A monolithically integrated broadly tunable MQW laser that utilizes a combined impurity-free vacancy disordering (IFVD) of quantum wells and optical beam steering techniques is proposed and investigated experimentally. The device consists of a beam-steering section and an optical amplifier section fabricated on a GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well (QW) p-i-n heterostructure. The beam steering section forms a reconfigurable optical waveguide that can be moved laterally by applying separately controlled electrical currents to two parallel contact stripes. The active core of the gain section is divided in into selectively intermixed regions. The selective intermixing of the QW in the gain section results in neighboring regions with different optical bandgaps. The wavelength tuning is accomplished by steering the amplified optical beam through the selected region where it experiences a peak in the gain spectrum determined by the degree of intermixing of the QW. The laser wavelength tunes to the peak in the gain spectrum of that region. The IFVD technique relies on a silica (SiO2) capped rapid thermal annealing and it has been found that the degree of intermixing of the QW with the barrier material is dependent on the thickness of the SiO2 film. The QW sample is first encapsulated with a 400nm thick SiO2 film grown by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). In the gain section, the SiO2 film is selectively etched using multiple photolithographic and reactive ion etching steps whereas the SiO2 film is left intact in all the remaining areas including the beam-steering section. The selective area quantum well intermixing is then induced by a single rapid thermal annealing step at 975°C for a 20s duration to realize a structure with quantum well that has different bandgaps in the key regions. Optical characterizations of the intermixed regions have shown a blue shift of peak of the electroluminescence emission of 5nm, 16nm and 33nm for the uncapped, 100nm and 200nm iv respectively when compared to the as grown sample. The integrated laser exhibited a wavelength tuning range of 17nm (799nm to 816nm). Based on the same principle of QW selective intermixing, we have also designed and fabricated a monolithically integrated multi-wavelength light emitting diode (LED). The LED emits multiple wavelength optical beams from one compact easy to fabricate QW structure. Each wavelength has an independent optical power control, allowing the LED to emit one or more wavelengths at once. The material for the LED is the same AlGaAs/GaAs QW p-i-n heterostructure described above. The device is divided into selectively intermixed regions on a single QW structure using IFVD technique to create localized intermixed regions. Two different designs have been implemented to realize either an LED with multiple output beams of different wavelengths or an LED with a single output beam that has dual wavelength operation capabilities. Experimental results of the multiple output beams LED have demonstrated electrically controlled optical emission of 800nm, 789nm and 772nm. The single output LED has experimentally been shown to produce wavelength emission of 800nm and/or 772nm depending on electrical activation of the two aligned intermixed regions.

Cette distinction est également valable pour le genre des individus (homme/femme). L'étude menée a montré que l'approche utilisant l'information spectrale des contours des phalanges permet une identification par seulement trois phalanges, à un taux EER (Equal Error Rate) inférieur à 0.24 %. Par ailleurs, il a été constaté « de manière surprenante » que la technique fondée sur les rapports de vraisemblance entre les phalanges permet d'atteindre un taux d'identification de 100 % et un taux d'EER de 0.37 %, avec une seule phalange. Hormis l'aspect identification/authentification, notre étude s'est penchée sur l'optimisation de la dose de rayonnement permettant une identification saine des individus. Ainsi, il a été démontré qu'il était possible d'acquérir plus de 12500/an d'images radiographiques de la main, sans pour autant dépasser le seuil administratif de 0.25 mSvL'avancement de la communication numérique optique dans les réseaux longue distance et d'accès a déclenché les technologies émergentes dans le domaine micro-ondes / ondes millimétriques. Ces systèmes hybrides sont fortement influencés non seulement par les déficiences de liens optiques mais aussi des effets de circuits électriques. Les effets optiques et électriques peuvent être ainsi étudiés en même temps en utilisant des outils assistés par ordinateur en développant des modèles de circuit équivalent de