Droop-free amplified red emission from Eu ions in GaN

Eu-doped GaN (GaN:Eu) are novel candidates for red light-emitting diodes (LEDs). To further improve the luminescent efficiency of the GaN:Eu-based LED, the efficiency-droop under strong excitation conditions should be suppressed. In this paper, we demonstrate droop-free luminescence of GaN:Eu emitted from a sample-edge using a stripe excitation configuration. The Eu emission intensity clearly increases compared to the conventional surface-emission, and the enhancement is more pronounced for stronger excitation conditions. We clarify that the wavelength dependence of the enhancement agrees well with the optical gain spectrum of the GaN:Eu and is attributed to amplified spontaneous emission.