Beam steering in 980 nm high power laser diodes

In summary, experimental observations and consideration of the features specific to power lasers have led us to conclude that the emergence and subsequent lasing of multiple coherent lateral modes are responsible for the beam steering commonly seen in these devices. A physical model was developed and implemented in a 2D numerical model. Support for the hypothesis of coherence was provided by an observation of structure in the electroluminescence from the back-plane of fabricated laser diodes.