l'ensemble des composants de liaison tels que les lasers à semi-conducteurs, modulateurs, photo-détecteurs et fibre optique. Dans cette thèse, les représentations de circuit des composants de liaison photoniques sont développées pour étudier des architectures différentes. Depuis la source de lumière optique est le principal facteur limitant de la liaison optique, une attention particulière est accordée aux caractéristiques, y compris les plus importants de simples lasers en mode semi-conducteurs. Le modèle de circuit équivalent de laser qui représente l'enveloppe du signal optique est modifié pour inclure les propriétés de bruit de phase du laser. Cette modification est particulièrement nécessaire d'étudier les systèmes où le bruit de phase optique est important. Ces systèmes comprennent des systèmes de télécommande hétérodynes optiques et des systèmes auto-hétérodynes optiques. Les résultats de mesure des caractéristiques de laser sont comparés aux résultats de simulation afin de valider le modèle de circuit équivalent dans des conditions différentes. Il est démontré que le modèle de circuit équivalent peut prédire avec précision les comportements des composants pour les simulations au niveau du système. Pour démontrer la capacité du modèle de circuit équivalent de la liaison photonique pour analyser les systèmes micro-ondes / ondes millimétriques, le nouveau modèle de circuit du laser avec les modèles comportementaux des autres composants sont utilisés pour caractériser différents radio sur fibre (RoF) liens tels que la modulation d'intensité - détection directe (IM-DD) et les systèmes RoF hétérodynes optique. Signal sans fil avec des spécifications conformes à la norme de IEEE 802.15.3c pour la bande de fréquence à ondes millimétriques est transmis sur les liens RoF. La performance du système est analysée sur la base de l'évaluation de l'EVM. L'analyse montre que l'analyse efficace des systèmes de photonique micro-ondes / ondes millimétriques est obtenue en utilisant des modèles de circuit qui nous permet de prendre en compte les comportements à la fois électriques et optiques en même temps / The advancement of digital optical communication in the long-haul and access networks has triggered emerging technologies in the microwave/millimeter-wave domain. These hybrid systems are highly influenced not only by the optical link impairments but also electrical circuit effects. The optical and electrical effects can be well studied at the same time using computer aided tools by developing equivalent circuit models of the whole link components such as semiconductor lasers, modulators, photo detectors and optical fiber. In this thesis, circuit representations of the photonic link components are developed to study different architectures. Since the optical light source is the main limiting factor of the optical link, particular attention is given to including the most important characteristics of single mode semiconductor lasers. The laser equivalent circuit model which represents the envelope of the optical signal is modified to include the laser phase noise properties. This modification is particularly necessary to study systems where the optical phase noise is important. Such systems include optical remote heterodyne systems and optical self-heterodyne systems. Measurement results of the laser characteristics are compared with simulation results in order to validate the equivalent circuit model under different conditions. It is shown that the equivalent circuit model can precisely predict the component behaviors for system level simulations. To demonstrate the capability of the equivalent circuit model of the photonic link to analyze microwave/millimeter-wave systems, the new circuit model of the laser along with the behavioral models of other components are used to characterize different radio-over-fiber (RoF) links such as intensity modulation – direct detection (IM-DD) and optical heterodyne RoF systems. Wireless signal with specifications complying with IEEE 802.15.3c standard for the millimeter-wave frequency band is transmitted over the RoF links. The system performance is analyzed based on EVM evaluation. The analysis shows that effective analysis of microwave/millimeter-wave photonics systems is achieved by using circuit models which allows us to take into account both electrical and optical behaviors at the same time

