the Ill-V active region providing optical gain via electrical current injection. The device lases continuous wave at 1577 nm with a threshold of 65 mA at 15 degrees C. The maximum single-sided fiber-coupled cw output power is 1.8 mW. The maximum operating temperature is 40 degrees C mainly limited by a high series resistance of the device. Operation up to 60 degrees C should be achievable by lowering the series resistance and thermal impedance.