III-V-on-Si Photonic Crystal Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser Arrays for Wavelength Division Multiplexing

Double photonic crystal mirror vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (PCM-VCSEL) arrays for the heterogeneous integration on a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor are presented. The trimming of one-dimensional photonic crystal mirrors spectral and modal features allows a fine tailoring of the lightwave which results in compact VCSEL arrays exhibiting a fully controllable dense wavelength distribution. Optically pumped double PCM-VCSELs emit 1.55- $\mu{\rm m}$ single-mode beams within the C-band with sub-milliwatt thresholds and spectral purity, making these devices highly suitable for telecommunication-oriented applications. The intrinsic capability exhibited by PCM-VCSEL arrays for a selective addressing of dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) channels suggests a strong perspective potential for several applications such as high-capacity ultra-wideband optical interconnects, passive optical networks, free-space data transmission and sensing.