This dissertation has three parts which are distinctive from the perspective of their frequency regime of operation and from the nature of their contributions to the science and engineering communities. The first part describes work that was conducted on a vertical-external-cavity surface emitting-laser (VECSEL) in the optical frequency regime. We designed, fabricated, and tested a hybrid distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) mirror for a VECSEL sub-cavity operating at the laser emission wavelength of 1057 nm. The DBR mirror was terminated with a highly reflecting gold surface and integrated with an engineered pattern of titanium. This hybrid mirror achieved a reduction in half of the number of DBR layer pairs in comparison to a previously reported, successful VECSEL chip. Moreover, the output power of our VECSEL chip was measured to be beyond 4.0Wwith an optical-to-optical efficiency of 19.4%. Excellent power output stability was demonstrated; a steady 1.0 W output at 15.0 W pump power was measured for over an hour. The second part reports on an ultrafast in situ pump-probing of the nonequlibrium dynamics of the gain medium of a VECSEL under mode-locked conditions. We proposed and successfully tested a novel approach to measure the response of the inverted carriers in the active region of a VECSEL device while it was operating under passively mode-locked conditions. We employed the dual-frequency-comb spectroscopy (DFCS) technique using an asynchronous optical sampling (ASOPS) method based on modified time-domain spectroscopy (TDS) to measure the nonequilibrium dynamics of the gain medium of a phase-locked VECSEL that we designed and fabricated to operate at the1030 nm emission wavelength. Our spectroscopic studies used a probe pulse of 100 fs and an in situ pump pulse of 13 ps. We probed the gain medium of the VECSEL and recorded a depletion time of 13 ps, a fast recovery period of 17 ps, and 110 ps for the slow recovery time. Our scans thus demonstrated a 140 ps full depletion-recovery cycle in the nonequilibrium state. The third part discusses work in the microwave and millimeter wave frequency regimes. A new method to fabricate Luneburg lenses was proposed and demonstrated. This type of lens is well known; it is versatile and has been used for many applications, including high power radars, satellite communications, and remote sensing systems. Because the fabrication of such a lens requires intricate and time consuming processes, we demonstrated the design, fabrication and testing of a Luneburg lens prototype using a 3-D printing rapid prototyping technique both at the X and Ka-V frequency bands. The measured results were in very good agreement with their simulated values. The fabricated X-band lens had a 12 cm diameter and produced a beam having a maximum gain of 20 dB and a beam directivity (half-power beam width (HPBW)) ranging from 12° to 19°). The corresponding Ka-V band lens had a 7 cm diameter; it produced a beam with a HPBW about the same as the X-band lens, but with a maximum gain of more than 20 dB.

This thesis describes a number of studies on organic semiconductors focused around using them as gain media for lasers. The photophysical properties of organic semiconductors are studied using a wide range of experimental techniques, allowing the evaluation of new materials and novel excitation schemes for use in organic semiconductor lasers. Polyfluorene is a well-established conjugated polymer laser gain medium and in this thesis its excellent lasing properties are combined with its two photon absorption properties to demonstrate a tunable two-photon pumped solid-state laser based on a commercially available organic semiconductor. A family of bisfluorene dendrimers was studied using a number of photophysical techniques to evaluate their potential as laser materials. Distributed feedback lasers based on one of the dendrimers are demonstrated with lasing thresholds comparable to polyfluorene. The same materials were found to have enhanced two-photon absorption properties in comparison to polyfluorene, leading to the fabrication of tunable two-photon pumped dendrimer lasers. A member of a novel family of star-shaped oligofluorene truxenes was evaluated as a laser gain material and the distributed feedback lasers made from them show some of the lowest lasing thresholds reported for organic semiconductors, partly as a consequence of exceptionally low waveguide losses in comparison to other single-material thin films. Finally, an organic laser dye is blended with a conjugated polymer, where the dye molecules harvest the excitation light of a GaN laser diode and transfer its energy to the polymer molecules. This is the first time such a scheme is used in an organic laser and in combination with a novel surface-emitting distributed Bragg reflector resonator allows the demonstration of a diode-pumped organic laser, a significant step towards simplifying organic lasers.

