Optical properties of Er(DBM)3Phen-doped polymer and fabrication of ridge waveguide

Er(DBM)3Phen(DBM = dibenzoylmethane; phen = 1,10-phenanthroline)-doped PMMA-GMA (poly-methyl-methacrylate-glyciclyl- methacrylate) copolymer is prepared, the absorption spectrum and photoluminescence spectrum are analyzed. The full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the photoluminescence spectrum is about 85 nm. The Judd-Ofelt theory is used to analyse the absorption spectrum of Er3+ and obtain the intensity parameters: Ω2 = 4.08 × 10−20 cm2, Ω4 = 0.77 × 10−20 cm2 and Ω6 = 0.70 × 10−20 cm2.The line strengths, predicted spontaneous transition probabilities and the radiative lifetime are calculated with the J-O intensity parameters. The calculated radiative lifetime of excited 4I13/2 state of Er3+ is 12.4 ms. Ridge waveguide is fabricated using reactive ion etching. Based on the parameters we calculated, Er(DBM)3Phen-doped PMMA-GMA is a potential material for polymeric optical waveguide amplifiers.