The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Apr. 16, 2002
Filed:
Mar. 13, 2001
Vijaysekhar Jayaraman, Goleta, CA (US);
Jonathan Geske, Lompoc, CA (US);
Gore Enterprise Holdings, Inc., Newark, DE (US);
Abstract
A process for use in fabrication of a semiconductor device is disclosed. The fabricated semiconductor device includes a top oxide aperture within a top oxidation layer and a bottom oxide aperture within a bottom oxidation layer precisely positioned relative to each other, and an electrical contact to a contact layer between the top and bottom oxidation layers. The process includes the following steps: etching past one of the oxidation layers and stopping in the contact layer, etching one or more holes traversing the top and bottom oxidation layers, and simultaneously oxidizing both oxidation layers. Etching past both oxidation layers in the same alignment step ensures that the centers of the two apertures, as formed through selective oxidation, will be aligned. Using this technique in the fabrication of semiconductor devices that include optically pumped vertical cavity surface emitting lasers promotes low-loss refractive index guiding combined with a mechanically robust and reproducibly fabricatable structure. The aligned oxide apertures provide a lateral refractive index profile, which guides the optical energy.