Semiconductor laser manufacturer II-VI Laser Enterprise GmbH has shipped from its Zurich, Switzerland headquarters its 200 millionth vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) since 2008, consolidating its position as the leading volume supplier of VCSELs for consumer electronics applications such as optical finger navigation, laser computer mouse, and active optical cables (AOCs).
II-VI Laser Enterprise is a subsidiary in the active optical products segment of engineering materials and optoelectronic components provider II-VI Inc of Saxonburg, PA, USA that was acquired in September from optical communications component maker Oclaro Inc of San Jose, CA, USA for $115m.
The optical characteristics of VCSELs such as low beam divergence, small wavelength shift over temperature, narrow spectral line-width and high-speed modulation properties make them the ideal light sources for advanced sensing, communication and illumination applications in mobile devices, says II-VI Inc. Also, VCSELs can be produced cost-competitively by using high-throughput wafer-scale manufacturing and testing processes.
II-VI Laser Enterprise says that it unites design expertise (at design centers in Tucson, AZ, USA and Paignton, UK) with a long-standing and field-proven, reliability track record and the manufacturing control to provide the required combination of performance, reliability and cost advantages to demanding high-volume markets. As well as VCSEL solutions, the firm provides 980nm single-mode pumps and high power laser diode, for applications including pumping, medical, printing, telecoms and consumer electronics.
II-VI Laser Enterprise has also announced the addition of high-power VCSELs to complement its product portfolio geared at high-volume consumer electronics markets. The firm is now sampling high-power VCSELs for sensing and illumination applications. The single-die lasers emit more than 10mW at 850nm. Furthermore, replication of the same die in a 2D-array enables optical power to reach 2W at 850nm for illumination of larger volumes that can be required in sensing applications such as in time-of-flight.