Reliability and Degradation Mechanism of Optical Devices - Control of Crystalinity/Interface and Device Reliability

摘要

he current status and our understanding of various degradation phenomena in III-V optical devices, especially, GaAs- and InP-based double-heterostructure lasers and light emitting diodes, are reviewed. Three major degradation modes are focused as follows: rapid degradation due to recombination-enhanced dislocation climb and glide, gradual degradation during operation over a long term, and accidental catastrophic degradation due to current surge. In each degradation mode, degraded regions are investigated structurally and/or compositionally. Based on these results, the degradation mechanisms are discussed and several methods for eliminating the degradation are also proposed.