Anna Langrova

Planar glass optical waveguides containing transition metal ions

We present a study of fabrication and properties of planar optical waveguides fabricated by Ag+, Cu+, Cu2+ and Er3+ ion exchange in a variety of commercial as well as non-commercial optical glasses. The properties of the waveguides are discussed from the point of view of composition of the substrate glasses (taking into account the ratios of the bridging and non-bridging oxygen atoms in the glass matrixes and fining agents), luminescence and waveguiding properties as refractive index profiles and birefringence. The samples containing exclusively Cu+ exhibited very strong blue-green luminescence despite their low content of copper. The localized Er3+ doping into the glass wafers is presented for the first time.

Fabrication and properties of few-modes planar lithium glass waveguides

Potentially low loss lithium ion-exchanged glass waveguides were fabricated in various types of silicate glass substrates and characterized by a number of analytical as well as optical methods. The migration of lithium ions was studied in details using the NDP method. The small radius of the Li+ and its high mobility resulted in high strain in the exchanged region causing thus heavily surface damage of the samples. Two crucial points of the matter were solved: to avoid the surface damage the fabrication temperatures must be above the transformation point of used glass (Tg), and to fabricate few-modes waveguides the highly Li-diluted reaction melts must be used.