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Advances in spatial and spectral brightness in

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Advances in Spatial and Spectral Brightness in 800-1100 nm

GaAs-Based High Power Broad Area Lasers
P. Crump*, H Wenzel, G Erbert and G Trnkle
Ferdinand-Braun-Institut fr Hchstfrequenztechnik,
Gustav-Kirchhoff-Str. 4, 12489 Berlin, Germany
ABSTRACT
High power broad area diode lasers generate the optical energy in all high performance, high power laser systems, either
directly or as pump sources for fiber or solid state lasers. Advances in the spectral and spatial brightness of these diode
lasers are essential for further increases in system performance. Recent development work at the Ferdinand-BraunInstitut fr Hchstfrequenztechnik has lead to significant improvements in diode laser performance. Our ongoing broad
area laser research programs, for example, seek to increase the peak reliable output power (in CW, QCW and short pulse
regimes), minimize the vertical and lateral far field emission angles, narrow the spectral line width of the emission and
increase the power conversion efficiency. Wavelengths between 800 nm and 1100 nm were investigated, with
development work focused on specific applications. We present a summary of this research and discuss how
performance can be further improved.
Keywords: broad area lasers, diode lasers, pump lasers, high optical power, high brightness, DFB-laser, reliability

1. INTRODUCTION
The ideal broad area laser source has the highest possible reliable power and power conversion efficiency, a high quality
emission beam (narrow far field angle with minimal modal content), a narrow spectrum suitable for pumping narrow
absorption lines and longest possible lifetime. One current application that clearly demonstrates the importance of these
performance parameters is pump diodes for fiber lasers (another relevant application is the direct use of diode lasers [1]).

Diode Laser

Optical Fiber
95%

Fig. 1. (Left) Spectral absorption and emission cross-sections of Yb-doped glass [2] (Right) Schematic representation of
the coupling of a diode pump laser into an optical fiber. Ideally all (>95%) of the power would be coupled into the
fiber core, (none in the cladding), without any need for additional coupling optics.

Ytterbium (Yb) doped germano-silicate glass, as used in many fiber laser systems, absorbs in the 880-990 nm
wavelength range, and provides gain in the 980-1100 nm wavelength range, as illustrated in Fig. 1. Broad area diode
lasers are used as pump sources for this glass, typically emitting in the 910-940 nm range [2].
Improvements in diode laser performance help fiber laser systems in multiple ways. Firstly, when the reliable output
power per diode pump laser is increased, higher overall powers can be delivered by the complete system. Secondly,
higher power conversion efficiency pump diodes require less cooling (more of the energy is emitted as light), which
*

paul.crump@fbh-berlin.de

Tel: +49.30.6392.3291

www.fbh-berlin.de

Technologies for Optical Countermeasures VI, edited by David H. Titterton, Mark A. Richardson,
Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483, 74830B 2009 SPIE CCC code: 0277-786X/09/$18 doi: 10.1117/12.829617

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-1

helps to achieve higher reliable optical output powers and ultimately reduces system size and cost. Thirdly, the light from
the pump diodes must be coupled into the fiber laser, typically via additional 100 m core fibers that are themselves
coupled via various techniques into the fiber laser cladding-layer. Conventional 100 m stripe pump lasers have an
emission angle of ~ 30 FWHM (~ 60 with 95% power content) in the vertical direction and ~ 8-10 FWHM in the
lateral direction (~ 14 with 95% power content) . Such emission angles do not match ideally with a typical 100 m core
commercial fiber with NA = 0.12 (FWHM = 14), so must be coupled using a lens align stage. Smaller emission angles
from the diode pump lasers potentially allow the use of lower NA fibers and the elimination (or simplification) of the
lens-align process, saving costs. Ideally, the diode lasers would emit all power (95% or more) in an emission angle
smaller than the acceptance angle of core of the optical fiber, as illustrated in Fig. 1, where unwanted pumping of the
fiber cladding is avoided.
Fig. 1 also illustrates one further benefit. Typical diode pump lasers today emit within a spectral line-width of 2-3 nm,
and the center wavelength sifts rapidly with temperature (it also shifts with heating due to changes in drive current). Such
a broad spectral width means (in practice) that narrow absorption lines like that seen at 975 nm in Fig. 1 cannot be
pumped, compromising the overall system efficiency (the difference between the absorbed and emitted wavelength
mostly generates heat in the fiber). Diode pump lasers with narrow, temperature stable wavelengths would therefore be
advantageous.
Recent work at the Ferdinand Braun Institut fr Hchstfrequenztechnik (FBH) has lead to significant improvements in
all of these areas. Examples include:

1.

