A superluminescent diode (SLED or SLD) is an edge-emitting semiconductor light source based on superluminescence. It combines the high power and brightness of laser diodes with the low coherence of conventional light-emitting diodes. Its emission optical bandwidth, also described as full-width at half maximum, can range from 5 up to 750 nm. HistoryThe superluminescent diode was reported for the first time by Kurbatov et al. (1971) and Lee, Burrus, and Miller (1973). By 1986 Dr. at RCA Laboratories (now ), invented a novel design ena. A superluminescent light emitting diode is, similar to a laser diode, based on an electrically driven that, when biased in forward direction, becomes optically active and generates The total emitted by an SLED depends on the drive current. Unlike laser diodes, the output intensity does not exhibit a sharp threshold but it gradually increases with current. A soft knee in the power vs. current cur.
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