Abstract

Recently, the demand for low-cost light sources which have high coupling efficiency into singlemode fibers (SMFs) and operate stably over a wide temperature range has been increasing. It is popular to use laser diodes (IDs), but LDs are inferior in the temperature dependence of output power and emission spectrum compared with LEDs. Consequently, LDs usually need coolers, monitor photodiodes (PDs), and/or an automatic power control (ARC) circuit. Then the light source unit becomes large and expensive. Edge-emitting LEDs (EELEDs) are expected to have higher coupling efficiency into SMFs and to operate stably over a wide temperature range. However, conventional-type EELEDs^1,2 tend to operate as a superluminescent diode with Fabry-Perot (F.-P.) modes, because the device structure is similar to that of a F.-P.-type LD, and it worsens the linearity and temperature dependence of output power. A novel structure of a 1.3-μm InGaAsP/lnP EELED is proposed that suppresses the F.-P. modes.

© 1988 Optical Society of America