Modeling and measurements of the radiative characteristics of high-power (alpha)-DFB lasers

A new above-threshold model of (alpha)-DFB lasers is presented. It is based on a generalized beam-propagation method and takes into account spatial hole burning and self-heating effects. Up to moderate output powers, a good agreement between simulated and measured radiative characteristics is obtained. The theoretical model was used to design an optimized laser structure with a 4-mm-long cavity, which yielded a maximum output power of 3 W with a times-diffraction-limit factor of M/sup 2/(ap)3.