The quantum confined Stark effect (QCSE) and ultrafast absorption dynamics near the bandedge have been investigated in p-i-n waveguides comprising quantum confined heterostructures grown on GaAs substrates, for emission at 1.3um. The materials are; isolated InAs/InGaAs dot-in-a-well (DWELL) quantum dots (QD), bilayer InAs quantum dots and GaInNAs multiple quantum wells (MQW). The focus was to investigate these dynamics in a planar waveguide geometry, for the purpose of large scale integration in optical systems. Initial measurements of the QCSE using photocurrent measurements showed a small shift for isolated QDs whilst a significant shift of 40nm (at 1340nm) was demonstrated for bilayer dots, comparable to that of GaInNAs MWQ (30nm at 1300nm). These are comparable to InP based quaternary multiple quantum wells used in modulator devices. With the use of a broadband continuum source the isolated quantum dots exhibit both a small QCSE (15nm at 1280nm) and minimal broadening which is desirable for saturable absorbers used in monolithic modelocked semiconductor lasers (MMSL). A robust experimental set-up was developed for characterising waveguide modulators whilst the electroabsorption and electro-refraction was calculated (dn=1.5x10⠻³) using the Kramers-Kronig dispersion relation. Pump probe measurements were performed at room temperature using 250fs pulses from an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) on the three waveguide samples. For the isolated QDs ultrafast absorption recovery was recorded from 62ps (0V) to 700fs (-10V and the shortest times shown to be due to tunneling. Additionally we have shown good agreement of the temperature dependence of these dots and the pulse width durations from a modelocked semiconductor laser using the same material. Bilayer QDs are shown to exhibit ultrafast absorption recovery from 119ps (0V) to 5ps (-10V) offering potential for applications as modelocking elements. The GaInNAs multiple quantum wells show absorption recovery of 55ps (0V), however under applied reverse bias they exhibit long lived field screening transients. These results are explained qualitatively by the spatial separation of electrons and holes at heterobarrier interfaces.

This thesis describes a number of studies of microstructured optical resonators, designed with the aim of enhancing the performance of organic semiconductor lasers and exploring potential applications. The methodology involves the micro-engineering of the photonic environment in order to modify the pathways of the emitted light and control the feedback mechanism. The research focuses on designing new organic microstructures using established semi-analytical and numerical methods, developing fabrication techniques using electron-beam lithography, and optically characterising the resulting structures. Control of the feedback mechanism in conjugated polymer lasers is first investigated by studying Distributed Feedback or photonic crystal resonators based on a square feedback lattice. This study identified the diffraction to free space radiation as a major source of loss in current microstructured resonator designs. By cancelling the coupling to free space through the use of different feedback symmetries and diffraction orders, a threshold reduction by almost an order of magnitude is demonstrated. The introduction of mid-gap defect photonic states in an otherwise uniformly periodic structure was studied in Distributed Bragg Reflector (DBR) resonators. This enabled GaN diode pumped polymer lasers to be demonstrated, indicating that the transition from complex excitation sources to more compact systems is possible. Devices for potential applications in the field of optical communications are also explored by demonstrating a polymer DBR laser based on silicon. In this way, the potential for integrating conjugated polymers with silicon photonics is confirmed. Photonic crystal fibres, which have a periodic microstructure in the transverse direction, are explored as an alternative means for controlling the optical properties of organic lasers. Fluidic fibre organic lasers were demonstrated as efficient sources with good spectral purity. In these devices, mechanisms to tune the emission wavelength were explored and the origin of the frequency selection mechanism was investigated.

