The choice of the semiconductor material determines the wavelength of the emitted beam, which in today's laser diodes range from the infrared (IR) to the ultraviolet (UV) spectra. A laser diode (LD, also injection laser diode or ILD or semiconductor laser or diode laser) is a semiconductor device similar to a light-emitting diode in which a diode pumped directly with electrical current can create lasing conditions at the diode's junction. Laser diodes offer high power for their size and produce electrical-power-efficient laser radiation. Excitation is achieved by the passage of electric current (forward biased) through the diode p-n junction, which forms at the interface between semiconductors with different electronic doping levels. Our light source is a diode laser, which provides a coherent beam of almost one frequency with a very narrow bandwidth.
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