808 nm single emitter diode lasers with 100 m stripes (for direct use or as Nd:YAG pumps)
o

2.

808 nm TM polarized laser bars lasers with 100 m stripes (for direct use or as Nd:YAG pumps)
o

3.

4.

CW operation for over 4000 hours at powers as high as 8 W

Over 70% power conversion efficiency at a power of 80 W per bar [3]

980 nm single emitter diode lasers with 90-100 m stripe width (for direct use or as Yb: or Er:YAG pumps)
o

Operation without failure for > 4000 hours with continuous wave power close to 20 W [4]

CW peak powers of 25 W [5]

28 9.9 far field (vertical lateral with 95% power content) at 7 W with 58% power conversion
efficiency

Devices with built-in gratings that operate with line widths of < 0.4nm from 15C to 100C [6,7]

10xx nm single emitter diode lasers (for direct use e.g. illumination, material processing)
o

200 m stripe devices with reliable 300 ns 1 kHz pulsed operation: 3x107 shots at 46 J per pulse [8]

100 m stripe devices with narrow vertical far field of just 15 with 95% power content [9]

In the following sections, we give an overview of the measured performance at the FBH and discuss how this can be
further improved1. The discussion is organized by performance parameter, detailing in turn advances in reliable
continuous wave power, short pulse power, narrow far field operation, narrow line-width operation and high power
conversion efficiency operation.

This review is restricted to recent results from the FBH, and there is unfortunately not space to discuss all recent work by other
groups working in the same area. A more detailed discussion can be found within the references.

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-2

2. ADVANCES IN RELIABLE CONTINUOUS WAVE POWER

2.1 980 nm Broad Area Diode Lasers with 96 m Stripes: 20 W Reliable Power, 25 W Peak Power
High continuous wave (CW) power 980 nm broad area pump lasers are important as pumps for Yb:YAG solid state
lasers (also for Erbium doped YAG), and increasingly for direct applications. Specifically, 100 m stripe single emitters
are in demand for fibered applications, with typical commercial products today delivering reliable powers in the 8 - 12 W
range. As part of ongoing development at the FBH, the maximum achievable reliable power from a specific laser design
was investigated, as discussed in detail in [4]. Such an assessment tests the limits of the epitaxial growth, device
processing, facet treatment and packaging technologies used.
For the maximum performance assessment, a specific laser design was selected, with a far field of 40 17 (vertical
lateral, with 95% power content). Such material was processed into diode lasers with 4mm cavity length and 96 m
stripe width. The output facets were treated with FBH passivation technology to inhibit failure at this critical output
surface. Front and rear coatings were also applied (96% / 2%). The devices were mounted junction down using AuSn
solder onto passively cooled copper CCP heat-sinks (also known as CS-Mounts, with dimension 25 25 7.6 mm3).
Expansion matched copper-diamond (CuD) composite carriers were used between the diode and the copper heat-sink to
both spread the heat (for improved thermal resistance) and for thermal expansion matching (allows the use of hard
solder). The measured light-current characteristics are shown in Fig 2. A peak CW power of 20.2 W was achieved at
15C. The peak power was found to increase to 21.5 W at 5C [4].
Such devices had previously been tested for extended periods at 15 W per emitter, with no sign of degradation [10]. In
recent work, we assessed their performance at higher power levels [4], also shown in Fig. 2. CW operation at power
levels as high as 20 W per single emitter were sustained for over 4000 hours, with devices operating very close to their
maximum (rollover) power. When failure occurred, it was found to be related to a packaging defect. 60 m stripe
devices were also operated at 10 W for an extended period without failure, also shown in Fig 2.
25

2.0

voltage U / V

opt. output power P / W

20

1.5

15
1.0

10

15C
CCP / CuD
Rth = 2.0K/W
MK / CuD
Rth = 1.5K/W

0.5

0.0

10

15

20

25

currentI A

30

35

0
40

Optical output power (W)

