Microdischarges and Rare Earth-Doped Waveguide Devices: Visible and Ultraviolet Sources for Lasers and Sensors

摘要

Over the past three years, we have pursued a number of microdischarge fabrication techniques and device designs and the results have been gratifying. Today, we can say that devices now operate reliably at voltages less than 100 V and pressures above one atmosphere. Furthermore, the discovery of the pn junction-excited microdischarge offers a viable approach to integrating microdischarges with electronic components and passive and active electro- optical components. In short, we are becoming more convinced that this technology provides an attractive pathway for integrating optical sources onto a Si electronic chip.