Wavelength modulation detection of water vapor with a vertical cavity surface-emitting laser.

A vertical cavity surface-emitting laser was studied for gas-sensing applications. Properties of the 962-nm laser that were measured include side-mode suppression, wavelength tuning with temperature and current, power versus injection current, and the amplitude noise spectrum. With wavelength modulation spectroscopy, a rms noise level of 2 x 10(-4) absorbance units was achieved. The large current tuning range (25 cm(-1)) and smaller amplitude modulation (11%/cm(-1)) of the vertical cavity laser compare favorably with Fabry-Perot and distributed feedback diode lasers for spectroscopic gas sensing, especially at atmospheric pressure.