High-speed communication channels for supercomputers and data centers could significantly benefit from understanding the physics of lasers at the nanoscale and how they interact with semiconductors, but only if researchers can figure out how and why they work to replicate their findings.
The experimental findings of the experts demonstrate that lasers can be made in 2D materials as thin as a single layer of molecules. Furthermore, the team created these lasers for the first time at room temperature, whereas other experts had created them at cryogenic temperatures.
The basic idea behind all lasers is optical gain, or a material’s capacity to magnify light or photons. Electrons are introduced into a semiconductor material to create an optical gain.
Electronic devices use semiconductors to convert energy into electricity. A semiconductor material, such as silicon or gallium nitride, will generate negatively charged electrons and positively charged particles called holes when an electrical current is applied to it. When conventional semiconductors’ electron and hole densities are high enough, they create an electron-hole gas, and optical gain occurs.
Researchers have uncovered a physics procedure that makes creating low-power nanolasers in 2D semiconductor materials possible. High-speed communication lines for supercomputers and data centers may be significantly affected by our understanding of the physics underlying nanolasers and how they interact with semiconductors.
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