Lock-in thermography approach for imaging the efficiency of light emitters and optical coolers

Developing optical cooling technologies requires access to reliable efficiency measurement techniques and ability to detect spatial variations in the efficiency and light emission of the devices. We investigate the possibility to combine the calorimetric efficiency measurement principles with lock-in thermography (LIT) and conventional luminescence microscopy to enable spatially resolved measurement of the efficiency, current spreading and local device heating of double diode structures (DDS) serving as test vessels for developing thermophotonic cooling devices. Our approach enables spatially resolved characterization and localization of the losses of the double diode structures as well as other light emitting semiconductor devices. In particular, the approach may allow directly observing effects like current crowding and surface recombination on the light emission and heating of the DDS devices.