Wavefront control of SiO2-based ultraviolet narrow-bandpass filters prepared by plasma ion-assisted deposition

Metal oxide layers produced by plasma ion-assisted deposition are extensively used for complex optical coatings due to the availability of materials, the high packing density of films, and the smooth surfaces. Stringent optical surface figure specifications necessary for both laser optics and precision optics require film stress to be well-controlled and surface deformation to be corrected or compensated. SiO(2)- based single-cavity UV narrow-bandpass filters were prepared by plasma ion-assisted deposition. The correlation between film stress, refractive index, deposition parameters, and postdeposition annealing was established. The film stress was calculated based on interferometric surface deformation. The refractive index and film thickness were determined by means of variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry. The center wavelength of the filters was obtained through spectral transmission measurement. The results suggest that the wavefront distortion of the multilayer coatings is dominated by the compressive stress of the SiO(2) layers and can be controlled and corrected by the amount of plasma ion momentum transfer, substrate temperature, postdeposition annealing, and stress compensation via backside SiO(2) coating. Based on the understanding of the mechanical and optical properties, the wavefront correction technique enables us to satisfy stringent surface figure specifications.     

Stepwise graded refractive-index profiles for design of a narrow-bandpass filter

A combination of stepwise graded refractive-index profiles and a cavity structure is used for designing narrow-bandpass filters of TiO(2)/SiO(2) multilayer films upon BK7 glass substrates. Symmetrical profiles of stepwise graded refractive indices result in high transmittance of passbands for the designed filters. The bandwidth of the narrow-bandpass filter is controlled by adjustment of parameters such as the thickness and the number of layers in the multilayer stack. This design is proposed as a new and simple method for coating synthesis of optical filters.     

Center wavelength shift dependence on substrate coefficient of thermal expansion for optical thin-film interference filters deposited by ion-beam sputtering

Single-layer films of Ta2O5 and multilayer thin-film filters of Ta2O5 and SiO2 were deposited by ion-beam-sputter deposition. Postdeposition annealing of the structures resulted in increased optical thickness of the films, resulting in an upward shift in the wavelength of the transmission-reflection spectra. Modeling of the single-layer films by means of the effective media approximation indicates an increase in the void fraction of the film after annealing. This increase is consistent with an observed decrease in refractive index and an increase in physical film thickness. The multilayer structures, deposited on substrates of varying coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), were annealed at various temperatures, and the change in the center wavelength was measured. The measured change is dependent on the annealing temperature and the substrate CTE, indicating that the increase in the void fraction is caused in part by thermally induced stress during the annealing process. A simple model is proposed that relates the void fraction present in the films after annealing with the substrate CTE and the annealing temperature.     

Thermally stable narrow-bandpass filter prepared by reactive ion-assisted sputtering

Thermal stabilities of three-cavity narrow-bandpass (NB) filters with high-index half-wave spacers and 78-102 layers of Ta(2)O(5) and SiO(2) prepared by reactive ion-assisted bipolar direct-current (dc) magnetron sputtering of tantalum and silicon targets, respectively, were investigated. Pure argon and pure oxygen were used as the sputtering gas and the reactant, respectively. The oxygen gas was introduced and ionized through the ion gun and toward the unheated BK7 glass substrate. The refractive indices of single-layer Ta(2)O(5) and SiO(2) films were 2.1 and 1.45, respectively, at 1550 nm, which were comparable with those of films prepared by other ion-assisted coating techniques. The moisture-resistant properties of the films were excellent as evidenced from the water-immersion test, implying that the packing density of the films was close to that of their bulk materials. The temperature-dependant wavelength shifts of the NB filters were <3 x 10(-3) nm/ degrees C at temperatures of <75 degrees C, indicating that the temperature-induced wavelength shift of the filter was <0.15 nm when the temperatures were raised from room temperature to 75 degrees C, which was compliant with Bellcore GR-1209-CORE generic requirements of NB filters used for optical-fiber communication systems.     

