US Patent 9172211 Heating elements for multi-wavelength DBR laser

A multi-wavelength distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) semiconductor laser is provided where DBR heating elements are positioned over the waveguide in the DBR section and define an interleaved temperature profile that generates multiple distinct reflection peaks corresponding to distinct temperature dependent Bragg wavelengths associated with the temperature profile. Neighboring pairs of heating elements of the DBR heating elements positioned over the waveguide in the DBR section are spaced along the direction of the axis of optical propagation by a distance that is equal to or greater than the laser chip thickness b to minimize the impact of thermal crosstalk between distinct temperature regions of the interleaved temperature profile.