Erbium-activated silica–zirconia planar waveguides prepared by sol–gel route

Abstract

Er 3+ doped (100 − x)SiO 2 − xZrO 2 planar waveguides were prepared by the sol–gel route, with x ranging from 10 up to 30 mol%. Multilayer films doped with 0.3 mol% Er 3+ ions were deposited on fused quartz substrates by the dip-coating technique. The thickness and refractive index were measured by m-line spectroscopy at different wavelengths. The fabrication protocol was optimized in order to confine one propagating mode at 1.5 μm. Photoluminescence in the near and visible region indicated a crystalline local environment for the Er 3+ ion.