Optical and structural properties of amorphous silicon-nitrides and silicon-oxycarbides: Application of multilayer structures for the coupling of Bloch Surface Waves

Hydrogenated amorphous silicon nitrides (a-SiNx:H) and oxycarbides (a-SiOxCy:H) have been grown by means of plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) at a low power density (40-60 mW/cm2) using silane, ammonia, methane and carbon dioxide as silicon, nitrogen, carbon and oxygen precursors, respectively. Their refractive index dispersion curves have been analyzed by means of specular reflectance spectroscopy and their structural properties by FTIR spectroscopy. Taking advantage of their optical properties, the alloys have been fruitfully applied in dielectric stratified structures, optimized for the propagation of surface electromagnetic waves.