Formation of holographic diffraction gratings in photoresist

The exposure-development process for the fabrication of holographic diffraction gratings for integrated optics in the positive photoresist Shipley AZ-1350 is theoretically and experimentally investigated. An analysis of the light intensity distribution is carried out, taking into account the reflectivity at the photoresist-substrate interface and the attenuation in the photoresist for two holographic exposure arrangements. The influence of the exposure energy, the development time for a fixed concentration of the developer and the initial photoresist thickness are described. Various grating profiles are calculated for photoresist films, coated on matched and reflective substrates. Scanning electron micrographs demonstrate very good agreement between the actual and calculated gratings profiles.