Comparative theoretical and experimental studies of two designs of high-power diode lasers

Design and technology developments targeted at increasing both power conversion efficiency and optical output power of GaAs-based diode lasers are under intense study worldwide, driven by the demands of commercial laser systems. The conversion efficiency at the operation point is known to be limited by electrical and optical losses in the p-side waveguide. In this paper an 'extreme, double asymmetric' design to mitigate the impact of the p-side waveguide is studied and compared with a more conventional design. An increase of the efficiency at the highest power is demonstrated, but it is less than expected from simulations.