Even though the first InAs diode laser was demonstrated in 1963, semiconductor sources emitting at wavelengths beyond 3 microns have lagged far beyond their visible and near-infrared (IR) counterparts. Quite recently, however, the expression "high-performance mid-IR semiconductor laser" has ceased to be an oxymoron, with the advent of cascaded designs in which a single injected electron emits many photons as it traverses multiple active stages connected in series. I will begin by describing the urgent DoD need for high-power mid-IR emitters to counter IR-guide missiles. Following a brief introduction to diode laser physics, the talk's focus will narrow to the operation of interband cascade lasers, which employ radiatively-recombining electrons and holes, and quantum cascade lasers based on optical intersubband transitions entirely within the conduction band. Interband cascade laser development at NRL will be described, including the first achievement of room temperature continuous-wave operation by an interband mid-IR laser, a community goal for 45 years.
Dr. Jerry R. Meyer completed his Ph.D. in Physics at Brown University in 1977. Since then he has carried out basic and applied research at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, where he is Head of the Quantum Optoelectronics Section. He has carried out a wide variety of basic and applied investigations of optoelectronic materials and devices. Current projects include the development of new classes of semiconductor lasers and detectors for the infrared. He is a Fellow of the Optical Society of America, the American Physical Society, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and the Institute of Physics. He has co-authored over 310 refereed journal articles which have been cited more than 6100 times (H-Index 35), 13 book chapters, 22 patents awarded and pending, and over 100 invited conference presentations.
During the last several years, the performance of quantum cascade and interband cascade mid-infrared semiconductor lasers has improved to the point where they are ready for commercial exploitation. This new semiconductor laser technology has the potential to dramatically impact existing applications and enable new applications in several market areas including industrial process controls, medical diagnostics, environmental monitoring, and defense and security. At present, the markets for these lasers are small and are widely distributed with respect to laser performance requirements. However, this circumstance is likely to change significantly over the next decade. In this talk, I will provide an overview of Maxion's development of these lasers, a description of the laser performance we have achieved, along with the present state-of-the-art, and I will discuss some interesting applications we are involved in.
Dr. Bruno earned a Ph. D. in condensed matter theory from Rutgers University in 1980 after which he did postdoctoral work at the University of Utah. In 1982 he joined the physics faculty at Villanova University, and in 1984 left Villanova to join the technical staff at the Army Research Laboratory (then Harry Diamond Labs) in Adelphi, MD. From 1991 through 2000, he worked on MBE growth of III-V semiconductor structures and the related device and structure design. In 2001 he left the ARL technical staff to co-founded Maxion. He is presently President and CTO of Maxion.
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