Materials Physics - Work Unit 2300/FF/05.

This task addressed basic research to better understand laser ablation deposition of thin films, nonlinear optical (NLO) effects in poled quartz, and the waveguiding properties of Ge doped silica planar waveguides. These efforts expanded the understanding of the interaction between light and matter and thus advanced the envelope of the technology base of NLO materials used in optical device applications. Research directly supported Air Force Objectives for Optoelectronic Materials, as outlined in the current research Technology Area Plan for Project 2305, Electronics. The research was organized around the following areas: (1) laser ablation deposition of thin films, (2) NLO effects in poled quartz, and (3) the waveguiding properties of Ge doped silica planar waveguides. For the laser ablation effort, various techniques were used to investigate the optical losses and the properties of the laser ablation films. For NLO effects in poled quartz, two possible sources of SHO, which are the non-bridging oxygen hole centers (associated with Si and Ge) and peroxy bridge structures were found to be supported by experimental evidence. Through ion implantation which creates an internal poling field in quartz, second order NLO effects were introduced into otherwise amorphous films. For the waveguiding properties of Ge doped silica planar waveguides, credibility of computation efforts were increased significantly with high degree of correlation between experiment and theoretical predictions. Results for these topics are summarized in the next several sections. (MM)