We present a method to study current paths through quantum cascade lasers (QCLs). The temperature dependence of the current is measured at a fixed voltage. At low temperatures we find activation energies that correspond to the energy difference between the injector ground state and the upper laser level. At higher temperatures additional paths with larger activation energies are found. Applicat...

This theoretical work explores the carrier dynamical issues that must be confronted if the recent successes of the mid-infrared quantum cascade laserss1] are to be translated into longer wavelength devices. Whilst the small subband separations lead to a partial suppression of longitudinal optic (LO) phonon emission, which is the dominant non-radiative loss mechanism in quantum cascade lasers, i...

This paper discusses the concept of enhancing semiconductor laser performance through tailoring of scattering rates of confined polar-optical phonons. Studies of optically pumped intersubband scattering in coupled quantum-well lasers have demonstrated that interface-phonon-assisted transitions are important in such structures; furthermore, simple analytical expressions have been derived that in...

A design and results for an instrument with a quantum cascade laser and an antimonide diode laser to measure simultaneously and with high precision seven isotopologues of carbon dioxide and water vapor. Methods and results for determining the effects that limit absorption noise at the level of 5x10(-6) are presented and discussed.

We report the operation of a 50 mW continuous-wave quantum cascade laser (QCL) in the 9.2 microm range, phase locked to a single-mode CO(2) laser with a tunable frequency offset. The wide free-running emission spectrum of the QCL (3-5 MHz) is strongly narrowed down to the kilohertz range, making it suitable for high-resolution molecular spectroscopy.

We apply a quantum transport theory based on nonequilibrium Green’s functions to quantum cascade laser (QCL) structures, treating simultaneously the transmission through the injector regions and the relaxation due to scattering in the active region. The quantum kinetic equations are solved self-consistently using self-energies for interface roughness and phonon scattering processes within the s...

A miniaturized, trace level sensor for cocaine is presented. A quantum cascade laser emitting at 1720 cm-1 is coupled to a fibred absorption flow-cell. A detection limit lower than 250 ng/mL (84 ppb) is reported. OCIS codes: (300.6340) Spectroscopy, infrared; (300.6360) Spectroscopy, laser

We demonstrate the generation of cw tunable far-infrared radiation by mixing a quantum cascade laser and a CO>(2) laser in a W-Ni metal-insulator-metal diode. The first known spectroscopic application to the recording of an H(79)Br transition near 4.47 THz is reported.

We report on the narrowing of a room-temperature mid-IR quantum cascade laser by frequency locking it to a CO2 sub-Doppler transition obtained by polarization spectroscopy. A locking bandwidth of 250 kHz has been achieved. The laser linewidth is narrowed by more than two orders of magnitude below 1 kHz, and its absolute frequency is stabilized at the same level.