Imec announced a breakthrough in silicon photonics – they learned to grow lasers on conventional 300 mm silicon wafers

The Belgian research center Imec has announced a breakthrough in the production of laser diodes using the classical CMOS process. Traditionally, substrates made of rare elements and compounds have been used for this, while inexpensive silicon has always been left behind. This hampered the development of silicon photonics, since growing laser elements in conventional chips was impossible. Imec’s experience changes the situation: lasers can now be grown on silicon.

Image source: AI generation Kandinsky 3.1/3DNews

To grow lasers using elements of groups III-V of the periodic table, substrates from compounds of the same groups, for example, gallium arsenide, indium phosphide and others, were traditionally used. Typically, after growing semiconductor laser structures, the substrates were disposed of, and the lasers themselves had to be somehow mounted on silicon in the case of silicon photonics applications. It was difficult, expensive and not conducive to sustainable green production. Growing lasers directly on silicon structures could greatly simplify the development of optical computing and other fields.

One of the main difficulties in the production of silicon lasers was the different thermal expansion coefficients of the materials. Imec managed to solve this problem by creating unique buffer zones – grooves around the sites on which gallium arsenide laser structures were grown, as well as by using the original ribbed nanostructure of diodes. As a result of the development, it was possible to produce GaAs lasers on a pilot lithography line on a conventional 300 mm silicon wafer using the CMOS process.

Image source: imec

Semiconductor lasers created in this way with a wavelength of 1020 nm have demonstrated the ability to emit up to 1.75 mW of optical power at a minimum threshold current of 5 mA. Lasers have shown stable operation at room temperature, which opens the way for them in areas such as intensive computing, computer vision and other promising areas.

admin

Share
Published by
admin

Recent Posts

A demo of Dispatch, a comedy game about a superhero agency from the former developers of Tales from the Borderlands and The Wolf Among Us, has been released on Steam

Developers from the American AdHoc Studio, founded by former Telltale Games, Ubisoft and Night School…

10 hours ago

Digma DP-FHD800A LCD Full HD Projector Review: A Modern Approach

When you think about a home theater, you immediately imagine bulky projectors with a bunch…

10 hours ago

Lian Li Introduces HydroShift II LCD-C Liquid Cooling System with 360mm Radiator and Three Configurations

Lian Li has introduced a series of maintenance-free liquid cooling systems HydroShift II LCD-C. It…

10 hours ago

Apple: App Store App Developers to Earn $406 Billion in 2024

Amid mounting pressure from U.S. regulators, Apple has released the results of an independent study…

10 hours ago

ASRock Admits Its Motherboards Break Ryzen 9000 Processors

Following a report from YouTube channel Tech Yes City that ASRock linked Ryzen 9000 processor…

10 hours ago

Apple to Change OS Numbering: iOS 26 to Come This Year Instead of iOS 19

Apple is preparing a large-scale rebranding of its line of operating systems. This was reported…

1 day ago