Waveguide refractometry as a probe of thin film optical uniformity
- Sandia National Laboratory, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87185-1349 (United States)
Optical inhomogeneities through the thickness of a sol-gel-derived, spin-coated Pb(Zr,Ti)O{sub 3} (PZT) thin film have been evaluated using prism-coupled waveguide refractometry. Unusual waveguide coupling angle behavior has been treated using a multilayer model to describe the optical characteristics of the film. Waveguide refractometry measurements, performed after incremental reductions in film thickness, were used to develop a consistent model for optical inhomogeneity through the film thickness. Specifically, a thin film layer model, consisting of alternating layers of high and low refractive index material, was found to accurately predict irregularities in transverse-electric (TE) mode coupling angles exhibited by the film. This layer structure has a spatial periodicity that is consistent with the positions of the upper film surface at intermediate firings during film synthesis. The correlation emphasizes the impact of the multistep thin-film deposition approach on the optical characteristics of the resulting thin film. {copyright} {ital 1997 Materials Research Society.}
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), Albuquerque, NM, and Livermore, CA (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-94AL85000
- OSTI ID:
- 497670
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Materials Research, Vol. 12, Issue 2; Other Information: PBD: Feb 1997
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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