1 W high brightness index guided tapered laser at 980 nm using Al-free active region materials

Index guided tapered laser diodes at 0.98 μm have been optimised for high brightness. We demonstrate an index guided tapered laser using an Al-free active region with an optical power of 1 W at 20°C under continuous-wave operation. The parallel beam quality parameter M² of these devices has been measured to be less than 3 at 1 W at 980 nm.