Temperature dependence of threshold current - A better criterion than T0?

Timothy J. Houle, Alex I. Onischenko, Judy M. Rorison, Richard V. Penty, Ian H. White, Anthony J. Springthorpe, Kenton White, Paul Paddon, T. Garanzotis

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

Experimental measurements of threshold current density as a function of temperature have been analysed in terms of the characteristic temperature, T0, and temperature gradient ▽TJth = ∂Jth/∂T, for a number of semiconductor laser device structures. These include AlInGaAs/InP, InGaAsP/InP, and AlGaAs/GaAs. A theoretical model is used to investigate the possible loss mechanisms in laser diodes that cause the superlinear increase of threshold current with temperature. The characteristic temperature T0 is found to vary with temperature and device length, thus making it somewhat misleading when quoted without qualification. A different approach based on plotting In(▽TJth) vs. In(Jth) shows a linear relationship that is dependent on device structure only, allowing the use of a new figure of merit for the temperature performance of semiconductor lasers.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)238-246
Number of pages9
JournalProceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering
Volume4283
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 9 Jul 2001

Keywords

  • Laser diodes
  • T measurements
  • Temperature sensitivity

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Computer Science Applications
  • Applied Mathematics
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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