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Mode characteristics of AlGaInAs/InP square resonator microlasers laterally confined by a bisbenzocyclobutene layer, with an output waveguide connected to one vertex or the midpoint of one side, are investigated numerically and experimentally. Numerical simulation results indicate that the square resonator with the midpoint output waveguide has a better single-mode property, but a lower mode Q-factor than that with the vertex output waveguide. For a 20-μm-side-length square microlaser with a 1.5-μm-wide vertex output waveguide, lasing spectra with multiple transverse modes are observed with the mode wavelength intervals agreeing with the 2-D-finite difference time domain simulation results. In contrast, single-mode operation with a side-mode suppression ratio of 42 dB is obtained for a 20-μm-side-length square microlaser with a 1.5-μm-wide midpoint output waveguide. The results indicate that output waveguide can result in a mode selection in addition to realizing unidirectional emission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Controlling thermal stress is a promising way to reduce the temperature instability of arrayed waveguide gratings (AWGs). A simple method to apply thermal stress is to attach stress plates on the arrayed waveguides. In this paper, a general analytical method to study the temperature sensitivity of the central wavelength in modified AWGs with stress plates is developed. The complete analysis shows that the temperature sensitivity can be controlled effectively by tuning the material parameters and the thickness of the stress plates. To obtain athermal AWGs, a stress plate with large positive thermal expansion coefficient and small Young's modulus should be attached on the bottom of the arrayed waveguides. The material with large negative thermal expansion coefficient suggests another potential scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]