Optical and microstructural properties of sol–gel derived titania/organically modified silane thin films

Waveguide thin films with thickness more than one and a half micron were prepared by the sol–gel spin coating technique and low temperature heat treatment from relatively high titanium content organically modified silanes (ORMOSIL). The films were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), ellipsometry, a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Thin solid films 2000-01, Vol.358 (1), p.16-21
Main Authors: Que, Wenxiu, Zhou, Y, Lam, Y.L, Chan, Y.C, Kam, C.H
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied sciences
Atomic force microscopy
Circuit properties
Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science
rheology
Electric, optical and optoelectronic circuits
Electronics
Exact sciences and technology
Integrated optics. Optical fibers and wave guides
Liquid phase epitaxy
deposition from liquid phases (melts, solutions, and surface layers on liquids)
Materials science
Methods of deposition of films and coatings
film growth and epitaxy
Optical and optoelectronic circuits
Optical waveguides and couplers
Organically modified silane
Physics
Sol–gel technique
UV-visible spectroscopy
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Summary:Waveguide thin films with thickness more than one and a half micron were prepared by the sol–gel spin coating technique and low temperature heat treatment from relatively high titanium content organically modified silanes (ORMOSIL). The films were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), ellipsometry, atomic force microscopy (AFM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), UV-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) to study their optical and microstructural properties. It was observed that the film becomes thinner as the titanium content increases. A change of the refractive index through the range 1.44–1.55 at the optical wavelength of 633 nm was achieved by varying the molar ratio between ORMOSIL and titanium. UV-vis transmission spectroscopy and AFM results showed that macro-pore free and high transparency (in the visible range) waveguide films could be obtained at both low and high temperatures. While at low temperatures, our simpler recipe produced as good films as previously reported, it was noted that purely inorganic and crack-free silica-titania films with a thickness of about 0.5 μm could also be obtained when the film was baked at a temperature of 500°C or higher. Meanwhile, our films obtained after a high temperature heat treatment showed a hardness that is dependent on the heat treatment temperature. A hardness as high as 10.0 GP was achieved at a heat treatment temperature of 1000°C and we believe that this is a result of the formation of TiC structure.
ISSN:0040-6090
1879-2731
DOI:10.1016/S0040-6090(99)00683-5