Open AccessOptical ridge waveguides preserving the thermo-optic features in LiNbO_3 crystals fabricated by combination of proton implantation and selective wet etching
Author(s) -
Yang Tan,
Feng Chen
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.18.011444
Subject(s) - materials science , optics , wafer , waveguide , integrated optics , lithium niobate , annealing (glass) , etching (microfabrication) , ridge , optoelectronics , isotropic etching , photonic integrated circuit , photonics , composite material , paleontology , physics , layer (electronics) , biology
We report on a new, simple method to fabricate optical ridge waveguides in a z-cut LiNbO3 wafer by using proton implantation and selective wet etching. The measured modal field is well confined in the ridge waveguide region, which is also confirmed by the numerical simulation. With thermal annealing treatment at 400 degrees C, the propagation loss of the ridge waveguides is determined to be as low as approximately 0.9 dB/cm. In addition, the measured thermo-optic coefficients of the waveguides are in good agreement with those of the bulk, suggesting potential applications in integrated photonics.