Method for making cleaved facets for lasers fabricated with gallium nitride and other noncubic materials

US5985687A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• The Regents of the University of California · US

Inventors

• John E. Bowers · Lompoc, US
• R. Kehl Sink · Goleta, US
• Steven P. DenBaars · Goleta, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Apr 12, 1996
• Grant date: Nov 16, 1999
• Expiry date: Apr 12, 2016

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y10S438/977
• WIPO field: Optics
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

Optically flat cleaved facet mirrors are fabricated in GaN epitaxial films grown on sapphire by wafer fusing a GaN film with a sapphire substrate to a cubic substrate such as an InP or GaAs substrate. The sapphire substrate may then partially or entirely removed by lapping, dry etching, or wet etching away a sacrificial layer disposed in the interface between the sapphire substrate and the GaN layer. Thereafter, the cubic InP or GaN substrate is cleaved to produce the cubic crystal facet parallel to the GaN layer in which active devices are fabricated for use in lasers, photodetectors, light emitting diodes and other optoelectronic devices.