摘要 |
A semiconductor laser element having an advantageous vertical light confinement efficiency, a low threshold current and a low element resistance is provided. The semiconductor laser element has a substrate and a stacked structure formed thereon, where the stacked structure comprises a buffer layer, an n-Al0.6Ga0.4As cladding layer, an n-Al0.47Ga0.53As cladding layer, an active layer, a p-Al0.47Ga0.53As first cladding layer, an Al0.55Ga0.45As etching stop layer, a p-Al0.47Ga0.53As second cladding layer, a p-Al0.6Ga0.4As third cladding layer, and a p-GaAs contact layer. The second and third cladding layers, and the contact layer are formed as a stripe-patterned ridge, and serve as a current injection regions. Both lateral portions of the ridge are filled with an n-type current blocking layer and serve as non-current-injection regions. Because the cladding layers on the active-layer-section side have a refractive index larger than that of the cladding layers disposed outward thereof, light leaked from the active layer section can efficiently be confined within the cladding layers on the active-layer-section side.
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