20

96 m Stripe

15

60 m Stripe

10

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

Time (hours)

Fig. 2: (Left) CW electric-optic characteristics of 980 nm broad area lasers with 96 m stripe width mounted onto CCP
or microchannel (MK) cooler, with CuD inserts. The inset notes the thermal resistance [4,5]. (Right) Extended
CW test results at 21C for two 60 m stripe devices at 10 W and two 96 m stripe devices close to 20W. All
devices are mounted on CCP with CuD inserts. One 60 m stripe device has been in operation for just 2000 hours,
marked with an arrow [4].

In order to further increase the maximum power, a water-cooled copper micro-channel (here abbreviated as MK)
cooler was used instead of the CCP heatsink. In such MK-products, cooling water runs in channels a few 100 m from
the diode laser. The thermal resistance was reduced from 2 K/W to 1.5 K/W, and a peak CW output power of 25 W was
subsequently achieved from a single 96 m stripe laser [5]. At such high power levels, basic physical effects begin to
limit the peak achievable performance. As noted in [5], the rollover seen in the light current curves is no longer mainly
temperature limited, and instead is a result of carriers escaping from the active region at high bias levels. Careful design
optimization is expected to mitigate this carrier escape and lead to further increases in peak and peak reliable power
levels.

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-3

2.2 808 nm Broad Area Diode Lasers with 100 m Stripes: 8 W Reliable Power
808 nm diode lasers are in wide use as pumps for Neodymium-doped YAG crystals (Nd:YAG), with bulk crystals
typically pumped by 1 cm diode laser bars [3,11,12]. 808 nm single emitters are useful for diverse direct and pump
applications. One example is as pumps for microchip:YAG systems [13]. Commercial devices at the time of writing are
supplied with powers in the 2-5 W per 100 m.
In previous work at the FBH, 808 nm diode laser designs with 33 vertical far field (95% power content) were processed
into broad area lasers with 200 m stripe and 4mm cavity length. Facets were passivated, then coated with 96% and 2%
reflectivities on the rear and front facets respectively. When mounted onto CCP heatsinks using CuW carriers and AuSn
solder, such designs were found capable of operating at CW power levels of up to 10 W for several 1000 hours without
failure [14]. The emission was TM polarized.
In more recent work, we have assessed the limits to reliable CW power in 100 m stripe width devices. All other design
and process parameters apart from the stripe width were left unchanged. The results are summarized in Fig 3. Extended
operation up to 10000 hours was observed from single emitters operated at 5 W. When this operation power was
increased to 7 W, failure was first observed at close to 4000 hours operation time. CW operation at 8 W was also
possible, for a maximum operation time of close to 3000 hours. When the measurements were repeated using a different
batch of laser material (using a refined vertical design with comparable far field), 100 m stripe devices were found to
operate out to more the 8000 hours at 7 W CW, and 5000 hours at 8W. As noted in [15], failure in these 808 nm diode
lasers is often due to the growth of bulk defects, especially in structures where the facets are appropriately passivated.
Minimizing the defect concentration is expected to help further improve the peak reliable output power.
2.0

1.0

5
1.0

4
3

0.5

opt. output power, P /W

Voltage, U / V

0.6

0.4

0.2

1
0.0

Current, I /A

0.0

CW optical output power (W)

0.8
1.5

Power Conversion Efficiency

(a)

(b)

10

10

Time / 1000 (hours)

Fig. 3: (left) Typical 25C light-current characteristic of a 100 m stripe, 4 mm cavity length 808 nm laser mounted
junction down on a CCP heatsink. (Right) Extended CW 25C lifetest characteristics of (a) devices as depicted on
the left and (b) devices that incorporate design improvements.

3. ADVANCES IN RELIABLE SHORT PULSE POWER

Short pulse solid state lasers are currently in wide use for material processing, illumination, remote sensing, ignition and
communications systems. Wavelengths close to 1060 nm are typically used as this corresponds to an atmospheric
transmission window (and to the emission wavelength of YAG crystals). In applications where beam quality is not
critical, the direct use of broad area diode lasers can offer a lower cost alternative to YAG-based systems. For example,
recently, pulsed diode lasers have been shown to work effectively in direct material processing applications such as paint
removal [16]. As the performance level of the diode lasers themselves improves, diode lasers are useable in a wider
range of applications. In recent work, the FBH have assessed the reliable performance limits of example broad area
devices under 300ns pulse conditions. A detailed discussion is presented in [8], and we present here a brief summary of
important points.

