Laser waveguide

Details Laser waveguide Laser waveguide

1996-09-20

1998-11-10

Nguyen, Nam

Chemistry: electrical and wave energy

Processes and products

Coating, forming or etching by sputtering

20419215, C23C 1434

Patent

active

058338187

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a laser waveguide and to a method of making it.


DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

One of the most useful solid state lasers produced in recent years is the very broad band tunable laser using titanium doped sapphire (Ti:Al.sub.2 O.sub.3). This has up to 20% conversion efficiency when pumped with an argon laser lamp but needs some 10 W of argon power.
It has therefore been proposed to make the Ti:Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 in the form of a planar or channel waveguide. This should reduce the pump threshold power by factors of up to 100 (i.e. a pump power down to say 100 mW). Since diode lasers exist at the few watt level one may then be able to drive the tunable laser via a diode with a second harmonic crystal to reach the ideal pump wavelength.
However it would be desirable to improve the economy, performance, reproducibility, and ease of production of such a material.


SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention, a laser waveguide is made by sputter-depositing an alloy of aluminium and dopant onto a waveguide substrate in an oxidizing atmosphere, e.g. oxygen. The dopant may be a transition metal, e.g. Ti, Cr, Co, Fe, and may be present in a proportion of 1 mole:10.sup.2 to 10.sup.4 moles aluminium. The substrate may be any material having transparency, a lower refractive index than the oxidized alloy, and a similar coefficient of expansion to the oxidized alloy. Quartz has proved suitable.
The waveguide may be used when made as set forth above, for example for the ruby waveguide laser. Preferably, however, it is annealed, for example in the temperature range 800.degree. to 1,400.degree. C. in an oxidizing atmosphere in the case of the ruby but alternatively in a reducing atmosphere (particularly hydrogen) in the case of the titanium sapphire. Addition of hydrogen to control the valence state of the titanium impurities may alternatively be controlled by ion implantation of hydrogen following an annealing stage.
To reduce surface scatter losses, the waveguide may be encased (for example by sputter coating) in any material that would be suitable as a cladding, e.g. an overlayer of silica may be applied.
During the sputter deposition, the waveguide substrate is preferably maintained at a predetermined temperature, for example 400.degree. C. to 700.degree. C., more preferably 450.degree.-650.degree. C., e.g. 500.degree. C. or 600.degree. C. or at a temperature around midway (from one-third to two-thirds of the way) between room temperature and the annealing temperature. Such a temperature both helping to minimise the differential expansion between the substrate and the deposited film during annealing on the one hand and during use at room temperature on the other hand, and allows local diffusion during deposition to improve homogeneity of the deposited film.
It is postulated that the deposited film is amorphous and remains so during annealing, which step encourages homogenization and densification. In this case, the deposited film would as a necessary consequence be completely non-epitaxial with the substrate.


BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a graph showing the relationship of intensity as a function of wavelength (nm) for Example 1.
FIG. 2 is a graph showing the relationship of intensity as a function of wavelength (nm) for Example 2.


DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, showing results from Examples 1 and 2, respectively. Examples of deposition conditions which produce waveguides with strong ruby or titanium emission are as follows.
General preparation conditions: a chamber base pressure of 6.times.10.sup.-6 torr. The operating gas is introduced to a pressure of up to 3.times.10.sup.-2 torr typically as a mixture of 10 to 30% oxygen and 90 to 70% argon. 10 O.sub.2 :90 A and 30 O.sub.2 :70 A both worked, the latter slightly better. An RF plasma has successfully been used but the deposition rate is slow and for more rapid film growth a combination of an R

REFERENCES:
patent: 5018809 (1991-05-01), Shin et al.
Patent Abstract of Japan vol. 17 No. 214, 27 Apr. 1993, No. 4-352484.
Soviet Physics Technical Physics vol. 24, No. 4, Apr. 1979 New York US, pp. 518-519.
Electronics Letters vol. 29, No. 7, Apr. 1993 Enage GB, pp. 581-583, XP 000360826 T.H. Hoekstra et al.
Electronics Letters., vol. 28, No. 13, 18 Jun. 1992 Enage GB, pp. 1181-1181, XP 000318580, J.Shmulovich et al.
Applied Optics., vol. 30, No. 3, 20 Jan. 1991 New York US, pp. 276-278 XP 000172775 G.R.J.Robertson et al.

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