VCSELs boast 63.4% PCE

Years of research and development, including funding from the U.S. Navy, Army, and the Defense Advanced Research Products Agency (DARPA), have resulted in record performance of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) from Princeton Optronics (Mercerville, NJ). The VCSELs (both single-emitter and array devices) have 63.4% power conversion efficiency (PCE)—an unprecedented value, considering that commercially available products have typical PCE values of around 20 to 25%.

Developed for time-of-flight (TOF) and structured-light applications for gesture recognition, three-dimensional imaging, and infrared illumination applications, the 800–1100 nm VCSEL arrays are available with dimensions ranging from 500 × 500 μm to 5 × 5 mm, with power output ranging from 500 mW to several hundred watts. The VCSEL devices also have high efficiency at high temperature and power levels: typically 55% PCE at 50ºC. The VCSEL arrays are therefore easily combined to deliver up to 100 kW of continuous-wave output for high-power illumination applications in perimeter and border security, imaging through smoke and explosions, and long-range surveillance. Contact Chuni Ghosh at [email protected].