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-4

3.1 1100 nm Broad Area Diode Lasers with 200 m Stripes: 124 W (46 J) Reliable 300 ns Pulsed Power
150

240A

100

output power / W

output power / W

150

180A
120A

50
60A

10

20

before step test

after 120A
after 240A

100

50

30

50

100

time / hour

150

200

250

current / A

Fig. 4: 300ns 1kHz lifetest assessment of 200 m stripe broad area lasers operating at 1100 nm, soldered onto c-mount.
(Left) Step stress test results for an example 200 m stripe laser, operated in successive 8 hour steps at 60 A, 120
A, 180 A and 240 A. (Right) power current characteristics before the step stress test, after the 120 A step and after
the 240 A step show no sign of degradation [8].

For the assessment of peak power under short pulse conditions, a laser design operating at 1100 nm was selected with a
vertical far field of 35 (95% power content). The chosen design used a large number (4) of quantum wells in order to
mitigate the effects of high current injection. The finished material was fabricated into 4 mm long, 60 m and 200 m
wide broad area single emitter devices. After cleaving, the facets were, as normal, passivated, then optically coated to
yield reflectivities of 1.5% and 95%, for front and back facets respectively. All devices were soldered junction side down
with AuSn onto copper c-mounts, using CuW for stress-matching. Fig. 4 shows the results of a reliability assessment of
an example 200 m stripe device under short pulse condition. 300ns pulses at currents up to 240A were supplied at a
frequency of 1kHz using a compact commercial current source (PicoLAS LDP-V240-100 OEM). The device was driven
at a fixed current for 8 hours, corresponding to 3107 pulses. After 8 hours, the current was increased. Four steps in total
per device were measured, at 60 A, 120 A, 180 A and 240 A, with the last step corresponding to 124 W peak power. No
degradation was observed, confirmed by comparing measurements taken before and after the lifetest. Several devices
were tested, including devices with stripe widths of 60 m, and none degraded. The 60 m devices reached a maximum
power of 88 W, limited by rollover [8].
1,25

240A

0,2

0,1

0,0

300

600

time / ns

rel. intensity / a. u.

W = 200m
rel. intensity / a. u.

output power / a. u.

0,3

= 1.63nm
60A
100A
160A
200A

1085

1090

1095

1100

1105

1110

wavelength / nm

1115

1,00

60A
240A

95% = 34.3
95% = 36.7

0,75
0,50
0,25
0,00
-60

-30 0
30
angle /

Fig 5: Detailed performance characteristics under short pulse operation of an example 200 m stripe width diode laser.
(Left) Measured optical pulse profile at 240 A drive current. The shaded region represents an ideal 300 ns square
wave pulse (Center) Normalized spectrum as a function of current. A small shift to higher wavelengths is visible
as current increases, due to some residual current heating in the laser. (Right) Vertical far field profiles as a
function of current (240A results are offset upwards for clarity).

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-5

60

Fig. 5 gives some additional details of the laser performance. The optical pulses at 240 A have a FWHM ~ 300 ns, and
are slightly broadened. The broadening is attributed to residual inductance in the circuit. The 200 m stripe material
delivers 46 J per pulse at this 240 A condition. Both the laser spectrum and far field remain stable to maximum drive
current, also illustrated in Fig. 5. Increased power per pulse would be possible with increased drive current. As for CW
980 nm devices, carrier escape effects also limit the maximum power. Careful design optimization is also expected to
help further improve performance.

