Design of InGaN-GaN-AlGaN vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers using electrical-thermal-optical simulation

A three-dimensional electrical-thermal-optical numerical simulator is devel oped and applied to model group-III-nitride-based intracavity-contacted ver tical-cavity surface-emitting lasers with InGaN multiquantum-well active re gion. The optical model based on the effective frequency method is combined with an electrical-thermal simulator using the control volume method. Isot hermal (pulsed regime imitation) and continuous-wave modes of operation are calculated over a range of voltages, covering subthreshold spontaneous emi ssion and lasing emission. Effects of current crowding at the active region periphery are examined, and in particular, an impact on mode profiles of s patial hole burning superimposed on nonuniform gain distribution is studied . In order to reduce the current crowding and provide more uniform gain dis tribution within the active region, a semitransparent p-side contact design is proposed.