Edge Emitting Laser MarketSize and Trends

Edge emitting laser is a type of semiconductor laser where the laser light is propagating parallel to the wafer surface of the semiconductor chip and is reflected out at a cleaved edge. There are wide variety of laser types available, including diode lasers, fiber lasers, diode-pumped solid-state lasers (DPSSLs), CO2 lasers, and excimer lasers. Edge emitting lasers can be used as direct lasers or coupled with optical fibers or crystals to make fiber lasers or DPSSLs. Key applications of edge emitting lasers include optical communications, material processing, displays, and others.

Factors driving growth of edge emitting laser market

Increasing use of optical fiber communication is the major factor that is expected to drive the growth of edge emitting laser market over the forecast period. Optical communication segment is expected to exhibit significant market share over the forecast period, owing to increasing information traffic due to internet, e-commerce, computer networks, multimedia, voice, and video. Edge emitting laser light is used for optical fiber communication as it is single wavelength which will produce laser beam and is less powerful. Edge emitting laser light produces powerful beam and helps in transmitting more laser light signals, consuming less time, and bandwidth. With proliferation of Internet-of-things (IOT), all the devices will be connected to the internet, which needs good communication and high speed. This will further drive growth of edge emitting laser market.

Edge emitting lasers are also used for the treatment of cancers. For instance, in neurosurgery, laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) is a preferred treatment option for patients who are not ideal surgical candidates. Edge emitting lasers have become increasingly safe to use and have been successfully applied for the treatment of tumors such as meningioma, tumors of the deep skull base, and tumors deep in the ventricles. Increasing use of edge emitting laser in medical applications will fuel the market growth over the forecast period.

Moreover, one of the major application of edge emitting laser is in instrumentation and sensors. These are used in smartphones for 3D sensing applications. In 2017, Apple Inc. started incorporating more edge emitting lasers in its phones for uses including a face unlocking feature called Face ID.

However, vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) produces higher beam quality as compared to edge emitting laser. The testing for VCSELs is much simpler than edge emitting laser. Therefore, use of vertical cavity surface emitting lasers could be a restraining factor for growth of the market.