Optical Waveguide Formed in Yb：KLu（WO4）2 Crystal by 6.0 MeV O^＋ Implantation

A planar optical waveguide is formed in monoclinic double rare-earth-tungstate laser crystal Yb：KLu（WO4）2 by 6.0 Me V oxygen ion implantation with a dose of 2 × 10^16 ions/cm^2 at room temperature. Subsequently, annealing at 300℃ for an hour in air is performed on the sample to decrease colour centres to improve the thermal stability of the waveguide. The refractive index profiles of the waveguide are reconstructed by an effective refractive index method. Dark modes of the waveguide are observed at wavelengths of 633 nm and 1539 nm. TRIM＇98 is used to simulate the damage profile caused by the implantation process. It is found that the refractive index change may be mainly due to the damage induced by the nuclear energy loss.     

Planar waveguides in neodymium-doped calcium niobium gallium garnet crystals produced by proton implantation

In this work, the fabrication and optical properties of a planar waveguide in a neodymium-doped calcium niobium gallium garnet(Nd:CNGG) crystal are reported. The waveguide is produced by proton(H~+) implantation at 480 ke V and a fluence of 1.0×10~(17) ions/cm~2. The prism-coupling measurement is performed to obtain the dark mode of the waveguide at a wavelength of 632.8nm. The reflectivity calculation method(RCM) is used to reconstruct the refractive index profile. The finite-difference beam propagation method(FD-BPM) is employed to calculate the guided mode profile of the waveguide.The stopping and range of ions in matter 2010(SRIM 2010) code is used to simulate the damage profile induced by the ion implantation. The experimental and theoretical results indicate that the waveguide can confine the light propagation.     

Guiding properties of proton-implanted Nd~(3+)-doped phosphate glass waveguides

We report on the fabrication and properties of an optical waveguide in Nd~(3+)-doped phosphate glass. The planar waveguide was obtained by 550-ke V proton implantation with a dose of 8.0×10~(16) ions/cm~2. The proton–glass interaction was simulated by the stopping and range of ions in matter(SRIM software). The characteristics of the waveguide including the refractive index profile and the near-field intensity distribution were studied by the reflectivity calculation method and the end-face coupling technique. The optical waveguide demonstrated multi-mode behavior at the wavelength of 632.8 nm.The propagation features of the proton-implanted Nd~(3+)-doped phosphate glass waveguide shows its potential to operate as an integrated photonic device.     

Optical Planar Waveguides in KTiOPO4 Crystals by MeV Oxygen Ion Implantation

We report on the optical planar waveguide formation in KTiOPO4 crystals by single or double oxygen ion implantation at energies of 2.4-3.0 MeV and doses of 1015 ions/cm^2. The dark-line spectroscopy properties are investigated by a prism-coupling method. With an effective refractive index method, the refractive index profiles of the waveguides are reconstructed. The program code TRIM＇98 （transport of ions in matter） is used to simulate the implantation process of oxygen ions into the KTiOPO4 crystal. It is found that an inherent relationship exists between the nuclear damage and the refractive index changes induced by the ion-beam implantation.     

Visible and near-infrared optical properties of Nd:CLNGG crystal waveguides formed by proton implantation

A Nd:CLNGG waveguide structure operated at wavelengths of both 632.8 nm and 1539 nm was demonstrated for the first time to our knowledge, which was produced by the 480-keV H~+ion implantation with a dose of 1.0×10~(17)protons/cm~2.Its propagating modes at 632.8 nm and 1539 nm were measured by the well-known prism coupling technique. The refractive index profile at either 632.8-nm wavelength or 1539-nm wavelength was optical barrier type in the proton-implanted Nd:CLNGG crystal optical waveguide, which was calculated by using the reflectivity calculation method. The near-field light intensity distributions were also simulated by the finite-difference beam propagation method in the visible and nearinfrared bands.     

