Refractive index profiles of ion implanted optical waveguides

The refractive index of insulators may be changed by ion implantation and for several crystalline materials such as quartz, LiNbO3 and LiTaO3 this is thought to be associated with the production of regions of high defect density or even amorphisation of the lattice. Analyses of the refractive index profiles using reflectivity and waveguide mode spacing have been compared. These reveal distinct differences in the profiles of n0 and n e for LiNbO3 and LiTaO3. These data will be discussed in terms of the contributions to the damage from electronic excitation and nuclear collision damage.