Title: Interband Cascade Lasers and Related Optoelectronic Devices
Speaker: Prof. Rui Qing Yang（School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Oklahoma (OU), USA）
Time: July 15, 2016 10:00AM
Venue: No. 101 meeting room of the library, IOS, CAS
Abstract: Interband cascade (IC) lasers take advantage of the broken band-gap alignment in type-II InAs/Ga(In)Sb quantum wells to reuse injected electrons in cascade stages for photon generation with high quantum efficiency [1]. Significant progress has been achieved in the development of high-performance IC lasers with low power consumption [2-3], which includes successful operation of an IC lasers in Curiosity Rover on Mars for detection of CH4 and commercial products for many applications such as chemical sensing and environmental monitoring. Also, the IC architecture has been explored for other optoelectronic devices such as infrared photodetectors and photovoltaic cells [4-7]. Combination of interband transition and fast carrier transport in IC structures provides more flexibilities and advantages to achieve high device performance for photodetectors and photovoltaic cells. The unique features and prospects of IC lasers and relevant optoelectronic devices will be reviewed and discussed with some recent experimental results.
1. R. Q. Yang, at 7th Inter. Conf. on Superlattices, Microstructures and Microdevices, Banff, Canada, August, 1994; Superlattices and Microstructures 17, 77 (1995); “Novel concepts and structures for infrared lasers”, chapter 2 in Long Wavelength Infrared Emitters Based on Quantum Wells and Superlattices, M. Helm, editor, Gordon and Breach, Singapore, 2000.
2. I. Vurgaftman, R. Weih, M. Kamp, J R Meyer, C. L. Canedy, C. S. Kim, M. Kim, W. W. Bewley, C. D. Merritt, J. Abell and S. Hofling, “Interband cascade lasers”, J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys. 48 123001 (2015).
3. L. Li, Y. Jiang, H. Ye, R. Q. Yang, T. D. Mishima, M.B. Santos, and M. B. Johnson, “Low-threshold InAs-based interband cascade lasers operating at high temperatures,” Appl. Phys. Lett, 106, 251102 (2015); and references therein.
4. R. Q. Yang, Z. Tian, Z. Cai, J. F. Klem, M. B. Johnson, and H. C. Liu, “Interband cascade infrared photodetectors with superlattice absorbers”, J. Appl. Phys. 107, No. 5, 054514 (2010).
5. H. Lotfi, R. T. Hinkey, L. Li, R. Q. Yang, J. F. Klem, M. B. Johnson, “Narrow-Bandgap photovoltaic devices operating at room temperature and above with high open-circuit voltage”, Appl. Phys. Lett, 102, 211103 (2013).
6. R. T. Hinkey and R. Q. Yang, “Theory of Multiple-Stage Interband Photovoltaic Devices and Ultimate Performance Limit Comparison of Multiple-Stage and Single-Stage Interband Infrared Detectors”, J. Appl. Phys. 114, 104506 (2013).
7. N. Gautam, S. Myers, A. V. Barve, B. Klein, E. P. Smith, D. R. Rhiger, L. R. Dawson, and S. Krishna, "High operating temperature interband cascade midwave infrared detector based on type-II InAs/GaSb strained layer superlattice," Applied Physics Letters 101, 021106 (2012).
Biography：Dr. Yang received the B.Sc. degree in physics from Zhejiang University in 1982, and the M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in physics from Nanjing University in 1984 and 1987, respectively. He is the inventor of interband cascade (IC) lasers with research activities ranging from condensed matter physics to semiconductor quantum devices. Prior to joining OU as a professor in 2007, he was a Principal Member of Engineering Staff and a Task Manager at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California, where he led the development of advanced mid-IR IC lasers for applications in Earth sciences and planetary explorations. He received the Edward Stone Award in 2007 from JPL for outstanding research publication and the successful accelerated infusion of cutting-edge interband cascade semiconductor laser technology into flight mission readiness. He is a fellow of both OSA and IEEE.