Role of Glass Composition in Waveguide Fabrication with Femtosecond Laser Pulses

玻璃组合物在飞秒激光脉冲波导制造中的作用

• 批准号: 0307002
• 负责人: Denise Krol
• 金额: $ 69.6万
• 依托单位: University of California-Davis
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2003
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2003-09-01 至 2008-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0307002&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Role; Glass; Composition; Waveguide; Fabrication

Tightly focused femtosecond (fs) laser pulses can be used to modify the refractive index of glass within the focal region of the laser beam. By scanning the glass with respect to the laser focus waveguide structures can be fabricated inside the glass. It has recently been observed that waveguide structures fabricated with fs laser pulses in a commercial phosphate glass (Schott IOG-1) behave qualitatively different from those in fused silica, the only glass that has been widely studied so far. In order to evaluate the general applicability of waveguide fabrication with fs lasers, this project involves an in-depth study of the effects of glass composition on waveguide fabrication with fs laser pulses. Experiments will be carried out to fabricate and characterize waveguides in a variety of glasses in order to identify compositions with favorable waveguide properties. The structural changes associated with waveguide formation will be investigated using optical microscopy as well as confocal fluorescence and Raman spectroscopy. The experimental results will be used to develop a detailed understanding of the relationship between the induced index changes, the structural modification and the thermo-mechanical properties of the glass. On this basis we plan to develop a general model for categorizing glasses in terms of their suitability for waveguide fabrication with fs laser pulses. The use of femtosecond (fs) laser pulses to fabricate optical waveguides holds tremendous potential as a fabrication technique for three-dimensional all-optical integrated components with applications in the photonics industry as well as in biological and chemical sensors and medical technology. The ability to use this technique with different types of glasses-specifically tailored for a specific photonics application- is critical to its successful exploitation. This project involves an experimental study of the effects of glass composition on waveguide fabrication with fs laser pulses. The experimental results will be used to develop a model that explains waveguide fabrication in glasses in terms of the physical, structural and thermo-mechanical properties of the glass. This research project is very multidisciplinary in nature, using theoretical concepts and experimental techniques ranging from materials science to laser physics to nonlinear optics. It offers a unique opportunity for education and training of graduate students by providing hands-on experience with state-of-the-art optical techniques, which are of great importance within the present and future photonics industry.

紧聚焦飞秒激光脉冲可以用来改变激光焦区内玻璃的折射率。通过相对于激光聚焦扫描玻璃，可以在玻璃内部制造出波导结构。最近观察到，在商用磷酸盐玻璃(肖特IOG-1)中用飞秒激光脉冲制作的波导结构与目前唯一被广泛研究的熔融二氧化硅中的结构具有本质的不同。为了评估飞秒激光制作波导的普遍适用性，本项目深入研究了玻璃成分对飞秒激光制作波导的影响。为了确定具有良好的波导性能的组合物，将进行各种玻璃中的光波导的制备和表征的实验。将使用光学显微镜以及共聚焦荧光和拉曼光谱来研究与波导形成相关的结构变化。实验结果将被用来详细地理解玻璃的诱导折射率变化、结构修改和热机械性能之间的关系。在此基础上，我们计划建立一个通用模型，根据玻璃是否适合于飞秒激光脉冲制作波导来进行分类。利用飞秒激光脉冲来制作光波导具有巨大的潜力，作为一种三维全光集成元件的制造技术，在光电子工业以及生物和化学传感器以及医疗技术中都有应用。能够将这项技术用于不同类型的眼镜--专门为特定的光子学应用量身定做--是其成功开发的关键。该项目涉及玻璃成分对飞秒激光脉冲制作波导的影响的实验研究。实验结果将被用来开发一种模型，从玻璃的物理、结构和热机械性质来解释玻璃中的波导制造。这项研究项目本质上是非常多学科的，使用了从材料科学到激光物理再到非线性光学的理论概念和实验技术。它通过提供最先进的光学技术的实践经验，为研究生提供了一个独特的教育和培训机会，这些技术在现在和未来的光电子行业中非常重要。