DEPENDENCE OF MODE SIZE AND TEMPORAL RESPONSE ON THE MIRROR CONTRAST RATIO IN MICROCAVITY LASERS

Microcavity lasers with differing mirror designs are used to study the influence of the index contrast ratio on the mode size and temporal r esponse. The experimental results demonstrate the advantages of high c ontrast Bragg reflectors for reducing the mode area while simultaneous ly increasing the laser temporal response. We suggest that the far-fie ld angle is preferable to an effective cavity length as a characteriza tion parameter, since the far-field angle is directly measurable and y ields the photon lifetime. (C) 1995 American Institute of Physics.