The present disclosure relates to the field of semiconductor, and more particular, to a manufacturing method of a vertical cavity surface emitting laser.
Group III nitride is the third generation of new semiconductor materials after the first and second generation semiconductor materials such as Si and GaAs. As a wide band gap semiconductor material, GaN has many advantages, such as high saturation drift speed, high breakdown voltage, excellent carrier transport performance. Besides, GaN can be used to form AlGaN, InGaN ternary alloys, and AlInGaN quaternary alloys, and also be easily to manufacture GaN-based PN junctions. In view of this, in recent years, extensive and in-depth researches have conducted on GaN-based materials and semiconductor devices, and the technology growing GaN-based materials with MOCVD (Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition) is becoming more and more mature. In the research on semiconductor devices, significant achievements and developments have been achieved in the field of optoelectronic devices such as GaN-based LEDs, LDs, and in the field of microelectronic devices such as GaN-based HEMTs.
However, in related technologies, the wavelengths of light emitted from optoelectronic devices based on cavity resonators are different at different positions, which means that the uniformity of the emitted light is poor.
In view of this, it is necessary to provide a new method of manufacturing a vertical cavity surface emitting laser so as to solve the above technical problems.
The object of the present disclosure is to provide a manufacturing method of a vertical cavity surface emitting laser, which can improve the uniformity of light emitted from the vertical cavity surface emitting laser.
In order to achieve the above purpose, in a first aspect of the present disclosure, a manufacturing method of a vertical cavity surface emitting laser is provided, where the vertical cavity surface emitting laser includes a first reflector, a first semiconductor layer, an active layer, a second semiconductor layer, an oxide layer, and a second reflector sequentially stacked; a conductivity type of the first semiconductor layer is opposite to a conductivity type of the second semiconductor layer; the oxide layer includes a light transmitting region and a light shielding region, and the light shielding region surrounds the light transmitting region; the manufacturing method includes: planarizing a first contact surface between the first semiconductor layer and the first reflector, and/or a second contact surface between the second semiconductor layer and the second reflector.
Optionally, the manufacturing method of the vertical cavity surface emitting laser includes:
Optionally, before sequentially forming the first reflector, the first semiconductor layer, the active layer, and the second semiconductor material layer on the substrate, the method further includes:
Optionally, after planarizing the first surface, away from the substrate, of the second semiconductor material layer to obtain the second semiconductor material layer, the method further includes:
Optionally, the manufacturing method of the vertical cavity surface emitting laser includes:
Optionally, the first reflective material layer includes multiple layers of first insulating material layers and second insulating material layers which are alternately arranged;
Optionally, the manufacturing method of the vertical cavity surface emitting laser includes:
Optionally, before sequentially forming the first semiconductor material layer, the active layer, the second semiconductor layer, the oxide layer, and the second reflector on the substrate, the method further includes:
Optionally, after planarizing the third surface to obtain the first semiconductor layer, the method further includes:
Optionally, the first semiconductor layer is an N-type semiconductor layer; the second semiconductor layer is a P-type semiconductor layer; and the active layer includes a multiple quantum well structure.
Optionally, 11. The manufacturing method of the vertical cavity surface emitting laser according to claim 10, wherein, the multiple quantum well structure is a periodic structure in which GaN and AlGaN are alternately arranged, or a periodic structure in which GaN and AlInGaN are alternately arranged.
Optionally, a material of the first semiconductor layer includes a group III-V compound, and a material of the second semiconductor layer includes a group III-V compound.
Optionally, the vertical cavity surface emitting laser further includes a third insulating material layer, a fourth insulating material layer, a first electrode, and a second electrode, wherein the third insulating material layer is located on a side of the first reflector away from the second reflector, and the first electrode is located on a side of the third insulating material layer away from the first reflector;
Optionally, the method further includes:
To facilitate the understanding of the present disclosure, all reference signs present in the present disclosure are listed below:
In order to make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure more obvious and understandable, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
In step 101, a nucleation layer 219, a buffer layer 22, a first reflector 23, a first semiconductor layer 24, an active layer 25, and a second semiconductor material layer 26 are sequentially formed on the substrate 21.
In this step, as shown in
In this embodiment, the material of the substrate 21 includes silicon. Of course, the material of the substrate 21 can also include silicon carbide (SiC), gallium nitride (GaN), or sapphire.
In this embodiment, the material of the nucleation layer 219 can be a group III-V compound, such as AlN, GaN, AlGaN, InGaN, or AlInGaN.
In this embodiment, the material of the buffer layer 22 can be a group III-V compound, such as GaN, AlN, AlGaN, InGaN, or AlInGaN.
In this embodiment, the first reflector 23 is a Bragg reflector, and the first reflector 23 is formed of high refractive index materials and low refractive index materials in which these two kinds of materials are alternately arranged. For example, the first reflector 23 includes SiO2 and TiO2 which are alternately disposed in a plurality of layers, which is not limited here.
