21leos04.qxd 8/29/07 4:55 PM Page cov1 August 2007 Vol. 21, No. 4 www.i-LEOS.org IEEE NEWS THE SOCIETY FOR PHOTONICS HowHow thethe Double-HeterostructureDouble-Heterostructure LaserLaser IdeaIdea gotgot startedstarted LEOS and the Growth of Photonics High-PowerHigh-Power Vertical-CavityVertical-Cavity Surface-EmittingSurface-Emitting LaserLaser PumpPump SourcesSources 21leos04.qxd 8/29/07 4:55 PM Page cov2 21leos04.qxd 8/29/07 4:55 PM Page 1 IEEE NEWS THE SOCIETY FOR PHOTONICS Page 29, Figure 3: Cross-section schematic of the processed VCSEL array. August 2007 Volume 21, Number 4 FEATURES Special 30th Anniversary Feature: “How the Double-Heterostructure Laser Idea got started,” by Prof. Herbert Kroemer . 4 Special 30th Anniversary Feature: Most Cited Article from JSTQE • “Semiconductor Saturable Absorber Mirrors (SESAMs) for Femtosecond to Nanosecond Pulse Generation in Solid-State Lasers,” (Reprint JSTQE Vol.2, No.3, Sept 1996) by Prof. Ursula Keller et al . 8 • “Semiconductor Saturable Absorber Mirrors (SESAMs) for Femtosecond to Nanosecond Pulse Generation in Solid-State Lasers,” - “Discovering” the SESAM - Commentary by Ursula Keller . 27 Industry Research Highlights: “High-Power Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser Pump Sources,” by J.-F. Seurin et al, Princeton Optronics . 28 Industry Research Highlights: “High Power Laser Diodes: From Telecom to Industrial Applications,” by Norbert Lichtenstein . 33 Column by LEOS Leaders: “LEOS and the Growth of Photonics”, by LEOS President Dr. Fred Leonberger . 39 DEPARTMENTS News . 40 • Awards and Recognition at LEOS 2007 • Call for Nominations: 2008 Young Investigator Award • Nomination forms Careers . 42 • Focus on IEEE/LEOS 2006-07 Distinguished Lecturers: Toshihiko Baba, Bishnu P. Pal, and David V. Plant • 2006 IPRM Best Student Award recipient: Kale J. Franz 28 • 2006 LEOS-Newport/Spectra-Physics Research Student Paper Award recipients: - Tomoyuki Takahata, Ali K. Okyay, Hans C. Hansen, Maxim Abashin, and Haltice Altug Membership . 49 • Benefits of IEEE Senior Membership • New Senior Members 31 • Chapter Highlight: Santa Clara Valley Chapter Conferences . 52 • Recognition at CLEO/QELS 2006 • Conference Calendar • LEOS 2007 Exhibitor Contract Publications . 52 • Call for Papers: - IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics (JSTQE) . 55 36 - IEEE Sensors Journal COLUMNS Editor’s Column………………2 President’s Column………………….3 August 2007 IEEE LEOS NEWSLETTER 1 21leos04.qxd 8/29/07 4:55 PM Page 2 Editor’s IEEE Lasers and Column Electro-Optics Society KRISHNAN PARAMESWARAN President Vice Presidents Alan Willner Conferences – E. Golovchenko University of Southern California Finance & Administration – S. Newton Welcome to the August Newsletter! As we continue to Dept. of EE-Systems/ Rm EEB 538 Membership & Regional Activities celebrate the 30th anniversary of LEOS, this issue is Los Angeles, CA 90089-2565 Americas – S. Unlu Tel: +1 213 740 4664 Asia & Pacific – C. Jagadish dedicated to the semiconductor laser. From CD players Fax: +1 213 740 8729 Europe, Mid-East, Africa – J. Buus Publications – C. Menoni to communications transmitters, to manufacturing Email: [email protected] Technical Affairs – N. Jokerst instruments, semiconductor lasers are ubiquitous, and President-Elect Newsletter Staff have had an immeasurable impact on both our field of John H. Marsh photonics and society in general. We are honored to Intense Photonics, Ltd. Executive Editor 4 Stanley Boulevard Krishnan R. Parameswaran present an article by Nobel Laureate Prof. Herbert Hamilton International Tech Park Physical Sciences, Inc. Kroemer of UC Santa Barbara, inventor of the double High Blantyre G72 0UX Scotland, UK 20 New England Business Center Tel: +44 1698 827 000 Andover, MA 01810 heterostructure laser concept. His article describes how Fax: +44 1698 827 262 Tel: +1 978 738 8187 he arrived at the idea, and should serve as inspiration to Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] readers developing the next generation of photonics Secretary-Treasurer Associate Editor of Asia & Pacific technology. Filbert Bartoli Hon Tsang Lehigh University Dept. of Electronic Engineering We also have two Industry Research Highlights arti- 19 West Memorial Drive The Chinese University of Hong Kong cles on diode laser technology. Norbert Lichtenstein of Packard Lab 302 Shatin, Hong Kong Bethlehem, PA 18015 Tel: +852 260 98254 Bookham Switzerland presents a nice review of High Tel: +1 610 758 4069 Fax: +852 260 35558 Email: [email protected] Power Laser Diodes, and Jean-François Seurin and col- Fax: +1 610 758 6279 Email: [email protected]; Associate Editor of Canada leagues at Princeton Optronics describe their recent [email protected] Amr Helmy work in High-Power VCSEL Pump Sources. The Edward S. Rogers, Sr. Department In our continuing series on reprints of the most cited Past President of Electrical and Computer Engineering H. Scott Hinton