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Swift carbon ion irradiated Nd:YAG ceramic optical waveguide amplifier
Yang Tan1, Qingfang Luan, Fengqin Liu
1School of Physics, State Key Laboratory of Crystal Materials and Key Laboratory of Particle Physics and Particle Irradiation (Ministry of Education), Shandong University, Jinan 250100, China. tanyang@sdu.edu.cn
Optics Express
|June 22, 2013
Summary
Researchers developed a high-gain optical waveguide amplifier using carbon ion-irradiated Neodymium-doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (Nd:YAG) ceramic. This integrated amplifier demonstrates significant signal amplification, paving the way for advanced photonic devices.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Optoelectronics
- Ceramic Engineering
Background:
- Optical amplifiers are crucial for signal processing in photonics.
- Neodymium-doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (Nd:YAG) is a well-established gain medium.
- Developing compact, integrated optical amplifiers remains a key challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To realize a high-gain optical waveguide amplifier using a novel fabrication method.
- To investigate the amplification properties of Nd:YAG ceramic waveguides.
- To assess the potential of ion-irradiated waveguides for integrated optics.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of a channel waveguide in Nd:YAG ceramic via swift carbon ion irradiation and metal masking.
- Characterization of waveguide properties, including single-mode operation at 810 nm and 1064 nm.
- Measurement of small signal gain at 1064 nm using an 18 ns pulse laser seeder and 810 nm excitation.
Main Results:
- A single-mode waveguide amplifier was successfully fabricated.
- Enhanced fluorescence intensity at 1064 nm was observed due to Nd(3+) ion emissions.
- A small signal gain of approximately 26.3 dB/cm was achieved at 1064 nm.
- Low propagation loss was measured for the waveguide.
Conclusions:
- Swift carbon ion irradiation is an effective method for fabricating high-performance Nd:YAG ceramic waveguides.
- The developed waveguide amplifier exhibits significant gain and low loss, suitable for integrated photonic applications.
- Carbon ion irradiated Nd:YAG waveguides show promise as efficient integrated amplifiers for signal amplification.
