Methods of forming polycrystalline semiconductor waveguides for optoelectronic integrated circuits, and devices formed thereby

Abstract

Methods of forming polycrystalline semiconductor waveguides include the steps of forming a first cladding layer (e.g., SiO.sub.2) on a substrate (e.g., silicon) and then forming a polycrystalline semiconductor layer (e.g., poly-Si) on the first cladding layer using a direct deposition technique or by annealing amorphous silicon (a-Si) to form a polycrystalline layer, for example. The deposited polycrystalline semiconductor layer can then be polished at a face thereof to have a root-mean-square (RMS) surface roughness of less than about 6 nm so that waveguides patterned therefrom have loss ratings of better than 35 dB/cm. The polished polycrystalline semiconductor layer is then preferably etched in a plasma to form a plurality of polycrystalline strips. A second cladding layer is then formed on the polycrystalline strips to form a plurality of polycrystalline waveguides which provide relatively low-loss paths for optical communication between one or more optoelectronic devices coupled thereto. The annealed amorphous silicon layer or deposited polycrystalline layer can also be hydrogenated by exposing the second cladding layer to a hydrogen containing plasma at a temperature and pressure of about 350.degree. C. and 0.16 mTorr, respectively, and for a duration in a range between about 30 and 60 minutes. This further improves the loss ratings of the waveguides to about 15 dB/cm or less.

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