F_2-Laser Microfabrication of Buried Waveguide Structures in Transparent Glasses

摘要

Buried optical waveguides have been fabricated directly in pure bulk fused silica with a novel high-resolution 157-nm optical processing system. Refractive index changes of >10~(-4) were induced within the small focal volume (～6-μm dia.) of large numerical-aperture optics (0.4), removing the need for ultrafast laser interactions. Single-mode guiding was inferred from Gaussian-like near-field and far-field intensity distributions of 635-nm guided light. The results demonstrate a useful extension of writing buried three dimensional refractive index structures inside glasses with nanosecond duration ultraviolet lasers.