In this embodiment, the first semiconductor layer 24 is an N-type semiconductor layer. The material of the first semiconductor layer 24 is a group III-V compound, such as GaN, AlN, AlGaN, InGaN, or AlInGaN. The doping elements of the first semiconductor layer 24 include at least one kind of Si ions, Ge ions, Sn ions, Se ions, or Te ions. For example, the doping elements of the first semiconductor layer 24 include Si ions, or include Si ions and Ge ions, which is not limited here.
In this embodiment, the active layer 25 includes a multiple quantum well structure. Where, the multiple quantum well structure can be a periodic structure in which GaN and AlGaN are alternately arranged, or a periodic structure in which GaN and AlInGaN are alternately arranged, which is not limited here.
In this embodiment, the second semiconductor material layer 26 is a P-type conductive material layer, and the material of the second semiconductor material layer 26 is a group III-V compound, for example, GaN, AlN, AlGaN, InGaN, or AlInGaN. The doping elements of the second semiconductor material layer 26 include at least one kind of Mg ions, Zn ions, Ca ions, Sr ions, or Ba ions, for example, including Mg ions, or including Zn ions and Ca ions, which is not limited here.
It should be noted that, as shown in
T represents the cavity length of the resonator, λ represents the wavelength of the light emitted by the vertical cavity surface emitting laser. The relationship between T and λ is as follows:
λ=2nT/N;
where, N is a positive integer.
In step 102, a first surface 213 of the second semiconductor material layer 26 away from the substrate 21 is planarized to obtain a second semiconductor layer 27, and the first surface 213 is planarized to form a second contact surface 214.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, during the process of planarizing the first surface 213, whether the surface roughness of the first surface 213 is within the specified range or not is detected. If the surface roughness is within the specified range, stop planarizing the first surface 213. If the surface roughness is out of the specified range, continue planarizing the first surface 213 until the surface roughness of the first surface 213 is within the specified range.
In step 103, an oxide layer 224 and a second reflector 28 are sequentially formed on the second semiconductor layer 27.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, due to the planarization for the first surface 213 of the second semiconductor material layer 26 away from the substrate 21, the second contact surface 214 of the second semiconductor layer 27 in contact with the second reflector 28 is flat, and the surface of the second reflector 28 facing the first reflector 23 is flat. In this way, the problem of different cavity lengths of the cavity resonator at different locations can be alleviated, that is, the uniformity of cavity length of the cavity resonator is improved. Besides, the uniformity of the thickness of the epitaxial layers between the second reflector 28 and the first reflector 23 is improved, thereby improving the uniformity of light emitted from the vertical cavity surface emitting laser. In addition, in the solution of the present disclosure, due to the uniform cavity length of the cavity resonator, only the light with a specific wavelength can be allowed to be emitted. Compared to the solution of improving the uniformity of cavity length of the cavity resonator at various locations by sensitive elements in the active layer that affect the wavelength of the emitted light, such as In element, the solution provided by the present disclosure is more simple and the cost is low.
In step 501, a nucleation layer 219 and a buffer layer 22 are sequentially formed on the substrate 21.
In this step, as shown in
In this embodiment, the material of the substrate 21 can be gallium nitride, silicon, silicon carbide, or sapphire.
In this embodiment, the material of the nucleation layer 219 can be GaN, or can be AlN, AlGaN, InGaN, or AlInGaN.
In this embodiment, the material of the buffer layer 22 can be AlGaN, or can be GaN, AlN, InGaN, or AlInGaN.
In step 502, a first reflective material layer 215 is formed on the buffer layer 22, where the first reflective material layer 215 includes one or more first insulating material layers 2151 and one or more second insulating material layers 2152 arranged in layers.
In this step, as shown in
It should be noted that, as shown in
In step 503, the second surface 216 of the first reflective material layer 215 away from the substrate 21 is planarized to obtain the first reflector 23, where the second surface 216 after planarization becomes the first contact surface 217.
In this step, as shown in
In this embodiment, during the process of planarizing the second surface 216, whether the surface roughness of the second surface 216 is within the specified range or not is detected. If the surface roughness is within the specified range, stop planarizing the second surface 216. If the surface roughness is out of the specified range, continue planarizing the second surface 216 until the surface roughness of the second surface 216 is within the specified range.
In step 504, a first semiconductor layer 24, an active layer 25, a second semiconductor layer 27, an oxide layer 224, and a second reflector 28 are sequentially formed on the first reflector 23.
In this step, as shown in
In this embodiment, the first semiconductor layer 24, the active layer 25, the second semiconductor layer 27, and the oxide layer 224 are similar to the first semiconductor layer 24, the active layer 25, the second semiconductor layer 27, and the oxide layer 224 in the first embodiment, and will not be described here.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, due to the planarization of the second surface 216 of the second semiconductor material layer 215 away from the substrate 21, the second contact surface 217 of the second semiconductor layer 23 in contact with the second reflector 28 is flat, and the surface of the second reflector 28 facing the first reflector 23 is flat. In this way, the problem of different cavity lengths of the cavity resonator at different locations can be alleviated, that is, the cavity length uniformity of the cavity resonator is improved. Besides, the uniformity of the thickness of the epitaxial layers between the second reflector 28 and the first reflector 23 is improved, thereby improving the uniformity of light emitted from the vertical cavity surface emitting laser. In addition, in the solution of the present disclosure, due to the uniform cavity length of the cavity resonator, only the light with a specific wavelength can be allowed to be emitted. Compared to the solution of improving the uniformity of cavity length of the cavity resonator at various locations by sensitive elements in the active layer that affect the wavelength of the emitted light, such as In elements, the solution provided by the present disclosure is more simple and the cost is low.