The work presented in this thesis is concerned with development of spectroscopic detection methods based on absorption spectroscopy using semiconductor lasers, with particular ref- erence to the field of medical diagnostics through breath analysis. The first part of this thesis deals with the design and testing of a prototype analyser for simultaneous monitoring of the exchange gases O₂ , CO₂ and H₂O in breath. The aim of this analyser is to provide information required to monitor respiration, with potential use in intensive care monitoring or during anaesthesia. The relatively high concentrations of these gases in breath and read- ily available diode laser sources make detection in the near-infrared (NIR) ideal. However, the relatively weakly absorbing A-band O₂ transitions at 760 nm require the application of a sensitive spectroscopic method, cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy (CEAS). In contrast, CO₂ and H₂O are monitored using direct single pass absorption spectroscopy, with transitions arising from the 2ν₁ + ν₃ band at 2 μm and ν₁ + ν₃ band at 1.3 μm, respectively. It has been demonstrated that these gases can be detected simultaneously over a short pathlength (2.74 - 4 cm) in the respiratory flow by combining various spectroscopic methodologies and real-time data analysis. This analyser is shown to offer a viable alter- native for monitoring respiration, exhibiting absolute detection limits of changes of 0.26 % O₂ , 0.02 % CO₂ and 0.003 % H₂O with a 10 ms time resolution, which are comparable to current mass spectrometry based methods, but without their inherent delays. Following this, investigations into the detection of the main gas constituents in breath in the NIR employing noise-reduction modulation based spectroscopic techniques, namely wavelength and frequency modulation (WMS and FMS respectively) are also reported. The described WMS studies on water at 1.37 μm provide a demonstration of conventional WMS detection, as well as a “proof-of-principle” example of a relatively new approach to calibrating the non-absolute information obtained from a WMS absorption signal. Typically WMS spectra are calibrated using mixtures of known gas concentrations or an absolute direct absorption spectrum where possible. In this work however, a self-calibrating method, the phasor decomposition method (PDM), is employed and the returned concentration from this calibration is compared to direct absorption measurement. From this, the calculated concentration using the PDM is found to differ by 9 % from the concentration value obtained by direct absorption, providing an alternative method of calibration for when direct absorption measurements are not possible. The use of FMS in the NIR is also demonstrated as a potential alternative to CEAS for monitoring O₂ at 760 nm. FMS detection is performed on atmospherically broadened O₂ and a time-normalised α_min(t) of 2.45 ×10⁻⁶ cm⁻¹ s^1/2 is obtained, which is two orders of magnitude less sensitive than the value of α_min(t) = 2.35 ×10⁻⁸ cm⁻¹ s^1/2 obtained with CEAS. This combined with the experimental requirements of an FMS system, make its use for detection of O₂ a less practicable option compared to CEAS for real-time breath analysis. The latter work in this thesis involves a change in focus to detection of trace gases in breath in the mid-infrared (MIR). The move of spectroscopic detection to the MIR exploits the larger absorption cross-sections available in this region, and to achieve this, a relatively new form of semiconductor laser, the quantum cascade laser (QCL) is used. The design of a continuous wave QCL spectrometer at 8 μm and its operating characteristics are demon- strated and improvements in its performances are also discussed. This QCL system is then utilised to demonstrate the potential of monitoring species in breath, namely the narrow- band absorber methane and the broadband absorber acetone, taking into consideration the potential interference from other absorbing species in breath and the different spectroscopic characteristics exhibited by these molecules. Finally, the potential to further improve the sensitive detection of trace gases in breath in the MIR is also investigated with studies on the use of CEAS and multipass cells. In this work, the molecule of interest is the biomarker OCS, using transitions of the 2ν₂ band at 1031 cm⁻¹ , that are probed using a 10 μm QCL. The application of CEAS in the MIR is not as well developed as in the NIR, and the experimental consequences of using optical cavities at these wavelengths, where equipment tends to be more limited, are investigated and sensitivities discussed in the context of other literature. The experimental procedure of optimising a cavity for CEAS using the off-axis alignment method is also studied in detail, as well as the addition of WMS to further improve the signal quality. An effective absorption pathlength of ∼ 100 m was achieved in the cavity, with a bandwidth reduced α_min(BW) of 1.7 ×10⁻⁷ cm⁻¹ Hz^−1/2 using WMS CEAS achieved. With the poorer quality optics and limitations in equipment in the MIR for CEAS experiments, the use of a multipass cell, a 238 m Herriott cell, is also investigated as an alternative to the use of an optical cavity at 10 μm. Detection of OCS using direct absorption and WMS is demonstrated in the Herriott cell, achieving α_min(BW) = 2.03×10⁻⁸ cm⁻¹ Hz^−1/2 using WMS. This shows an improvement in sensitivity compared to WMS CEAS, and also shows the potential for future work on biomarker detection, as it approaches the ∼ ppb levels required for breath analysis.

