US Patent 7116692 Semiconductor laser and method of producing the same

A semiconductor laser device having a lower cladding layer, an active layer and an upper first cladding layer stacked on a compound semiconductor substrate in this order, a ridge-shaped upper second cladding layer provided on the upper first cladding layer, a current blocking layer provided on both sides of the upper second cladding layer, and a contact layer provided on the upper second cladding layer. A current interrupting layer or layers formed of an insulating material are provided between the upper second cladding layer and the contact layer, in the vicinity of at least one of a laser emission end face and a reflective end face, which are both end faces of the device in the longitudinal direction of the upper second cladding layer.