Superluminescent diodes
Light-emitting diodes

Superluminescent diodes

Superluminescent diodes (SLDs) are broadband incoherent light sources that combine features of both laser diodes (LDs) and light-emitting diodes (LEDs), providing high optical output power with low spatial coherence. It's important to distinguish between light-emitting diodes (also called surface-emitting LEDs or SLEDs, as radiation occurs over a large surface) and superluminescent diodes (which are also called edge-emitting LEDs or ELEDs, as radiation is emitted from the edge of the chip, similar to laser diodes).

We offer SLDs at wavelengths of 830 nm and 980 nm with an optical power of 2 mW, as well as SLDs at 1310 nm and 1550 nm with an optical power of 1 mW, all available in various packages. These include coaxial packages without thermal stabilization, as well as dual in-line (DIL) and butterfly packages (BTF) equipped with a thermo-electric cooler (TEC) for active temperature control.

These semiconductor devices are ideal for applications requiring a broadband light source with high spectral bandwidth, such as optical coherence tomography (OCT), fiber optic gyroscopes, and fiber optic sensors. SLDs function as sources of amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) and are similar to optical amplifiers without an input port. In cases of optical feedback, an SLD may start lasing, so it is crucial to prevent any optical feedback. The SLD semiconductor chips feature antireflection coatings, and it's essential to use optical fibers with FC/APC connector terminations to prevent back-reflection. Under these conditions, superluminescent diodes exhibit reliable operation and a Gaussian-like spectrum with a broad FWHM (full width at half maximum) without modulation (ripple). The SLDs can be aligned with single-mode, multimode, and polarization-maintaining fibers.

Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs)

Surface-emitting light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are incoherent sources of optical radiation. Unlike superluminescent diodes (SLDs), which emit light from the edge of the chip, LEDs emit light from the surface. This structural difference makes LED technology significantly simpler and more cost-effective, which is why LEDs are widely used in general lighting applications.

However, LEDs typically exhibit lower optical power density, a larger emission area, and non-directional (Lambertian) radiation patterns. These characteristics make efficient coupling of light into optical fibers more challenging compared to edge-emitting sources.

Explore detailed specifications and performance characteristics in our datasheets (PDF) to find the right solution for your needs.

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