L’application du concept de synchronisation appliqué aux composants photoniques non-linéaires a permis l’avènement des communications chaotiques optiques. Les systèmes optoélectronique dans ces chaines de transmission ont déjà démontré leur potentiel en termes de sécurité additionnelle au niveau de la couche physique des réseaux optiques. Cependant, la quantification du niveau de sécurité et l’absence d’un cadre déduit aux aspects multi-utilisateurs (techniques de multiplexage spécifiques) ont fortement freiné le déploiement de ces techniques à large échelle. La recherche effectuée dans le cadre de cette thèse a contribué à l’avancement de ces deux questions ouvertes. Dans premier temps, nous nous sommes intéressés à la sécurité d’une classe de générateur optique particulière: les lasers à semi-conducteur à cavité externe (ECSL). Nous proposons d’attaquer le système dans le contexte le plus difficile, celui dans lequel aucune information n’est a priori disponible. La sortie du laser chaotique (l’intensité optique) est enregistrée, et les séries temporelles obtenues sont analysées. La sécurité est comprise dans ce contexte comme étant la quantité d’information sur les paramètres du système (analogue d’une clé dans les systèmes de cryptage conventionnels) et/ou la fonction non-linéaire du système (l’équivalent de l’algorithme de cryptage). Un ECSL est un système possédant un délai (aussi appelé retard), un paramètre critique pour la sécurité. Nous avons étudié l’influence des paramètres ajustable de l’ECSL chaotique sur l’identification du délai: l’intensité de la rétroaction optique, la valeur du délai, et le courant alimentant le laser (aussi appelé courant de pompe). Dans un deuxième temps nous interprétons ces résultats sur la base des régimes dynamiques précédent l’apparition du chaos dans l’ECSL. Nous avons proposé par la suite une architecture pour multiplexer des signaux chaotiques optiques générés par des ECSL. Nous démontrons la supériorité de cette approche en terme d’efficacité spectrale relativement aux méthodes de multiplexage en longueur d’onde (wavelength division multiplexing, WDM) appliquées aux communications optiques par chaos (aussi connues sous le nom de chaotic WDM ). Nous avons adapté un concept fondamental de la théorie de la synchronisation: la décomposition active-passive (APD) en utilisant des composants optiques simples. Nous démontrons la possibilité de multiplexer et démultiplexage de deux signaux chaotiques optiques par synchronisation (en utilisant deux émetteurs et deux récepteurs). Les performances et la robustesse de cette structure sont analysées ainsi que la possibilité de crypter et de décrypter des messages. Après cela, nous avons utilisé une classe de systèmes optoélectroniques différente de celle correspondant au deux premières sections, avec l’objectif d’utiliser un seul oscillateur chaotique pour encoder plusieurs messages au lieu de considérer un oscillateur par message. A cette fin, nous avons modifié une structure d’un générateur de chaos électro-optique existant dans la littérature en lui ajoutant plusieurs boucles de rétroactions non-linéaires. Chacune d’elle est utilisée pour l’encryptage d’un message, réalisée, par exemple, par la modulation du gain non-linéaire de la boucle. Nous avons analysé différentes configurations possibles, ainsi que les propriétés des signaux chaotiques générés au sein de chaque boucle et utilisés pour transporter les différents messages. Nous avons expliqué dans quelle mesure l’orthogonalité (ou décorrélation) entre les différents signaux peut être utilisée à notre avantage pour dériver des équations de décodage de faible complexité algorithmique (comme fonction du nombre d’utilisateurs). Enfin, nous analysons comment certains phénomènes d’interférences entre signaux porteurs peuvent être pris en compte afin de toujours permettre la récupération des messages. / With the rapid development of optical communications and the increasing amount of data exchanged, it has become utterly important to provide effective architectures to protect sensitive data. The use of chaotic optoelectronic devices has already demonstrated great potential in terms of additional computational security at the physical layer of the optical network. However, the determination of the security level and the lack of a multi-user framework are two hurdles which have prevented their deployment on a large scale. In this thesis, we propose to address these two issues. First, we investigate the security of a widely used chaotic generator, the external cavity semiconductor laser (ECSL). This is a time-delay system known for providing complex and high-dimensional chaos, but with a low level of security regarding the identification of its most critical parameter, the