Ion－Implanted Waveguides in a Nd^3＋－Doped Silicate Glass

Monomode enhanced-index Nd^3 -doped silicate glass waveguides fabricated by ion implantation are reported.The Nd^3 -doped silicate glass was implanted by 3.0 MeV B^ ions, 3.0 MeV 0^ ions and 4.5 MeV Ni^2 ions,respectively. A prism-coupling method was carried out to measure dark modes in the Nd^3 -doped silicate glassusing a model 2010 prism coupler. The moving fibre method was applied to measure the waveguide propagationloss. After a moderate annealing, the 3.0-MeV B^ -ion implanted waveguide loss is about 3.54 dB/cm; the 3.0-Me V O^ -ion implanted waveguide loss is about 5.36 dB/cm; and the 4.5-MeV the Ni^2 -implanted waveguide lossis about 7.55dB/cm. The results show that with the increasing ion mass, the loss in implanted waveguide isincreased.     

Reduction of insertion loss after annealing of silicon oxynitride optical waveguides

The insertion losses of silicon oxynitride (SiON) waveguides have been measured in the 1550 nm wavelength region. The waveguide structure consisted of a 2.0μm SiON waveguide core with a refractive index of 1.50, a 0.5μm SiO₂ upper cladding and a 5.0μm SiO₂ lower cladding with a refractive index of 1.45. It was found that the wavelength-dependent insertion losses of the waveguide were greatly reduced by annealing, and the loss was decreased more than 5.7 dB/cm at 1550 nm after annealing at optimum conditions. The former was attributed to the reduction of the absorption caused by N-H and Si-H vibration modes, and the latter was due to the improvement of the interface roughness and homogeneity in the waveguides after annealing.     

Study of He-induced nano-cavities as sinks of oxygen for forming silicon-on-insulator

In the present work, a Cz-Silicon wafer is implanted with helium ions to produce a buried porous layer, and then thermally annealed in a dry oxygen atmosphere to make oxygen transport into the cavities. The formation of the buried oxide layer in the case of internal oxidation （ITOX） of the buried porous layer of cavities in the silicon sample is studied by positron beam annihilation （PBA）. The cavities are formed by 15 keV He implantation at a fluence of 2×10^16 cm^-2 and followed by thermal annealing at 673 K for 30 min in vacuum. The internal oxidation is carried out at temperatures ranging from 1073 to 1473 K for 2 h in a dry oxygen atmosphere. The layered structures evolved in the silicon are detected by using the PBA and the thicknesses of their layers and nature are also investigated. It is found that rather high temperatures must be chosen to establish a sufficient flux of oxygen into the cavity layer. On the other hand high temperatures lead to coarsening the cavities and removing the cavity layer finally.     

Modal Characterization of a Planar Waveguide in Bismuth Borate Crystal

We report on the fabrication and modal property studies of planar waveguide structure in x-cut bismuth borate biaxial crystal formed by He ion implantation with triple energies. The prism coupling method is used to measure the effective refractive indices of this waveguide. We reconstruct the refractive index distribution of this waveguide by the reflectivity calculation method. Our results indicate that a broadened optical barrier is produced by the multiple He ion implantations. The so-called tunneling effect of the non-stationary mode in this type of barrier waveguide is presented by the well-known finite difference beam propagation method.     

Supercontinuum Generation in Lithium Niobate Ridge Waveguides Fabricated by Proton Exchange and Ion Beam Enhanced Etching

We report on the fabrication of the 10-mm-long lithium niobate ridge waveguide and its supercontinuum generation at near-visible wavelengths(around 800 nm). The waveguides are fabricated by a combination of MeV copper ion implantation followed by wet etching in a proton exchanged lithium niobate planar waveguide. Using a mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser with a central wavelength of 800 nm, the generated broadest supercontinuum through the ridge waveguides spans 302 nm(at-30 dB points), from 693 to 995 nm. Temporal coherence properties of the supercontinuum are experimentally studied by a Michelson interferometer and the coherence length of the broadest supercontinuum is measured to be 5.2μm. Our results offer potential for a compact and integrated supercontinuum source for applications including bio-imaging, spectroscopy and optical communication.     

