Fabrication technology for PDMS ridge waveguide using DLW

In this paper, we demonstrate polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) ridge waveguide prepared by new technology. Maskless direct laser writing (DLW) process for photoresist master patterning was used in combination with PDMS imprinting technique. PDMS ridge waveguide was prepared using combination of two different PDMS – Sylgard 184 and LS-6941. Morphological properties of prepared waveguide were investigated by confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Guiding properties were studied by beam propagation method (BPM) simulations and by near-field scanning optical microscope (NSOM) where multimode propagation in the visible spectrum of light was revealed.