time delay. We perform a detailed analysis of the influence of the ECSL parameters to devise how higher levels of security can be achieved and provide a physical interpretation of their origin. Second, we devise new architectures to multiplex optical chaotic signals and realize multi-user communications at high bit rates. We propose two different approaches exploiting known chaotic optoelectronic devices. The first one uses mutually coupled ECSL and extends typical chaos-based encryption strategies, such as chaos-shift keying (CSK) and chaos modulation (CMo). The second one uses an electro-optical oscillator (EOO) with multiple delayed feedback loops and aims first at transposing coded-division multiple access (CDMA) and then at developing novel strategies of encryption and decryption, when the time-delays of each feedback loop are time- dependent.

Ce travail de thèse porte sur l’étude de nanostructures semi- conductrices III-V pour le développement d’émetteurs laser sur silicium dans une approche pseudomorphique. Une croissance en accord de maille d’alliages à base de GaP ou plus précisément de nitrures dilués GaPN doit garantir une faible densité de défauts cristallins. Le modèle des liaisons fortes à base étendue est tout d’abord présenté afin de simuler les propriétés électroniques et optiques de structures semi-conductrices sur substrats de GaP ou Si. Les propriétés des alliages massifs GaPN et GaAsPN sont étudiées par des expériences de photoluminescence continue en fonction de la température et de photoluminescence résolue en temps. Les potentialités des puits quantiques GaAsPN/GaP en tant que zone active sont étudiées théoriquement par le modèle des liaisons fortes et expérimentalement en spectroscopie de photoluminescence en température et résolue en temps. Les effets de désordre engendrés par l’incorporation d’azote sont notamment mis en évidence. L’alliage AlGaP est ensuite proposé pour les couches de confinement optique des structures laser. Un contraste d’indice optique entre AlGaP et GaP est mesuré par ellipsométrie spectroscopique. Ce contraste doit permettre un confinement efficace du mode optique. Le problème de l’alignement des bandes en présence d’aluminium est ensuite évoqué. L’utilisation de l’alliage quaternaire GaAsPN est proposée pour résoudre ce problème. Enfin, les boites quantiques InGaAs/GaP sont étudiées en tant qu’alternative aux puits quantiques GaAsPN/GaP dans la zone active. Une forte densité de boites quantiques et une émission de photoluminescence à température ambiante sont ainsi obtenues pour ce système. Les états électroniques des boîtes quantiques sont simulés par la technique des liaisons fortes et la méthode k.p. La photoluminescence résolue en temps couplée à des expériences de photoluminescence continue sous pression hydrostatique, permet de montrer que la transition fondamentale de ces boîtes implique majoritairement des états de conduction de type X. / This PhD work focuses on the study of III-V semiconductor nanostructures for the development of laser on Si substrate in a pseudomorphic approach. GaP-based alloys and more specifically dilute nitride GaPN-based alloys are expected to guarantee a low density of crystalline defects through a perfect lattice-matched growth. An extended tight-binding model is first presented to deal with the theoretical challenges for the simulation of electronic and optical properties of semiconductor structures grown on GaP or Si substrate. The optical properties of bulk GaPN and GaAsPN alloys are then studied through temperature dependent continuous wave photoluminescence and time-resolved photoluminescence experiments. The potential of GaAsPN/GaP quantum wells as a laser active zone is discussed in the framework of both theoretical simulations (with the tight-binding model) and experimental studies (with temperature dependent and time-resolved photoluminescence). In particular, the N-induced disorder effects are highlighted. The AlGaP alloy is then proposed as a candidate for the cladding layers. A significant refractive index contrast between AlGaP and GaP is measured by spectroscopic ellipsometry which may lead to a good confinement of the optical mode in a laser structure. The issue of band alignment is highlighted. Solutions based on the quaternary GaAsPN alloy are proposed. Finally, the InGaAs/GaP quantum dots are studied as an alternative to GaAsPN/GaP quantum wells for the active zone. The growth of a high quantum dot density and room temperature photoluminescence are achieved. The electronic band structure is studied by time-resolved photoluminescence and pressure dependent photoluminescence as well as tight-binding and k.p simulations. It demonstrates that the ground optical transition involves mainly X-conduction states.

