Demonstration of low loss β -Ga2O3 optical waveguides in the UV–NIR spectra

Abstract

In this paper, we report the fabrication of low loss beta-phase gallium oxide (β-Ga2O3) optical waveguides and the propagation loss analysis of the waveguides in the ultraviolet (UV) to near infrared (NIR) spectral region. The β-Ga2O3 thin films were grown on sapphire substrates using metal organic chemical vapor deposition and were fabricated into various waveguide structures using nanofabrication processes. A low propagation loss of 3.7 dB/cm was obtained on the β-Ga2O3 waveguide at the wavelength of 810 nm, which is comparable to the state of the art. Combined with theoretical simulations, various loss mechanisms from two-photon absorption, sidewall scattering, top surface scattering, and bulk scattering were discussed for β-Ga2O3 waveguides, and their contributions to the total optical loss were estimated. These results show that β-Ga2O3 is a promising optical material for the fabrication of various integrated photonic devices in the UV–NIR spectra region.