Provided is a vertical cavity surface emitting laser diode (VCSEL). A tunnel junction with a high doping concentration is provided in the VCSEL. An n-type semiconductor layer of the tunnel junction has stress relative to the substrate, and is doped with at least one element such that the tunnel junction not only has a high doping concentration, but also the epitaxial layer can be oxidized and the oxidation rate is relatively stable during the oxidation process. Alternatively, the n-type semiconductor layer is doped with at least two elements. As a result, the oxidation process of the VCSEL can be stably performed, and the resistance of the tunnel junction with a high doping concentration is low. The tunnel junction is suitable to be arranged between two active layers of the VCSEL or between the p-type semiconductor and the n-type semiconductor layer of the VCSEL.

A manufacturing method of a nitride-based semiconductor light-emitting element includes: forming an n-type nitride-based semiconductor layer; forming, on the n-type nitride-based semiconductor layer, a light emission layer including a nitride-based semiconductor; forming, on the light emission layer in an atmosphere containing a hydrogen gas, a p-type nitride-based semiconductor layer while doping the p-type nitride-based semiconductor layer with a p-type dopant at a concentration of at least 2.0×10.sup.18 atom/cm.sup.3; and annealing the p-type nitride-based semiconductor layer at a temperature of at least 800 degrees Celsius in an atmosphere not containing hydrogen. In this manufacturing method, a hydrogen concentration of the p-type nitride-based semiconductor layer after the annealing is at most 5.0×10.sup.18 atom/cm.sup.3 and at most 5% of the concentration of the p-type dopant, and a hydrogen concentration of the light emission layer is at most 2.0×10.sup.17 atom/cm.sup.3.

A semiconductor laser according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a semiconductor stack. The semiconductor stack includes, in the following order, a first cladding layer, an active layer, one or a plurality of low-concentration impurity layers, a contact layer, and a second cladding layer that includes a transparent conductive material. The semiconductor stack further has, in a portion including the contact layer, a ridge extending in a stacked in-plane direction. Each low-concentration impurity layer has an impurity concentration of 5.010.sup.17 cm.sup.3 or less, and a total thickness of the low-concentration impurity layer is 250 nm or more and 1000 nm or less. A distance between the second cladding layer and the low-concentration impurity layer closest to the second cladding layer is 150 nm or less.

A electro-absorption optical modulator includes a multiple quantum well composed of a plurality of layers including a plurality of quantum well layers and a plurality of barrier layers that are alternately stacked, the plurality of quantum well layers and the plurality of barrier layers including an acceptor and a donor; a p-type semiconductor layer in contact with an uppermost layer of the plurality of layers; and an n-type semiconductor layer in contact with a lowermost layer of the plurality of layers, the multiple quantum well being 10% or more and 150% or less of the p-type semiconductor layer in a p-type carrier concentration, and in the multiple quantum well, an effective carrier concentration which corresponds to a difference between the p-type carrier concentration and an n-type carrier concentration is 10% or less of the p-type carrier concentration of the multiple quantum well.

Provided is a high-power vertical cavity surface emitting laser diode (VCSEL), including a first epitaxial region, an active region and a second epitaxial region. One of the first epitaxial region and the second epitaxial region is an N-type epitaxial region, and the other of the first epitaxial region and the second epitaxial region includes a PN junction. The PN junction includes a P-type epitaxial layer, a tunnel junction and an N-type epitaxial layer. The tunnel junction is located between the P-type epitaxial layer and the N-type epitaxial layer, and the P-type epitaxial layer of the PN junction is closest to the active region.

A distributed feedback (DFB) laser outputting a predetermined wavelength of laser light includes a quantum well active layer positioned between a p-type cladding layer and an n-type cladding layer in thickness direction. The DFB laser includes a separate confinement heterostructure layer positioned between the quantum well active layer and then-type cladding layer. The DFB laser includes an electric-field-distribution-control layer positioned between the separate confinement heterostructure layer and then-type cladding layer and configured by at least two semiconductor layers having band gap energy greater than band gap energy of a barrier layer constituting the quantum well active layer. The DFB laser has a function to select a specific wavelength by returning a specific wavelength in the wavelength-variable laser.

A modulation doped semiconductor laser includes a multiple quantum well composed of a plurality of layers including a plurality of first layers and a plurality of second layers stacked alternately and including an acceptor and a donor; a p-type semiconductor layer in contact with an uppermost layer of the plurality of layers; and an n-type semiconductor layer in contact with a lowermost layer of the plurality of layers, the plurality of first layers including the acceptor so that a p-type carrier concentration is 10% or more and 150% or less of the p-type semiconductor layer, the plurality of second layers containing the acceptor so that the p-type carrier concentration is 10% or more and 150% or less of the p-type semiconductor layer, the plurality of second layers containing the donor, and an effective carrier concentration corresponding to a difference between the p-type carrier concentration and an n-type carrier concentration is 10% or less of the p-type carrier concentration of the plurality of second layers.

A nitride-based semiconductor light-emitting element includes: a substrate that is an example of a n-type nitride-based semiconductor including a group IV n-type impurity; and an n-side electrode in contact with the substrate. The substrate includes: a surface layer region in contact with the n-side electrode and including a halogen element; and an internal region located across the surface layer region from the n-side electrode. A peak concentration of the group IV n-type impurity in the surface layer region is at least 1.010.sup.21 cm.sup.3. A peak concentration of the halogen element in the surface layer region is at least 10% of the peak concentration of the group IV n-type impurity in the surface layer region. A concentration of the group IV n-type impurity in the internal region is lower than a concentration of the group IV n-type impurity in the surface layer region.

A semiconductor vertical light source includes upper and lower mirrors with an active region in between, an inner mode confinement region, and an outer current blocking region that includes a common epitaxial layer including an epitaxially regrown interface between the active region and upper mirror. A conducting channel including acceptors is in the inner mode confinement region. The current blocking region includes a first impurity doped region with donors between the epitaxially regrown interface and active region, and a second impurity doped region with acceptors between the first doped region and lower mirror. The outer current blocking region provides a PNPN current blocking region that includes the upper mirror or a p-type layer, first doped region, second doped region, and lower mirror or an n-type layer. The first and second impurity doped region force current flow into the conducting channel during normal operation of the light source.

An optical semiconductor device outputting a predetermined wavelength of laser light includes a quantum well active layer positioned between a p-type cladding layer and an n-type cladding layer in thickness direction. The optical semiconductor device includes a separate confinement heterostructure layer positioned between the quantum well active layer and the n-type cladding layer. The optical semiconductor device further includes an electric-field-distribution-control layer positioned between the separate confinement heterostructure layer and the n-type cladding layer and configured by at least two semiconductor layers having band gap energy greater than band gap energy of a barrier layer constituting the quantum well active layer. The optical semiconductor device is applied to a ridge-stripe type laser.