An optoelectronic transducer comprises a unipolar, intraband active region
and a micro-cavity resonator. The resonator includes a 2D array of
essentially equally spaced regions that exhibits resonant modes. Each of
the spaced regions has a depth that extends through the active region and
has an average refractive index that is different from that of the active
region. The refractive index contrast, the spacing of the spaced regions,
and the dimensions of the spaced regions are mutually adapted so that the
array acts as a micro-cavity resonator and so that at least one frequency
of the resonant modes of the array falls within the spectrum of an
optoelectronic parameter of the active region (i.e., the gain spectrum
where the transducer is a laser; the absorption spectrum where the
transducer is a photodetector). In a first embodiment, the transducer is
an ISB laser, whereas in a second embodiment it is a unipolar, intraband
photodetector. In other embodiments, the laser is a surface-emitting ISB
laser and the photodetector is a vertically-illuminated detector. In
another embodiment, a nonlinear optical material is optically coupled to
the micro-cavity resonator, which in one case allows an ISB laser to
exhibit bistable operation.