Improved environmental stability for plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition SiO2 waveguides using buried channel designs
Abstract
Ridge and buried channel waveguides (BCWs) made using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition SiO2 were fabricated and tested after being subjected to long 85°C water baths. The water bath was used to investigate the effects of any water absorption in the ridge and BCWs. Optical mode spreading and power throughput were measured over a period of three weeks. The ridge waveguides quickly absorbed water within the critical guiding portion of the waveguide. This caused a nonuniformity in the refractive index profile, leading to poor modal confinement after only seven days. The BCWs possessed a low index top cladding layer of SiO2, which caused an increase in the longevity of the waveguides, and after 21 days, the BCW samples still maintained ∼20% throughput, much higher than the ridge waveguides, which had a throughput under 5%.
- Publication:
-
Optical Engineering
- Pub Date:
- April 2016
- DOI:
- 10.1117/1.OE.55.4.040501
- Bibcode:
- 2016OptEn..55d0501W