Recent Results on ZnSe‐Based Vertical‐Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers Operating in the Blue

The first successful operation of vertical‐cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) operating in the blue is achieved using ZnSe/ZnCdSe multilayers. The vertical‐cavity resonators are constructed by depositing SiO₂/SiN distributed Bragg reflectors on both sides of the active ZnSe/ZnCdSe region. Pulsed optical pumping is used to demonstrate the feasibility of this configuration. Although our first attempts at VCSEL operation required significant threshold excitation power densities (75 kW/cm² at 2 K for lasing at 477 nm), even modest modifications in design and fabrication of subsequent structures already show substantial improvement in these figures.