Methods for forming waveguides in optical materials
OwnerMark L. F. Phillips, Travis P. S. Thomsinventors
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Abstract
A method for forming waveguides in an optical material such as lithium niobate comprises the steps of providing an exchange agent including a proton-supplying medium and a catalyst, and exposing a selected portion of the optical material to the exchange agent for a predetermined time and at a predetermined temperature. Preferably, the catalyst is a metallic cation having a valence of at least +2, and the proton-supplying medium is a weak acid with a pKa of greater than about 4.5 or a lithium-buffered (“starved”) acidic solution. The catalyst accelerates the rate at which protons are exchanged with corresponding ions in the optical material lattice, thereby reducing the time required to produce a waveguide in the exposed portion of the optical material.
Claims40
A method for forming waveguides in an optical material, comprising the steps of:
- providing an exchange agent including a proton-supplying medium and a catalyst selected to accelerate the overall rate at which a proton exchange process proceeds in said optical material;
- and
- exposing a selected portion of said optical material to said exchange agent for a specified time and at a specified temperature.
An exchange agent for fabricating waveguides in optical materials by proton exchange, comprising:
- a proton-supplying medium;
- and
- a catalyst selected to accelerate the overall rate at which a proton exchange process proceeds in said optical materials.
A method of forming a waveguide in an optical material, comprising the steps of:
- providing an exchange agent including a proton-supplying medium and a catalyst selected to accelerate the overall rate at which a proton exchange process proceeds in said optical material;
- exposing a selected portion of said optical material to said exchange agent for a specified time and at a specified temperature, and
- subsequently exposing said selected portion to a second exchange agent for a second specified time and at a second specified temperature.
A method for forming a dead layer-minimized waveguide in a lithium niobate substrate, comprising the steps of:
- providing an exchange agent including a relatively weakly acidic proton-supplying medium and a catalyst, said catalyst comprising metallic cations having a valence of at least +2;
- and
- exposing a selected portion of said substrate to said exchange agent for a specified time and at a specified temperature.
A method for forming waveguides in an optical material, comprising the steps of:
- (a) exposing a selected portion of said optical material to an exchange agent including nonanoic acid for a first specified time and at a first specified temperature;
- and
- (b) subsequent to step (a), annealing said optical material for a second specified time and at a second specified temperature.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.