Cr:LiSrAlF6 channel waveguides as broadband fluorescence sources

We report on the production and fluorescence of active channel waveguides in Cr:LiSrAlF₆. We have produced ∼10 μm wide and 5 μm high channel waveguides by He⁺ ion implantation, lithographic patterning and subsequent Ar⁺ ion sputtering. Diode-pumped waveguides emitted 13 μW of fluorescence light with a spectrum ranging from 760 nm to 900 nm at a pump power of 165 mW and a pump wavelength of 660 nm. The compact and cheap optical pump source is a main advantage of this fluorescence material. This makes Cr:LiSrAlF₆ channel waveguides a suitable candidate for a broadband fluorescence source in low-coherence interferometry and other applications in the near-infrared wavelength range. PACS 42.70.Hj; 42.79.Gn; 42.30.Wb     

离子注入石英玻璃光波导的研究

在熔融石英玻璃衬底上,通过注入氮离子和硼离子,制成了低损耗、单模平面光波导.波导的最大折射率和离子浓度分布的半宽度分别是1.48和0.5μm,波导损耗<0.1dB/cm.     

聚硅氧烷改性及多模光波导制备

采用含氢聚硅氧烷(HPSO)和二乙烯基苯(DVB)的交联体掺入聚二甲基硅氧烷(PDMS)中,使改性的聚二甲基硅氧烷(M-PDMS)折射率发生1%～1.8%的改变。M-PDMS及PDMS薄膜具有良好的光透射率和低的传输损耗,是低成本制备用于高速芯片间光互连聚合物光波导的理想材料。采用软成型和图案转移法,用M-PDMS及PDMS分别作波导的芯层和包层制备了截面为50μm×50μm,长度大于20cm的聚硅氧烷多模光波导。用数字化散射法测量了所制备波导的传输损耗,测得输入光波长为633nm时平均传输损耗为0.137dB/cm。     

Long range surface plasmon polariton waveguides at 1.31 and 1.55 μm wavelengths

We investigate characteristics of gold metal strip waveguides based on long range surface plasmon polaritons (LRSPPs) along thin metal strips embedded in a polymer for practical applications at the telecommunication wavelengths of 1.31 and 1.55 μm. Guiding properties of the gold strip waveguides are theoretically and experimentally evaluated with the limited thickness and width up to ∼20 nm and ∼10 μm, respectively. The lowest propagation loss of ∼1.4 dB/cm is obtained with a 14.5-nm-thick and 2-μm-wide gold strip at 1.55 μm. With a single-mode fiber, the lowest coupling loss of ∼0.4 dB/facet is achieved with a 14.5-nm-thick and 5-μm-wide gold strip at 1.55 μm. The lowest insertion losses are obtained 8-9 dB with 1.5 cm-long gold strips of a limited thickness and width at both the wavelengths. We demonstrate a 10 Gbps optical signal transmission via the LRSPP waveguide with a 14 nm-thick, 2.5 μm-wide, and 4 cm-long gold strip. These LRSPP waveguides have potential applications for optical interconnects and communications.     

Low-loss germanium strip waveguides on silicon for the mid-infrared

Mid-infrared photonics in silicon needs low-loss integrated waveguides. While monocrystalline germanium waveguides on silicon have been proposed, experimental realization has not been reported. Here we demonstrate a germanium strip waveguide on a silicon substrate. It is designed for single mode transmission of light in transverse magnetic (TM) polarization generated from quantum cascade lasers at a wavelength of 5.8 μm. The propagation losses were measured with the Fabry-Perot resonance method. The lowest achieved propagation loss is 2.5 dB/cm, while the bending loss is measured to be 0.12 dB for a 90° bend with a radius of 115 μm.     

溶胶-凝胶法制备SiO2-TiO2平板光波导工艺研究

采用溶胶-凝胶法制备了SiO₂-TiO₂平板光波导,计算了平板光波导通光条件,分析了硅/钛溶胶-凝胶材料的热性能,观测了平板光波导的结构形貌,并测试了其通光损耗。结果表明：经过200℃,30 min干燥处理的凝胶薄膜呈疏松多孔状态,对于非对称平板波导,存在芯层通光截止厚度,而且当SiO₂-TiO₂芯层厚度为0.5 μm时,SiO₂下包层厚度至少有6 μm才能防止1550 nm波长光泄露入单晶硅衬底中。制备的光波导对于1550 nm波长光传输损耗最小值为0.34 dB/cm。     

Optical amplification in Er/Yb silicate slot waveguide

Active slot waveguides were fabricated by embedding low-index Er/Yb silicate material in high-index silicon. A 1.7 dB signal enhancement at 1.53 μm in a 6 mm-long slot waveguide was observed through 1476 nm pumping. The peak Er emission cross-section is determined as 7.53×10(-21) cm2 and the excited Er ion fraction is 0.17. Our experiment shows that the defects in upper c-Si of Si-on-insulator (SOI) and deposited α-Si distorts photoluminescence spectrum and prevents further optical amplification. This negative effect can be partly corrected through annealing treatment, which allows better propagation of the pump light, therefore, stronger excitation in the sandwiched Er/Yb silicate. The defects also affect the 1.53 μm decay curve and are the dominant lifetime reduction mechanism in the active slot waveguide.     

