Buried-heterostructure AlGaAs lasers

The optical waveguide, fabrication procedure, major optical properties, and reliability of buried-heterostructure (BH) AlGaAs lasers are described. BH lasers are characterized by low threshold currents (10-20 mA), nearly symmetric beam profile, single-mode oscillation, high linearity, small relaxation oscillations, and long-term mode stability. Moreover, BH lasers with a buried optical guide provide CW output powers of 10-20 mW with an overall power conversion efficiency as high as 35 percent.