Superconducting Transition Temperature and Metal--Semiconductor Transition Temperature in YBa2Cu4O8/La0.67Ca0.33MnO3/YBa2Cu4O8 Trilayer Films

YBa₂Cu₄O₈/La_0.67Ca_0.33MnO₃/YBa₂Cu₄O₈(YBCO/LCMO/YBCO) trilayer films were prepared by magnetron facing-target sputtering. For the first time, the oscillatory behaviour of superconducting transition temperature T_c,ON with the thickness of LCMO (d_L) has been observed. The strongest nonmonotonic information in the T_c,ON--d_L curves appears clearly when d_L is larger than the critical thickness d_L^CR. The metal--semiconductor transition temperature can only be detected at d_L>d_L^CR. The dependence on the ferromagnetic spacer layer in YBCO/LCMO/YBCO systems suggests strongly the interplay of ferromagnetic and superconducting couplings.     

Structural and Optical Properties of Nanocrystal In2O3 Films by Thermal Oxidation of In2S3 Films

In₂S₃ nanocrystalline films are prepared on glass substrates by the spray pyrolysis technique using indium chloride and thiourea as precursors. The deposition is carried out at 350°C on glass substrates. The films are then annealed for two hour at 200, 400, 600, and 800°C in O₂ flow. This process allows the transformation of nanocrystal In₂O₃ films from In₂S₃ films and the reaction completes at 600°C. These results indicate that the In₂O₃ film prepared by this simple thermal oxidation method is a promising candidate for electro-optical and photovoltaic devices.     

Relaxor Behaviour and Ferroelectric Properties of （Li0.12Na0.88） （Nb0.9-xWa0.10Sbx）O3 Lead-Free Ceramics

New lead-free ceramics （Lio.12Na0.88） （Nbo.9-x Ta0.10 Sbx） 03 （0.01 × 0.06） are synthesized by solid-state reaction method. The dielectric, piezoelectric and ferroelectric properties of the ceramics are studied. The dielectric constant dependence with temperature and frequency of the ceramic specimen with x = 0.04 shows typical characteristics of relaxor ferroelectrics, and the Vogel-Fulcher relationship is fulfilled. The dielectric behaviour and its relation to the phase transition phenomena are discussed. The polarization hysteresis loops at room temperature are also measured.     

Characteristics of Nd：GdVO4 Laser with Different Nd-Doping Concentrations

We report the properties of a compact diode-pumped continuous-wave Nd：GdV04 laser with a linear cavity and different Nd-doped laser crystals. In a 0.2at.% Nd-doped Nd：GdVO4 laser, 1.54 W output laser power is achieved at 912nm wavelength with a slope efficiency of 24.8% at an absorbed pump power of 9.4W. With 0.3at.% Nd-doping concentration, we can obtain the either single-wavelength emission at 1064nm or 912nm or the dual-wavelength emission at 1064nm and 912nm by controlling the incident pump power. From an incident pump power of 11.6 W, the 1064nm emission between ^4Fa/2 and ^4I11/2 is suppressed completely by the 912nm emission between ^4Fa/2 and ^4I9/2. We obtain 670 mW output of the 912nm single-wavelength laser emission with a slope efficiency of 5.5% by taking an incident pump power of 18.4 W. Using a Nd：GdV04 laser with 0.4at.% Nd-doping concentration, we obtain either the single-wavelength emission at 1064nm or the dual-wavelength emission at both 1064nm and 912nm by increasing the incident pump power. We observe a strong competition process in the dualavelength laser.     

Enhancement of Critical Current Density in Graphite Doped MgB2 Wires

Graphite doped MgB2-xCx (x = 0.00, 0.05, 0.10) wires were fabricated via the in situ powder-in-tube method in flowing argon by using low carbon steel tubes as the sheath materials. With the increase of graphite concentration,the amount of unreacted graphite in the core area increases, and the average grain size of MgB2 decreases. It is found that the critical current density Jc can be significantly improved by graphite doping. The MgB2 wire with x = 0.05 exhibits the best Jc value of 16710 A/cm^2 at 6K, 4.5T, but the MgB1.9C0.1 wire has the highest Jc value of 2060 A/cm^2 at 6 K, 8 T. It is suggested that the enhancement of Jc is due to not only the improvement of the microstructure features but also the introduction of pinning centres.     