Silver halide single-mode strip waveguides for the mid-infrared

We report the demonstration of single-mode AgCl(x)Br(1-x) strip waveguides for the mid-infrared (MIR). The waveguides were made by the deposition of AgCl(x)Br(1-x) layers on top of a Si-SiO(2) substrate, followed by photolithographic and lift-off processing. The propagation losses of 20 dB/cm were measured at λ=10.6 μm using the cut-back method. The development of these waveguides is a crucial step toward realizing AgCl(x)Br(1-x) MIR integrated optical circuits, which would be used for applications such as chemical sensing and stellar interferometry.     

基于全矢量模式匹配法的三维弯曲波导本征模式计算

采用精确、严格的全矢量模式匹配法，计算了三维脊型弯曲波导和条形弯曲波导的本征模式，分析了模式折射率和辐射损耗随弯曲半径的变化关系.计算结果与已报道的有限差分法的结果符合很好.对文献中已报道但没有深入分析的现象给出了合理的解释.半径为50和12 μm的条形波导的计算结果表明：当波导的弯曲半径减小时，发生在分界面处的TE-TM模耦合会显著增强，这将导致弯曲波导中的模式不再是传统意义上的准TE模和准TM模，而是混合模.随着半径的减小，混合模的横向分量之间的差异会减小，当两个横向分量达到近似相等的强度时，波导的偏振相关性将会大大减小. 关键词： 导波光学 全矢量模式匹配法 微环谐振腔 光波导理论     

Thulium channel waveguide laser in a monoclinic double tungstate with 70% slope efficiency

Laser experiments were performed on buried, ridge-type channel waveguides in an 8 at.?% thulium-doped, yttrium-gadolinium-lutetium codoped monoclinic double tungstate. A maximum slope efficiency of 70% and output powers up to 300 mW about 2.0 μm were obtained in a mirrorless laser resonator, by pumping with a Ti:sapphire laser near 800 nm. To the best of our knowledge, this result represents the most efficient 2 μm channel waveguide laser to date. Lasing is obtained at various wavelengths between 1810 nm and 2037 nm.     

Stamp printing of silicon-nanomembrane-based photonic devices onto flexible substrates with a suspended configuration

In this Letter, we demonstrate for the first time (to our best knowledge) stamp printing of silicon nanomembrane (SiNM)-based in-plane photonic devices onto a flexible substrate using a modified transfer printing method that utilizes a suspended configuration, which can adjust the adhesion between the released SiNM and the "handle" silicon wafer. With this method, 230 nm thick, 30 μm wide, and up to 5.7 cm long SiNM-based waveguides are transferred to flexible Kapton films with >90% transfer yield. The propagation loss of the transferred waveguides is measured to be ~1.1 dB/cm. Scalability of this approach to transfer intricate structures, such as photonic crystal waveguides and multimode interference couplers with a minimum feature size of 200 nm and 2 μm, respectively, is also demonstrated.     

Two-dimensional light confinement in cross-index-modulation plasmonic waveguides

We report a numerical study of plasmonic waveguides that localize light in two dimensions at a cross section of 4.2 nm × 2.1 nm with the propagation length of 38 μm. By varying the geometrical parameters, strong mode confinements (range from λ(2)/3352 to λ(2)/2557525) are achieved with controllable propagation distance (44.68-40.988 μm), and mode size below 1 nm(2) has been demonstrated for the first time. Furthermore, a cross-index-modulation mechanism is proposed to explain the strong field localization behavior, providing guidelines for future waveguide designs.     

