Optoelectronic devices and integrated circuits for imaging applications.

An artificial vision system that emulates the human eye not only requires characteristics such as high-resolution and low-noise but also massive parallel interconnectivity, high speed image focusing, acquisition and transfer capability. Such an artificial eye with color adaptability is still a distant dream. The essential functions of such a system are image focusing, color separation, resolution of image into an array of pixels, optical amplification and retransmission for electronic processing and analysis. The objective of this dissertation is to outline the design and development of several high-speed, low-power and compact optoelectronic devices and integrated circuits (OEICs) that will form the footprint of such an advanced artificial vision system. The development of low-power phototransceiver imaging arrays, high-speed photoreceiver-laser driver OEIC, high-speed tunnel-injection quantum-dot (QD) laser and 2-D photonic crystal (PC) QD light source is described in this work. A novel vertically integrated configuration of the low-power phototransceiver was demonstrated using a tunnel junction to connect a heterojunction phototransistor with a microcavity LED. This phototransceiver has an extremely small device footprint that enabled the fabrication of high-density phototransceiver arrays. The phototransceiver arrays exhibited excellent low-power dissipation characteristics, uniformity and very good imaging capability. A monolithically integrated InP HBT-based high-speed photoreceiver-laser driver OEIC was developed that could amplify the optical signals from the low-power phototransceivers and transmit them over an optical fiber. This is the first demonstration of monolithic integration of a photoreceiver and laser driver circuit. The OEIC exhibited electrical small-signal modulation bandwidth of 8.2GHz. Operation at 10Gbps was demonstrated. Tunnel-injection In0.4Ga0.6As/GaAs QD lasers, with modulation bandwidth exceeding 20GHz, were demonstrated. The lasers exhibited extremely reduced temperature sensitivity of threshold current. TO, larger than 360K was demonstrated, which is the largest reported to date amongst semiconductor lasers. The lasers were characterized for their Auger recombination characteristics. Auger recombination coefficient of 3 x 10-29 cm6/s, high-frequency chirp of 0.5A and linewidth enhancement factor of 1.2 was measured. An electrically injected 2-D PC light source monolithically integrated with 2-D PC waveguides was demonstrated that could have applications such as on-chip optical routing, data processing and gas detection.PhDApplied SciencesElectrical engineeringUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/123674/2/3096174.pd