Laser diode emits deep UV light

Science Daily  January 18, 2020
An international team of researchers (Japan, USA – industry) presents a deep-ultraviolet semiconductor laser diode that operates under current injection at room temperature and at a very short wavelength. The laser structure was grown on the (0001) face of a single-crystal aluminum nitride substrate. The measured lasing wavelength was 271.8 nm with a pulsed duration of 50 ns and a repetition frequency of 2 kHz. A polarization-induced doping cladding layer was employed to achieve hole conductivity and injection without intentional impurity doping. Even with this undoped layer they were still able to achieve a low operation voltage of 13.8 V at a lasing threshold current of 0.4 A. These diodes could be used for disinfection in healthcare, for treating skin conditions such as psoriasis, and for analysing gases and DNA…read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE