Breakthroughs in Photonics 2013: A Microwatt-Threshold Raman Silicon Laser

A continuous-wave Raman silicon laser using a photonic-crystal high- Q nanocavity was developed in 2013, with a cavity size of less than 10 μm and an unprecedented ultralow threshold of 1 μW. This report describes how this breakthrough was accomplished by adopting a unique nanocavity design.