Novel tunable laser diode arrangement with a micromachined silicon filter:feasibility

We demonstrate the workability of a new arrangement of a tunable high-power laser diode. This novel composite is realized with the use of a micro-opto electro-mechanical system-a tunable silicon micromachined interferometric f ilter-a standard edge-emitting laser diode. In current extremely-short-exte rnal-cavity configuration, the quasi-continuous tuning over a 4-nm range wi th output power of tens of mW was obtained. Power and etalon characteristic s of a considered hybrid laser are discussed. The advantage of proposed con figuration is in its potentially low cost (due to the use of commercially a vailable components) and loose alignment tolerances. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.