In situ and air index measurements: influence of the deposition parameters on the shift of TiO2/SiO2 Fabry-Perot filters

We measure the refractive index of thin films of TiO2 and SiO2 for given deposition parameters. Two complementary methods are used. The first is a postdeposition technique which uses the measurements of reflectance and transmittance in air. The second, in contrast, makes use of in situ measurements (under vacuum and during the actual deposition of the layer). The differences between the values deduced from the two methods can be explained by the amount of atmospheric moisture adsorbed by films. One tries to minimize these shifts for the two materials by choosing deposition parameters. The difficulties come from the absorption losses which must be as small as possible. We use the measured refractive indices of individual layers to give good numerical prediction of the wavelength shift (observed during the admittance of air after deposition in the vacuum chamber) of the transmittance peak of multidielectric Fabry-Perot filters.     

PECVD法低温制备二氧化硅薄膜(英文)

针对金属层间介质以及MEMS等对氧化硅薄膜的需求,介绍了采用等离子增强型化学气相沉积(PECVD)技术,以SiH4和N2O为反应气体,低温制备SiO2薄膜的方法.利用椭偏仪和应力测试系统对制得的SiO2薄膜的厚度、折射率、均匀性以及应力等性能指标进行了测试,探讨了射频功率、反应腔室压力、气体流量比等关键工艺参数对SiO2薄膜性能的影响.结果表明:SiO2薄膜的折射率主要由N2O/SiH4的流量比决定,而薄膜均匀性主要受电极间距以及反应腔室压力的影响.通过优化工艺参数,在低温260℃下制备了折射率为1.45～1.52、均匀性为±0.64%、应力在-350～-16MPa可控的SiO2薄膜.采用该方法制备的SiO2薄膜均匀性好、结构致密、沉积速率快、沉积温度低且应力可控,可广泛应用于集成电路以及MEMS器件中.     

Temperature stability of thin-film narrow-bandpass filters produced by ion-assisted deposition

Four types of single-cavity, thin-film, narrow-bandpass filter whose full width at half-maximum ranges from 0.5 to 1.1 nm are produced by ion-assisted deposition of alternating TiO(2)/SiO(2) or Ta(2)O(5)/SiO(2) layers upon eight substrates having differing coefficients of linear expansion, and the temperature stability of their center wavelengths is examined in the 1540-nm wavelength region. The temperature stability is shown to be greatly dependent on the coefficient of linear expansion of the substrate upon which the filter is deposited. For the eight substrates whose coefficients of linear expansion range from 0 to 142 × 10(-7)/°C, the temperature stability of the filters ranges from +0.018 to -0.005 nm/°C. Calculations based on a newly developed elastic strain model reveal that the main reason temperature stability of the center wavelengths exhibits substrate dependency is due to a reduction in film packing density brought about by volumetric distortion of the film, which is caused by stress induced from the substrate.     

Effects of annealing on the optical, structural, and chemical properties of TiO2 and MgF2 thin films prepared by plasma ion-assisted deposition

Effects of thermal annealing at 400 degrees C on the optical, structural, and chemical properties of TiO2 single-layer, MgF2 single-layer, and TiO2/MgF2 narrow-bandpass filters deposited by conventional electron-beam evaporation (CE) and plasma ion-assisted deposition (PIAD) were investigated. In the case of TiO2 films, the results show that the annealing of both CE and PIAD TiO2 films increases the refractive index slightly and the extinction coefficient and surface roughness greatly. Annealing decreases the thickness of CE TiO2 films drastically, whereas it does not vary that of PIAD TiO2 films. For PIAD MgF2 films, annealing increases the refractive index and decreases the extinction coefficient drastically. An x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis suggests that an increase in the refractive index and a decrease in the extinction coefficient for PIAD MgF2 films after annealing may be related to the enhanced concentration of MgO in the annealed PIAD MgF2 films and the changes in the chemical bonding states of Mg 2p, F 1s, and O is. It is found that (TiO2/MgF2) multilayer filters, consisting of PIAD TiO2 and CE MgF2 films, are as deposited without microcracks and are also thermally stable after annealing.     

General approach to reliable characterization of thin metal films

Optical constants of thin metal films are strongly dependent on deposition conditions, growth mode, and thickness. We propose a universal characterization approach that allows reliable determination of thin metal film optical constants as functions of wavelength and thickness. We apply this approach to determination of refractive index dispersion of silver island films embedded between silica layers.     

