Semiconductor laser geometry for broad-angle far-field addressing

摘要

A semiconductor laser apparatus for broad-angle far-field addressing is disclosed. The apparatus comprises a laser block with lasing cavities. The lasing cavity mirrors are made by dry-etching of the semiconductor block. The width of a lasing cavity is defined by a p contact pad on the laser block; further lateral confinement of current to the cavity is achieved by proton implantation followed by etching of the proton layer. The apparatus achieves quasi-continuous beam steering with a total steering angle of 80 DEG and with 11 resolvable spots.