硅基波导与GeSi／Si超晶格探测器之间光电集成器件的研制

用分子束外延法将ＧｅＳｉ／Ｓｉ超晶格结构生长在ｎ＾＋／ｎ Ｓｉ材料上，先后用反应离子刻蚀法形成探测器波志和硅脊波导，经适当工艺实现硅波导与ＰＩＮ探测器之间的光电集成，５Ｖ偏压下ＰＩＮ控制器的最小暗电流为０．８μＡ，最大光响应电流为２．７μＡ，最大总量子效率为１４％，工作波长为λ＝１．３μｍ。     

Characterization of optical waveguides in β-BaB2O4 crystals formed by 3.0 MeV Ni ions implantation

We report on the optical planar waveguides formation and modal characterization in β-BaB₂O₄ crystals by Ni²⁺ ion implantation at energy of 3.0 MeV and doses of 10¹⁴ ions/cm². The prism coupling method was used to investigate the dark-mode property at wavelengths of 633 nm and 1539 nm, respectively. The refractive index profiles of the waveguides with different doses were reconstructed by an effective refractive index method based on the reflectivity calculation method (RCM). The modal analysis indicates that the fields of TM modes can be well restricted in the guiding region, which means the formation of non-leaky waveguide in the crystal.     

Compact wavelength-insensitive fabrication-tolerant silicon-on-insulator beam splitter

A star coupler-based beam splitter for rib waveguides is reported. A design method is presented and applied in the case of silicon-on-insulator rib waveguides. Experimental results are in good agreement with simulations. Excess loss lower than 1 dB is experimentally obtained for star coupler lengths from 0.5 to 1 μm. Output balance is better than 1 dB, which is the measurement accuracy, and broadband transmission is obtained over 90 nm.     

Athermal waveguides for optical communication wavelengths

We report on the design, fabrication, and characterization of temperature insensitive strip silicon-on-insulator racetrack resonators. The influence of various parameters, such as waveguide width, waveguide height, ring radius, coupling length, ring gap, and operating wavelength, on temperature-dependent wavelength shift is examined. A resonant wavelength shift of 0.2 pm/K at a 1550 nm wavelength is measured for 335 nm × 220 nm waveguides. A significant reduction of waveguide propagation losses, improved ring Q value, and higher extinction ratio are obtained after overlaying the silicon waveguides with a polymer cladding.     

硅基混合表面等离子体纳米光波导及集成器件

总结并展望了硅基混合表面等离子体纳米光波导及集成器件方面的理论和实验研究工作。首先介绍了几种硅基混合表面等离子体纳米光波导结构,其尺寸可小至100 nm以下,而传播长度达100μm量级;其次介绍了基于硅基混合表面等离子体纳米光波导的功分器、偏振分束器和谐振器等集成器件,其尺寸为亚微米量级;最后探讨了硅基混合表面等离子体纳米光波导与硅纳米线光波导的耦合及对其进行增益补偿。     

Near-stoichiometric Ti:LiNbO3 strip waveguide with varied substrate refractive index in waveguide layer

We report the near-stoichiometric Ti:LiNbO3 strip waveguides fabricated by vapour transport equilibration (VTE) at 1060 C for 12 h and co-diffusion of 4-8 μm wide, 115-nm thick Ti-strips. Optical studies show that these waveguides are monomode at 1.5 μm and have losses of 1.3 and 1.1 dB/cm for the TM and TE modes, respectively. In the waveguide width/depth direction, the mode field follows a Gauss/Hermite-Gauss profile. A secondary ion mass spectrometry study reveals that the Ti profile follows a sum of two error functions along the width direction and a complementary error function in the depth direction. Micro-Raman analysis shows that the Li-composition in the depth direction also follows a complementary error function. The mean Li/Nb ratio in the waveguide layer is about 0.98. The inhomogeneous Li-composition profile results in a varied substrate index in the guiding layer, and the refractive index profile in the guiding layer is given.     

Analysis of ion implanted waveguides formed on Nd:YVO4 crystals

This work reports, for the first time to our knowledge, the formation of planar waveguides in Nd:YVO₄ by either carbon or proton implantation. The waveguides are characterised using the dark mode method and by spectroscopic studies, indicating that there is a reduction of the refractive index at the end of the ion track. Particularly, carbon implantation generates a considerable variation in the guiding region. It is shown that the waveguiding structure preserves the spectroscopic properties of the Nd³⁺ ions, thus maintaining the crystal quality.     

Chalcogenide glass waveguides integrated with quantum cascade lasers for on-chip mid-IR photonic circuits

We demonstrate on-chip hybrid integration of chalcogenide glass waveguides and quantum cascade lasers (QCLs). Integration is achieved using an additive solution-casting and molding method to directly form As(2)S(3) strip waveguides on an existing QCL chip. Integrated As(2)S(3) strip waveguides constructed in this manner display strong optical confinement and guiding around 90° bends, with a NA of 0.24 and bend loss of 12.9dB at a 1mm radius (λ=4.8μm).