Calculation of Elastic Scattering Properties in an Ultra-Cold ^85Rb-^85Rb Vapour

We report the calculation of the same-species elastic scattering properties for the ultracold rubidium-rubidium (^85Rb-^85Rb) system and the results are compared with other theoretical and experimental results in detail. We present an improved potential for triplet ground states of the Rb2 molecule, and calculate the scattering lengths αt and the effective range re using WKB and Numerov methods for two rubidium-85 collisions in the triplet state. Also, we investigate the convergence of these scattering properties, i.e. the dependence on core radius and K^0 parameter using quantum defect theory and the analytic calculations of scattering length obtained by Szmytkowski. In addition, we present evaporative cooling and other results that include phase shift and cross section at zero energy limit.     

Preparation of Mg55Ni35Si10 Amorphous Powders by Mechanical Alloying and Consolidation by Vacuum Hot Pressing

Amorphous Mg55Ni35Si10 powders are fabricated by using a mechanical alloying technique. The amorphous powders are found to exhibit a relatively high crystallization temperature of 380℃. The as-milled amorphous Mg55Ni35Si10 powders are consolidated successfully into bulk body by vacuum hot pressing technique. Limited nanocrystallization is noticed. The Vickers microhardness range of the Mg55Ni35Si10 bulk sample is 7834 to 8048 MPa. Its bending strength and compressive strength are 529 MPa and 1466 MPa, respectively.     

First-Principles Study on the Electronic Structures for Y^3＋：PbWO4 Crystals

The possible defect models of Y^3＋：PbWO4 crystals are discussed by defect chemistry and the most possible substituting positions of the impurity Y^3＋ ions are studied by using the general utility lattice program （GULP）. The calculated results indicate that in the lightly doped Y^3＋ ：PWO crystal, the main compensating mechanism is [2Ypb^＋ ＋ VPb^2-], and in the heavily doped Y^3＋ ：PWO crystal, it will bring interstitial oxygen ions to compensate the positive electricity caused by YPb^＋, forming defect clusters of [2Ypb^＋ ＋Oi^2-] in the crystal. The electronic structures of Y3＋ ：PWO with different defect models are calculated using the DV-Xα method. It can be concluded from the electronic structures that, for lightly doped cases, the energy gap of the crystal would be broadened and the 420nm absorption band will be restricted; for heavily doped cases, because of the existence of interstitial oxygen ions, it can bring a new absorption band and reduce the radiation hardness of the crystal.     

Near Infrared Photoluminescence from Yb,Al Co-implanted SiO2 Films on Silicon

Intense room-temperature near infrared （NIR） photoluminescence （980 nm and 1032 nm） is observed from Yb,Al co-implanted SiO2 films on silicon. The optical transitions occur between the ^2F5/2 and ^2F7/2 levels of Yb^3＋ in SiO2. The additional Al-implantation into SiO2 films can effectively improve the concentration quenching effect of Yb^3＋ in SiO2. Photoluminescence excitation spectroscopy shows that the NIR photoluminescence is due to the non-radiative energy transfer from Al-implantation-induced non-bridging oxygen hole defects in SiO2 to Yb^3＋ in the Yb-related luminescent complexes. It is believed that the defect-mediated luminescence of rare-earth ions in SiO2 is very effective.     

Photocatalytic Properties of TiO2/Si-NPA Nano Composite Systems

A new composite system is fabricated by depositing the TiO2 film on a silicon nanoporous pillar array （Si-NPA） and annealing at 500℃ using the spin coating method. Such a composite system exhibits a uniform morphology with the micron-dimension pillar array. Photocatalytic properties are investigated based on the degradation of methyl orange dye solution, and the results show that the photocatalytic efficiency of such a nano-composite system is 1.7 times that of the TiO2/glass system. The enhancement of photocatalytic efficiency is attributed to the large surface area of the TiO2/Si-NPA system.