Recent progress of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) using high contrast grating (HCG) and their applications will be reviewed. A typical electrically-pumped VCSEL consists of two oppositely doped distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs) with a cavity layer in between. This conventional design requires epitaxy that is 6-8 micron thick having 0.1% precision in composition and thickness. Replacing the top DBR with a single layer, ultra-thin high contrast grating not only drastically increases the epitaxy and processing yield, but enables a wide and continuous wavelength swept. We will discuss recent progress of electrically-pumped, tunable VCSELs emitting at 850-nm, 940-nm, 1060-nm, 1300-nm and 1550-nm. New applications in optical coherence tomography, 3D sensing and LIDAR will be discussed.

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Connie J. Chang-Hasnain, Kevin Cook, Jonas Horst Kapraun, and Jiaxing Wang, "High-contrast grating VCSELs and applications (Conference Presentation)," Proc. SPIE 10928, High Contrast Metastructures VIII, 1092802 (Presented at SPIE OPTO: February 04, 2019; Published: 8 March 2019); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2515571.6011668239001.