Numerical study of large-area anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide vertical-cavity semiconductor optical amplifiers

Optical characteristics of anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide (ARROW) vertical-cavity semiconductor optical amplifiers (VCSOAs) are investigated numerically. Influence of spatial-hole-burning and thermal lensing on the stability of the amplified output signal is taken into consideration. A design rule is proposed to design large-area ARROW VCSOAs, with which high saturation power and stable output signal can be achieved simultaneously.