4. ADVANCES IN NARROW FAR FIELD OPERATION

As noted earlier, if the far field emission angle of high power diode lasers can be reduced, many benefits are expected for
real systems. As part of its ongoing development programs, the FBH is investigating how small a vertical far field is
achievable in 1060 nm material without excessively compromising laser performance. A recent example of progress is
detailed below. Reductions in the lateral far field from a broad area laser are also necessary for improved system
performance. In separate work at 980 nm, narrow vertical far field designs have been combined with technology
designed to minimize the lateral propagation angle. Recent work in this field is also presented here.
4.1 1060 nm Broad Area Diode Lasers with 100 m Stripes: 15 Vertical Far Field (95% power content)
Diode lasers are constructed, in the vertical direction, using layers of epitaxially grown semiconductor of different
refractive index. A vertical optical waveguide is thus formed, with a high index waveguide layer sandwiched between
lower index cladding layers. The light-generating (gain) region is located at the center of this waveguide. Conventional
diode lasers use ~ 1 m thick waveguides, supporting an optical mode with a ~ 60 far field angle (with 95% power
content). If this waveguide layer is increased in thickness, a broader optical mode is produced, with a reduced far field
angle. Unfortunately, thicker waveguides can also support more optical modes, compromising the performance. Through
the use of special design techniques [17], these higher modes can be suppressed, allowing thick waveguides and very
narrow vertical far fields to be achieved.
In recent work, diode laser designs were realized at 1060 nm emission wavelength with vertical far field angle of just 15
with 95% power content, a factor of 3 smaller than commercial designs. The small far field was enabled through the use
of an 8.6 m thick vertical waveguide [9]. Typical results are shown in Fig. 6. The measured device was constructed
with 4 mm cavity length and 100 m stripe width, had passivated facets with 1.5% and 95% reflection on front and back
respectively and was mounted junction-down with AuSn solder on copper c-mounts. A CuW insert was used for stress
matching. Measurements were performed under quasi-continuous wave (QCW) test conditions (here, 500 s 20 Hz) at
25C. Fig. 6 also shows the electro-optic test results. Peak power of over 12 W per laser was achieved. However, this
narrow far field does come with a penalty: the wallplug efficiency was relatively low, reaching a peak of just 33%, for
emission power of 3.8 W.
15
12

1.5

1.0

0.5

0.0
0

10

15

20

25

0
30

0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0

1.0
Relative Intensity

2.0

1.0
Power conversion efficiencncy

L=4mm W=100m

optical output power, P / W

Voltage, U / V

2.5

Current, I / A

0.8

W=100m
L=4000m
7.5A 3.8W

Vertical
FWHM=8.6
95% = 15
Lateral
FWHM=7.0
95% = 7.75

0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-20

-10
0
10
20
Propagation Angle, /

Fig. 6: QCW (500s 20Hz) performance characteristics of 1060 nm diode lasers with extremely narrow vertical
far field. (Left) Electro-optic characteristics at 25C (Right) Vertical and lateral and far field profiles at
peak efficiency [9].

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-6

4.2 980 nm Broad Area Diode Lasers with 90 m Stripes: 58% Efficient, with 30 9.9 Far Field (95% power)
In earlier FBH designs, 1100 nm diode lasers were found to be capable of operating with 30 vertical far field angle
(95% power content) and 50% wallplug efficiency [17]. These vertical designs have recently been transferred to 980 nm.
Further optimization of the refractive index and doping profile enabled us to achieve both increase power conversion
efficiency and reduce vertical far field, as shown in Fig. 7. The measured devices were broad area laser diodes that
operated at 975 nm and had 90 m stripe width and 3 mm cavity length. As normal, the facets were passivated and then
coated with high and low reflectivity dielectric layers. The diode lasers were mounted on CuW carriers and measured
under CW conditions at 25C. The vertical far field was 28 at 95% power content, and peak wall-plug efficiency was
58% at 7 W operation power.
1.00

12

(a)

60

1.0

0.5

10W
25C

4
2

965 970 975 980

0.0

(nm)

Current / A

10

0
12

50
40
30
20
10
0

Vertical
Lateral

(b)

0.75

Relative Intensity

Intensity (a.u.)

Volts

1.5

Optical Output Power / W

10

Power Conversion Efficiency / %

2.0

15 (FWHM)

6.5 (FWHM)

0.50

0.25

28 (95%
Power)

0.00
-30

-20

9.9 (95%
Power)

-10

10

20

30

Propagation Angle /

Fig. 7 (a) CW 25C light-current characteristic for a passively cooled 90 m stripe, 3 mm cavity length
broad area laser (inset: 7 W spectrum) (b) Measured CW lateral and vertical far fields at 7 W.

