SBIR Phase I: Innovative Integrated Optical Circuit Fabrication and Processing Techniques

这个小型企业创新研究第一阶段的项目是开发一种使用交替波导材料(AWMS)制造集成电路(IOC)的方法。目前，IOC包括石英玻璃波导，并使用昂贵的多步骤光刻工艺结合高温沉积技术进行图案化。然而，AWM与较低的玻璃化转变温度相关，并具有通过替代印刷方法绕过光刻工艺对光学电路进行图案化的潜力。这将大大降低光子器件制造的复杂性，从而降低成本。AWMS的另一个重要优势是更低的最低衰减水平，可能比石英玻璃低一到两个数量级。这对于长波导应用至关重要，例如用于电信的集成光学延迟线、集成光学陀螺仪和更灵敏的化学传感器。此外，由于某些替代材料可以容纳稀土元素，AWMS的开发在改进的光开关、放大器和固态蓝光激光器方面有更多的应用。该项目将确定制造包含AWMS的光学电路的可行性。改进的光波导电路制造立即为集成光放大、无损分路器和上转换蓝光光纤激光器(在光存储、彩色打印和投影、上变频器、隔离器和荧光制冷器等众多商业应用中必不可少)以及实验室使用的方便、低成本的固态激光光源带来了直接的潜力。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is to develop a method of fabricating integrated optical circuits (IOCs) using alternate waveguide materials (AWMs). Currently, IOCs comprise silica glass waveguides, and are patterned using an expensive, multi-step photolithography process in conjunction with high temperature deposition techniques. However, AWMs are associated with lower glass transition temperatures, and have the potential of patterning optical circuits through alternate printing methods, bypassing the photolithography process. This will dramatically reduce the complexity and hence the cost of photonic device manufacture. Another important advantage of AWMs is lower minimum attenuation levels, possibly one to two orders of magnitude lower than that of silica glass. This is critical for long waveguide applications such as integrated optic delay lines for telecommunications, integrated optic gyroscopes, and more sensitive chemical sensors. In addition, because some alternate materials can host rare earth elements, the development of AWMs has further applications for improved optical switches, amplifiers, and solid-state blue lasers. This project will establish the feasibility of fabricating optical circuits comprising AWMs. Improved fabrication of optical waveguide circuits has the immediate potential forintegrated optic amplifiers, lossless splitters, and up conversion blue fiber lasers, essential to numerous commercial applications in optical storage, color printing, and projection, up converters, isolators and fluorescent coolers, as well as convenient, low-cost solid-state laser sources for the laboratory.