Die vorliegende Arbeit untersucht die longitudinale Dynamik von Halbleiterlasern anhand eines Modells, in dem ein lineares hyperbolisches System partieller Differentialgleichungen mit gewöhnlichen Differentialgleichungen gekoppelt ist. Zunächst wird mit Hilfe der Theorie stark stetiger Halbgruppen die globale Existenz und Eindeutigkeit von Lösungen für das konkrete System gezeigt. Die anschließende Untersuchung des Langzeitverhaltens der Lösungen erfolgt in zwei Schritten. Zuerst wird ausgenutzt, dass Ladungsträger und optisches Feld sich auf unterschiedlichen Zeitskalen bewegen, um mit singulärer Störungstheorie invariante attrahierende Mannigfaltigkeiten niedriger Dimension zu finden. Der Fluss auf diesen Mannigfaltigkeiten kann näherungsweise durch Moden-Approximationen beschrieben werden. Deren Dimension und konkrete Gestalt ist von der Lage des Spektrums des linearen hyperbolischen Operators abhängig. Die zwei häufigsten Situationen werden dann einer ausführlichen numerischen und analytischen Bifurkationsanalyse unterzogen. Ausgehend von bekannten Resultaten für die Ein-Moden-Approximation, wird die Zwei-Moden-Approximation in dem speziellen Fall untersucht, dass die Phasendifferenz zwischen den beiden optischen Komponenten sehr schnell rotiert, so dass sie sich in erster Ordnung herausmittelt. Mit dem vereinfachten Modell können die Mechanismen verschiedener Phänomene, die bei der numerischen Simulation des kompletten Modells beobachtet wurden, erklärt werden. Darüber hinaus lässt sich die Existenz eines anderen stabilen Regimes voraussagen, das sich im gemittelten Modell als "bursting" darstellt. / We investigate the longitudinal dynamics of semiconductor lasers using a model which couples a linear hyperbolic system of partial differential equations with ordinary differential equations. We prove the global existence and uniqueness of solutions using the theory of strongly continuous semigroups. Subsequently, we analyse the long-time behavior of the solutions in two steps. First, we find attracting invariant manifolds of low dimension benefitting from the fact that the system is singularly perturbed, i. e., the optical and the electronic variables operate on different time-scales. The flow on these manifolds can be approximated by the so-called mode approximations. The dimension of these mode approximations depends on the number of critical eigenvalues of the linear hyperbolic operator. Next, we perform a detailed numerical and analytic bifurcation analysis for the two most common constellations. Starting from known results for the single-mode approximation, we investigate the two-mode approximation in the special case of a rapidly rotating phase difference between the two optical components. In this case, the first-order averaged model unveils the mechanisms for various phenomena observed in simulations of the complete system. Moreover, it predicts the existence of a more complex spatio-temporal behavior. In the scope of the averaged model, this is a bursting regime.