University of Toronto articles in LEOS journals, we present a seminal paper by Utah State University 10 King’s College Road Prof. Ursula Keller of ETH Zurich and co-workers Dean of Engineering Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3G4 4100 Old Main Hill Tel: +1 416-946-0199 describing the semiconductor saturable absorber mirror Logan, UT 84322-4100 Fax: +1 416-971-3020 (SESAM). This paper has been cited 261 times since its Tel: +1 435 797 2776 Email: [email protected] Fax: +1 435 797 2769 publication in 1996, and the device concept has found Email: [email protected] Associate Editor of Europe/Mid application in a variety of applications. Prof. Keller has East/Africa Executive Director Kevin A. Williams also provided a commentary about the article. This fea- Richard Linke Eindhoven University of Technology ture was inadvertently left out of the April Newsletter, IEEE/LEOS Inter-University Research Institute 445 Hoes Lane COBRA on Communication Technology Department of Electrical Engineering so we are pleased to present it this month. We are also Piscataway, NJ 08855-1331 PO Box 513 Tel: +1 732 562 3891 happy to present a column by LEOS Past President Dr. 5600 MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands Fax: +1 732 562 8434 Email: [email protected] Fred Leonberger, who was instrumental in developing Email: [email protected] the Photonics industry into the robust field it is today. Staff Editor We hope that his column will be the first in a series of Board of Governors Giselle Blandin M. Amann K. Hotate IEEE/LEOS commentaries by LEOS leaders past and present. F. Bartoli D. Huffaker 445 Hoes Lane Please feel free to send any comments and suggestions to K. Choquette H. Kuwahara Piscataway, NJ 08855-1331 C. Doerr C. Menoni Tel: +1 732 981 3405 [email protected]. I would love to hear from you! S. Donati D. Plant Fax: +1 732 562 8434 C. Gmachl A. Seeds Email: [email protected] Krishnan Parameswaran LEOS Newsletter is published bimonthly by the Lasers and Electro- Optics Society of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc., Corporate Office: 3 Park Avenue, 17th Floor, New York, NY 10017-2394. Printed in the USA. One dollar per member per year is included in the Society fee for each member of the Lasers and Electro-Optics Society. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to LEOS Newsletter, IEEE, 445 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, NJ 08854. Copyright © 2007 by IEEE: Permission to copy without fee all or part of any material without a copyright notice is granted provided that the copies are not made or distributed for direct commercial advantage, and the title of the publication and its date appear on each copy. To copy material with a copyright notice requires spe- cific permission. Please direct all inquiries or requests to IEEE Copyrights Office. 21leos04.qxd 8/29/07 4:55 PM Page 3 President’s Column ALAN E. WILLNER “LEOS is Our have a life 30 years from now. LEOS A Fundamental Value Professional Glue” is our professional address, one that of LEOS “The Force … is an energy field created by has permanency to it. “In risk perception, humans act less as indi- all living things. It surrounds us and pene- Let me raise an example that is bit- viduals and more as social beings who have trates us. It binds the galaxy together.” Obi- tersweet and that might seem a bit con- internalized social pressures and delegated wan Kenobi, Star Wars. troversial. When I was a student, many their decision-making processes to institu- “Through the Force, things you will see. of the seminal papers that I embraced tions. ... Institutions are their problem-sim- Reaches across time and space it does. Other came from the Bell System Technical plifying devices.” Mary Douglas & Aaron places. The future... the past. …. Always in Journal (BSTJ). Today, the BSTJ is no Wildavsky, Univ. of California Press, ‘82. motion is the future.” Yoda, Star Wars. more, and many of my students have Your professional reputation comes (OK, so it is a stretch to compare never even heard of it. Does this dimin- from many ingredients, including: (a) LEOS with the “Force” from Star Wars.) ish the long-term archival value of the quality of your work, and (b) your What will your career look like in 5 those papers? Unfortunately, I think ability to work and communicate effec- years? 20 years? These are common yes. How would you feel if JQE or PTL tively with others. These two items can questions if you take a strategic view of ceased to exist in 5 years? Would you make or break most of your future career your professional development. How regret having published in these jour- options. In many ways, our journals, many of us know what path we will nals? LEOS members can feel secure conferences, and volunteer committee want to take in 5 years? How about next that LEOS will be around for decades, year? Life changes, our choices change, as will our venerable journals.