For ideal fiber coupling or for wavelength stabilization with an external grating, narrow lateral far fields are also sought.
In the simplest designs, broad area lasers are defined in the lateral direction only by the electrical contact there is no
intentional lateral refractive index profile. As such designs are driven to higher currents, electrical heating in the pumped
area leads to a lateral refractive index profile. Higher drive currents lead to a stronger index profile and successively
wider lateral far fields. Such lasers are also prone to modal instability, for example the formation of filaments. To reduce
the lateral far field angle, additional techniques required. Earlier generations of high power 980 nm lasers at FBH with
90-100 m stripe width operated with lateral far fields in the 15-17 range (95% content), as seen in section 2. After
further optimisation and the use of in-built mode control techniques, a reduced lateral far field was achieved, as shown in
Fig. 7. At 7 W CW operation power, a lateral far field of 9.9 was achieved (with 95% power content). Further
improvements in far field angle and power conversion efficiency are required. Further design optimization and the use of
more sophisticated lateral structures are expected to lead to higher performance.

5. ADVANCES IN NARROW LINE WIDTH (INTERNAL GRATING) OPERATION

As noted earlier, in order to pump narrow spectral lines, a narrow, stable emission wavelength is preferred. Narrow
spectral linewidths also enable wavelength multiplexing of many devices to reach higher power densities. One approach
to delivering such narrow linewidths in through the use of external volume bragg gratings [18]. The narrow far field
designs discussed in section 4 are especially well suited for such applications. An alternative approach is to build a
grating into the laser structure, so that no additional external optical elements are needed [6,7]. We present here some
recent results from the FBH achieved using such built-in gratings.
5.1 980 nm Broad Area Diode Lasers with 100 m Stripes: Built in gratings for spectral width < 0.4 nm to 100C
Gratings can be built into semiconductor lasers in a variety of ways. The approach followed here is to use etch and regrowth technology. Part way through the semiconductor growth process, the growth is halted. A uniform grating is then
formed across the entire wafer using wet chemical etching techniques. Finally, the epitaxial growth of the laser is
completed. Every laser then contains a distributed feedback grating (DFB), which leads to narrow line width operation.
Here, a 975 nm laser design with vertical far field angle of 39 was selected (95% power content), and gratings built in.
A detailed discussion of the performance results and device construction is given in [6,7].

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-7

Fig. 8: CW Spectral characteristics of 975 nm broad area lasers with 1300 m cavity length and 50 m
stripe width. (Left) Spectrum of a diode laser without grating as a function of current. Inset: 2A
spectrum. (Right) Spectrum of the DFB laser. Inset: spectra at 140 mA and 2 A [7].

The benefit of the in-built grating is demonstrated in Fig. 8, which compares the optical spectra of devices constructed
with and without a built-in grating, but otherwise to the same design. The spectral width is reduced < 0.5 nm. The
devices presented in Fig. 8 have a cavity length of 1300 m and a stripe width of 50 m and were measured CW at 25C.
The devices were mounted junction side down with AuSn on c-mounts, with CuW carriers used for stress matching.
To achieve higher CW powers, devices with 2000 m cavity length and 100 m stripe width were also assessed, and
typical performance characteristics are shown in Fig. 9. At 25C, peak power conversion efficiency is 36% and occurs at
3 A, 2 W. The temperature stability of the laser was also assessed as function of temperature, also as shown in Fig. 9. At
a fixed current of 4 A, the spectral width was found to remain < 0.4 nm to 100C.

Fig. 9: Performance characteristics of a 975 nm broad area DFB diode laser over temperature. (Left)
CW Electro-optic characteristics. (Right) Wavelength and spectral width [7].

Although a peak DFB power conversion efficiency of 36% was achieved from the 2000 m cavity length devices (39.5%
for 1300 m cavity length), this is substantially reduced in comparison to reference devices without gratings [6,7]. Here,
the built in grating was constructed with a relatively large coupling strength to enable wide temperature range operation,
which leads to a reduction in peak power conversion efficiency. Additionally, the material properties of the re-grown
grating are non-ideal and lead to additional optical losses and increased operation voltage. Further improvements in
performance will require improvements in both design and material characteristics.

