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Luke Mawst

Luke Mawst

Grainger STAR Professor in Engineering

My other interests include the design and development of a variety of novel device structures such as high-power spatially coherent semiconductor lasers, vertical cavity surface emitters, quantum dot lasers, and mid-IR Quantum Cascade Lasers. I have been involved in diode laser development using an aluminum-free material system, InGaAsP/InGaP/GaAs. The Al-free material system offers many advantages for diode lasers including ease of fabrication for complex index-guided device structures and improved reliability. However, realizing the full potential of this material system requires an understanding of the nature of quantum-well growth for Al-free materials, and the influence on device performance. Diode lasers of this type are very desirable for many applications such as high-speed, high resolution printing, telecommunications, and medical therapy. My research interests focus on material growth and fabrication issues for III/V compound semiconductor devices. Improvements in device performance can be directly linked to advances in material growth and process development. I am particularly interested in the development of semiconductor diode lasers using the metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) growth process.The MOCVD process allows for the controlled growth of ultra-thin semiconductor films with abrupt interfaces, permitting the fabrication of high performance quantum-well lasers and other optoelectronic devices. Understanding the influence of the material properties on device characteristics can lead to significant improvements in performance.

Department

Electrical & Computer Engineering

Contact

4617, Engineering Hall
1415 Engineering Dr
Madison, WI

  • PhD 1987, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
  • MS 1984, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
  • BS 1982, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

  • semiconductor lasers
  • metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) growth of semiconductors
  • III/V compound semiconductor materials and devices

Affiliated Departments

  • 2022 College of Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Grainger STAR Professor
  • 2019 IEEE Photonics Society, Aron Kressel Award
  • 2017 University of Wisconsin-Madison, Vilas Associates Award
  • 2011 IEEE, Fellow
  • 2003 IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, Best Paper Award for 2003
  • 1999 IEEE/LEOS, Distinguished Lecturer Award
  • 1998 National Science Foundation, NSF CAREER Award
  • 1991 TRW, Chairman’s Award for Innovation
  • 1990 IEEE, Senior Member

  • Turville-Heitz, M., Marsland, R., Ryu, J. H., Jacobs, S., Kirch, J. D., Earles, T., Ruder, S., Oresick, K., Knipfer, B., Botez, D., & others, (2025). $lambda$~ 4.7 $mu$m Quantum Cascade Distributed-Feedback Lasers for Free-Space Communications. In Photonics (p. 51).
  • Botez, D., Suri, S., Gao, H., Grange, T., Kirch, J. D., Mawst, L., & Marsland, R. A. (2025). New Insights Reached via Graded-Interfaces Modeling: How High-Power, High-Efficiency Mid-Infrared QCLs Work. In Photonics (p. 93).
  • Jones, A. H., Foley, B. M., Kirch, J. D., Zhang, S., Botez, D., & Mawst, L. (2024). Characterization of Quantum Cascade Laser Facets via Steady-State Thermoreflectance. In CLEO: Science and Innovations (pp. JTu2A–36).
  • Seitz, M., Boisvere, J., Melanson, B., Liu, C., Lin, Q., Wang, G., Dwyer, M., Earles, T., Tansu, N., Mawst, L., & others, (2024). Demonstration of ultraviolet III-nitride laser diode with an asymmetric waveguide structure. In Gallium Nitride Materials and Devices XIX (pp. 35–40).
  • Liu, C., Lin, Q., Wang, G., Sanyal, S., Mukhopadhyay, S., Zhang, S., Dwyer, M., Seitz, M., Earles, T., Tansu, N., & others, (2024). High-Power Operation of 376 nm Laser with GaN Waveguide. In 2024 IEEE 29th International Semiconductor Laser Conference (ISLC) (pp. 1–2).
  • Liu, C., Pokharel, N., Lin, Q., Ponce, Miguel A Betancourt,, Xu, S., Wang, G., Sanyal, S., Gopalan, P., Gupta, C., Pasayat, S. S., & others, (2024). Nanopyramid Semipolar Quantum Dot LED Through Selective Area Growth. In 2024 IEEE 29th International Semiconductor Laser Conference (ISLC) (pp. 1–2).
  • Marsland, R., Turville-Heitz, M., Ryu, J., Canedy, C., Vurgaftman, I., Jayaraman, V., Earles, T., Ruder, S., Knipfer, B., Meyer, JR,, & others, (2024). Room-temperature, directly modulated DFB-QCLs and resonant-cavity infrared detectors (RCIDs) for 5 Gb/s OOK free-space, mid-wave infrared atmospheric laser communication. In Free-Space Laser Communications XXXVI (p. 128770F).
  • Zhang, S., Ryu, J. H., Kirch, J. D., Sigler, C., Ruder, S., Earles, T., Botez, D., & Mawst, L. (2024). 2-D Grating-Coupled Surface Emission from Phase-Locked Mid-IR Quantum Cascade Laser Array. IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics.
  • Lin, Q., Liu, C., Wang, G., Sanyal, S., Dwyer, M., Seitz, M., Chen, J., Li, Y., Earles, T., Tansu, N., & others, (2024). 376 nm High-Power UV-A Laser Diodes with GaN Waveguide. IEEE Photonics Technology Letters.
  • Suri, S., Knipfer, B. B., Grange, T., Gao, H., Kirch, J. D., Mawst, L., Marsland, R. A., & Botez, D. (2024). Corrigendum to: modeling with graded interfaces: tool for understanding and designing record-high power and efficiency mid-infrared quantum cascade lasers. Nanophotonics, 13(26), 4849--4849.

  • E C E 890 - Pre-Dissertator's Research (Spring 2025)
  • E C E 990 - Dissertator's Research (Spring 2025)
  • E C E 340 - Electronic Circuits I (Fall 2024)
  • E C E 466 - Electronics of Solids (Fall 2024)
  • E C E 790 - Master's Research (Fall 2024)
  • E C E 890 - Pre-Dissertator's Research (Fall 2024)
  • E C E 990 - Dissertator's Research (Fall 2024)
  • M S & E 990 - Research and Thesis (Fall 2024)
  • E C E 790 - Master's Research (Summer 2024)
  • E C E 990 - Dissertator's Research (Summer 2024)
  • M S & E 990 - Research and Thesis (Summer 2024)
  • E C E 699 - Advanced Independent Study (Spring 2024)
  • E C E 741 - Semiconductor Diode Lasers and other Optoelectronic Devices (Spring 2024)
  • E C E 790 - Master's Research (Spring 2024)
  • E C E 890 - Pre-Dissertator's Research (Spring 2024)
  • E C E 990 - Dissertator's Research (Spring 2024)
  • M S & E 990 - Research and Thesis (Spring 2024)
  • E C E 340 - Electronic Circuits I (Fall 2023)
  • E C E 790 - Master's Research (Fall 2023)
  • E C E 890 - Pre-Dissertator's Research (Fall 2023)
  • E C E 990 - Dissertator's Research (Fall 2023)
  • M S & E 990 - Research and Thesis (Fall 2023)
  • E C E 890 - Pre-Dissertator's Research (Summer 2023)
  • E C E 990 - Dissertator's Research (Summer 2023)
  • M S & E 890 - Pre-Dissertator's Research (Summer 2023)