It should be noted that the first embodiment and the second embodiment can be used in combination to make the surface of the first reflector 23 facing the second reflector 28 is flat, while the surface of the second reflector 28 facing the first reflector 23 is also flat. In this way, the cavity length uniformity of the cavity resonator can be further improved, and the thickness uniformity of the epitaxial layers between the second reflector 28 and the first reflector 23 is better, which can further improve the uniformity of light emitted from the vertical cavity surface emitting laser.
In step 1001, a nucleation layer 219 and a buffer layer 22 are sequentially formed on the substrate 21.
In this step, as shown in
In this embodiment, the material of the substrate 21 can be sapphire, silicon, silicon carbide, or gallium nitride.
In this embodiment, the material of the nucleation layer 219 can be InGaN, or can be GaN, AlN, AlGaN, or AlInGaN.
In this embodiment, the material of the buffer layer 22 can be InGaN, or can be GaN, AlN, AlGaN, or AlInGaN.
In step 1002, a first semiconductor material layer 29, an active layer 25, a second semiconductor layer 27, an oxide layer 224, and a second reflector 28 are sequentially formed on the buffer layer 22.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, the first semiconductor material layer 29 is an N-type semiconductor layer. The material of the first semiconductor material layer 29 is a group III-V compound, such as GaN, AlN, AlGaN, InGaN, or AlInGaN. The doping elements of the first semiconductor material layer 29 include at least one kind of Si ions, Ge ions, Sn ions, Se ions, or Te ions. For example, the doping elements of the first semiconductor material layer 29 include Si ions, or include Si ions and Ge ions, which is not limited herein.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In step 1003, a support substrate 211 is adhered to the second reflector 28 to obtain an intermediate transition structure 212.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In step 1004, the intermediate transition structure 212 is turned over, and the substrate 21, the nucleation layer 219, and the buffer layer 22 are removed to expose the third surface 218 of the first semiconductor material layer 29.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In step 1005, the third surface 218 is planarized to obtain a first semiconductor layer 24, and the third surface 218 after planarization becomes the first contact surface 217.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, during the process of planarizing the third surface 218, whether the surface roughness of the third surface 218 is within the specified range or not is detected. If the surface roughness is within the specified range, stop planarizing the third surface 218. If the surface roughness is out of the specified range, continue planarizing the third surface 218 until the surface roughness of the third surface 218 is within the specified range.
In step 1006, a first reflector 23 is formed on the first semiconductor layer 24.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, due to the planarization of the third surface 218 of the first semiconductor material layer 29, the first contact surface 217 of the first semiconductor layer 24 in contact with the first reflector 23 is flat, and thus the thickness uniformity of the first semiconductor layer 24 is improved, thereby improving the thickness uniformity of the epitaxial layers between the second reflector 28 and the first reflector 23, which improves the uniformity of light emitted from the vertical cavity surface emitting laser. In addition, in the solution of the present disclosure, due to the uniform cavity length of the cavity resonator, only the light with a specific wavelength can be allowed to be emitted. Compared to the solution of improving the uniformity of cavity length of the cavity resonator at various locations by sensitive elements in the active layer that affect the wavelength of the emitted light, such as In elements, the solution provided by the present disclosure is more simple and the cost is low.
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, as shown in
In this embodiment, the first reflector 23, the first semiconductor layer 24, the active layer 25, the second semiconductor layer 27, the oxide layer 224, and the second reflector 28 that are sequentially stacked can be manufactured via the manufacturing method of the vertical cavity surface emitting laser described in any of the above embodiments.
Compared to the prior art, the beneficial effect of the present disclosure is that because the first contact surface of the first semiconductor layer and the first reflector, and/or the second contact surface of the second semiconductor layer and the second reflector, are planarized, the uniformity of the spacing between the first reflector and the second reflector can be improved, that is, the uniformity of the cavity length of the cavity resonator formed by the first reflector and the second reflector can be improved, which can improve the uniformity of light emitted from the vertical cavity surface emitting laser. In addition, in the solution of the present disclosure, due to the uniform cavity length of the cavity resonator, only the light with a specific wavelength can be allowed to be emitted. Compared to the solution of improving the uniformity of cavity length of the cavity resonator at various locations by sensitive elements in the active layer that affect the wavelength of the emitted light, such as In elements, the solution provided by the present disclosure is more simple and the cost is low.
Although the present disclosure discloses the above contents, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. One of ordinary skill in the art can make various variants and modifications to the present disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the protection scope of the present disclosure should be set forth by the appended claims.
This application is a national phase entry of and claims priority to International Patent Application No. PCT/CN2020/130801 (filed 23 Nov. 2020), the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/CN2020/130801 | 11/23/2020 | WO |