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Design Concepts Of Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers: Proposal For Terahertz Laser Efficiency Improvements, Tillmann Kubis, Saumitra Raj Mehrotra, Gerhard Klimeck
Design Concepts Of Terahertz Quantum Cascade Lasers: Proposal For Terahertz Laser Efficiency Improvements, Tillmann Kubis, Saumitra Raj Mehrotra, Gerhard Klimeck
Birck and NCN Publications
Conceptual disadvantages of typical resonant phonon terahertz quantum cascade lasers THz-QCLs are analyzed. Alternative designs and their combination within a concrete device proposal are discussed to improve the QCL performance. The improvements are 1 indirect pumping of the upper laser level, 2 diagonal optical transitions, 3 complete electron thermalization, and 4 materials with low effective electron masses. The nonequilibrium Green’s function method is applied to predict stationary electron transport and optical gain. The proposed THz-QCL shows a higher optical gain, a lower threshold current, and a higher operation temperature. Alloy disorder scattering can worsen the QCL performance.