Highly Reliable Low-Threshold InAs Quantum Dot Lasers on On-Axis (001) Si with 87% Injection Efficiency

Quantum dot lasers epitaxially grown on Si are promising for an efficient light source for silicon photonics. Recently, considerable progress has been made to migrate 1.3 μm quantum dot lasers from off-cut Si to on-axis (001) Si substrates. Here, we report significantly improved performance and reliability of quantum dot lasers enabled by a low threading dislocation density GaAs buffer layer. Continuous-wave threshold currents as low as 6.2 mA and output powers of 185 mW have been achieved at 20 °C. Reliability tests after 1500 h at 35 °C showed an extrapolated mean-time-to-failure of more than a million hours. Direct device transparency and amplified spontaneous emission measurements reveal an internal optical loss as low as 2.42 cm^–1 and injection efficiency of 87%. This represents a significant stride toward efficient, scalable, and reliable III–V lasers on on-axis Si substrates for photonic integrate circuits that are fully compatible with CMOS foundries.