Aluminum-based contacts could be a good alternative to conventional gold-based contacts for a number of GaSb-based devices. In this study, the use of some Al-based contacts in GaSb-based diode lasers was investigated via the measurement of specific contact resistivity and laser output characteristics. The Al-based contacts to p-type GaSb(001) exhibited lower specific contact resistivities than the conventional Au-based contacts, whereas the opposite was the case for contacts to n-type GaSb(001). The good performance of GaSb-based laser diodes using Al-based contacts shows the applicability of this type of contact in GaSb-based devices. The contact between Al only and p-type GaSb(001), however, could suffer from a reliability problem when used in diode lasers, due to interdiffusion, in which case a diffusion barrier should be included