6. ADVANCES IN HIGH EFFICIENCY BAR OPERATION

Although single emitter diode lasers are of increasing importance for high power applications, 1-cm bars remain in wide
use, especially as pump sources for rod, disk and slab-based YAG-systems [11,12]. Improvements in diode laser bars are
therefore also required, to enable higher performance from such high power YAG-systems. Two of the most important
pump wavelengths are 940 nm for Yb:YAG and 808 nm for Nd:YAG crystals. Recent improvements power conversion
efficiency in 808 nm bars are presented here.

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-8

6.1 808 nm TM polarized 1 cm laser bars: 70% power conversion efficiency at 80 W CW output power
In recent years, substantial development has occurred in high efficiency diode lasers [3,19], with power conversion
efficiencies over 70% demonstrated from 800 nm to 980 nm by several groups. The design of these diode lasers lead to
TE-polarized emission (through the use of compressively strained quantum wells as the active region). Many current
commercial Nd:YAG systems are constructed using TM-polarized 808 nm diode pump lasers (which use tensile strained
quantum wells as their active region), but these devices typically have a power conversion efficiency of just 55-63%. The
power conversion efficiency of such diode laser material is typically limited by the material properties of the active
region TM polarized active regions typically lead to higher threshold currents than those achieved in the best TE
polarized material [3].

80

Optical Output Power (W)

100
Package Resistance Subtracted
80

60
Measured

60
40
40
20

20
0
0

20

40

60

0
80

Power Conversion Efficiency (%)

Through a careful design optimization process, recently the FBH has demonstrated that 808 nm laser bars constructed
using TM polarized active regions can also operate with power conversion efficiency of more than 70% at a CW power
level of more than 80 W [3], as shown in Fig. 10. The 808 nm bar shown in Fig. 10 was produced with 1.5 mm cavity
length and contained 19 100 m broad area lasers. The front and rear bar facets were passivated and optically coated,
then the complete bar was mounted junction side down on a CCP heatsink with AuSn solder, using CuW inserts for
stress matching. Fig. 10 also shows, for reference, earlier FBH results from a 940 nm laser bar, which demonstrated 73%
power conversion at 70 W CW output power. The bar had 1.5 mm cavity length, contained 19 150 m stripes and was
also mounted junction side down on a CCP heatsink with AuSn solder and CuW insert for stress matching. In both the
940 nm and 808 nm cases, further improvements in design and material characteristics are required.

Current (A)

Fig 10: High power conversion efficiency passively cooled 1 cm diode laser bar results. (Left) 940 nm bar
with 19 150 m emitters mounted on CCP [19]. (Right) TM polarized 808 nm bar mounted on
CCP, with 19 100 m emitters [3]. On the right, the efficiency of the bar alone is shown
calculated by subtracting the (known) resistance of the packaging.

7. CONCLUSIONS
High power broad area lasers remain a topic of intense development activity and their performance continues to improve.
Higher reliable powers, smaller far field angles, narrower spectral widths and higher power conversion efficiency have
all recently been demonstrated at the Ferdinand-Braun-Institut fr Hchstfrequenztechnik. Such ongoing improvements
are expected to lead to higher overall system performance for both direct diode applications and diode pumped solid state
and fiber laser systems.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Work to develop narrow spectral line-width and narrow far field high power 980 nm sources was funded as part of the
German Government (BMBF) development Project, SpektraLas (Project reference number: 13N9725).
Work to advance the peak achievable power in 10xx nm devices was funded under the German Government (BMBF)
development Project, Grundlagen fr Diodenlaser der nchsten Leistungsgeneration (GRUNDILG, Project Reference
Number: 13N9154).

Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7483 74830B-9

Work to reduce the vertical far field of high power 10xx nm devices was funded under the German Research Foundation
(DFG) Program, SFB 787-C5.
We thank the following colleagues for their kind permission to include examples of their recent work in this review
article: Gunnar Blume, Thomas Hoffmann, Andreas Klehr, Andrea Knigge, Arnim Liero, Katrin Paschke, Agnieska
Pietrzak, Claudia Roder, Christoph Schultz, Ralf Staske, Martin Spreemann, Bernd Sumpf, and Xiaozhuo Wang.

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