We describe how a midwave infrared photonic integrated circuit (PIC) that combines lasers, detectors, passive waveguides, and other optical elements may be constructed on the native GaSb substrate of an interband cascade laser (ICL) structure. The active and passive building blocks may be used, for example, to fabricate an on-chip chemical detection system with a passive sensing waveguide that evanescently couples to an ambient sample gas. A variety of highly compact architectures are described, some of which incorporate both the sensing waveguide and detector into a laser cavity defined by two high-reflectivity cleaved facets. We also describe an edge-emitting laser configuration that optimizes stability by minimizing parasitic feedback from external optical elements, and which can potentially operate with lower drive power than any mid-IR laser now available. While ICL-based PICs processed on GaSb serve to illustrate the various configurations, many of the proposed concepts apply equally to quantum-cascade-laser (QCL)-based PICs processed on InP, and PICs that integrate III-V lasers and detectors on silicon. With mature processing, it should become possible to mass-produce hundreds of individual PICs on the same chip which, when singulated, will realize chemical sensing by an extremely compact and inexpensive package.

中文翻译：

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原生III-V芯片上的三带级联光子集成电路

我们描述了如何在带间级联激光器（ICL）结构的本机GaSb基板上构造结合了激光器，检测器，无源波导和其他光学元件的中波红外光子集成电路（PIC）。有源和无源构件可以用于例如制造具有无源感测波导的芯片上化学检测系统，该无源感测波导waveguide逝地耦合到环境样本气体。描述了多种高度紧凑的架构，其中一些将感测波导和检测器都结合到由两个高反射率切割面限定的激光腔中。我们还描述了一种边缘发射激光器配置，该配置通过最小化来自外部光学元件的寄生反馈来优化稳定性，而且它的驱动功率可能低于目前可用的任何中红外激光器。尽管在GaSb上处理的基于ICL的PIC用于说明各种配置，但许多建议的概念同样适用于在InP上处理的基于量子级联激光（QCL）的PIC，以及在硅上集成了III-V激光器和检测器的PIC 。通过成熟的处理，应该有可能在同一芯片上批量生产数百个单独的PIC，将其单个化后，将以极其紧凑和廉价的封装实现化学感应。