Measurement of the physical thickness and refractive index of thin epitaxial garnet films

A technique for the measurement of refractive index and physical film thickness of epitaxial garnet films is described which utilizes variable wavelength measurements. Experimental results are presented for gadolinium gallium garnet substrates and two different bubble domain film compositions. From these results, it is concluded that the technique is not applicable to wafers with films on both sides due to the differences in film thickness of the two films. For single sided wafers, the refractive index can be determined with an accuracy of ±0.3 percent.     

基于Rugate理论的负滤光片设计研究

研究基于Rugate理论设计负滤光片。分析了折射率剖面函数各参数对光谱性能影响,提出了基于Rugate理论负滤光片设计方法,并给出了两组基于Rugate负滤光片设计的实例。研究表明,折射率峰-峰幅值、光学厚度、中心波长分别决定负滤光片反射带宽度、截止深度和位置。     

Preparation of silica thin films by novel wet process and study of their optical properties

Silicon dioxide (SiO2) thin films have gained considerable attention because of their various industrial applications. For example, SiO2 thin films are used in superhydrophilic self-cleaning surface glass, UV protection films, anti-reflection coatings, and insulating materials. Recently, many processes such as vacuum evaporation, sputtering, chemical vapor deposition, and spin coating have been widely applied to prepare thin films of functionally graded materials. However, these processes suffer from several engineering problems. For example, a special apparatus is required for the deposition of films, and conventional wet processes are not suitable for coating the surfaces of substrates with a large surface area and complex morphology. In this study, we investigated the film morphology and optical properties of SiO2 films prepared by a novel technique, namely, liquid phase deposition (LPD). Images of the SiO2 films were obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) in order to study the surface morphology of these films: these images indicate that films deposited with different reaction times were uniform and dense and were composed of pure silica. Optical properties such as refractive index and transmittance were estimated by UV-vis spectroscopy and ellipsometry. SiO2 films with porous structures at the nanometer scale (100-250 nm) were successfully produced by LPD. The deposited film had excellent transmittance in the visible wavelength region.     

低温沉积SiO2薄膜工艺的研究

利用等离子体增强化学气相沉积系统（PECVD）研究SiO2薄膜低温制备工艺,分析工艺条件对薄膜性能参数影响,通过调节射频功率优化薄膜应力,在150℃低温下获得接近零应力SiO2薄膜,薄膜沉积速率约为40nm／min,片内均匀性优于3％,折射率为1．46±0．003,并具有良好的附着力和抗蚀性能。由于沉积温度低,薄膜性能好,因此可以作为绝缘层或介质层,应用于柔性电子领域。     

Dünnschichtfilter in der Telekommunikation

Market forces are pushing the performance of optics to their limits. Optical components must be developed to provide the best possible combination of manufacturability, performance and price. One vital step to success in creating WDM optics lies in a discipline that is often overlooked or misunderstood – coating engineering. A key technology for controlling light in WDM systems is the optical filter, which performs functions from simple filtering in multiplexers and demultiplexers, to more sophisticated functions in optical amplifiers, modulators and test equipment. The basic tool of multiplexing and demultiplexing devices, thin film filters offer accurate center wavelength, broad flattop passband and high isolation from adjacent and nonadjacent channels. Thin film filters are widely used for gain flattening, band splitting, C and L band separation and combining amplifier‐pump beams. Choosing the right thin‐film‐deposition process is essential for the efficiency and productivity of vacuum coating systems. LEYBOLD OPTICS has developed and optimized a comprehensive range of vacuum coating processes and process tools. LEYBOLD OPTICS has been proven the ability of producing shift‐free coatings on large substrate areas by means of PIAD (Plasma Ion Assisted Deposition) in many applications over the past ten years. The low loss and stress values achieved, especially with silica and tantala films, allows besides the production of narrow band pass filters (DWDM, CWDM) also the production of gain flattening filters (GFF). PIAD is considerably improving the properties of evaporated thin films by high energy ion bombardment during the growing of the film. PIAD allows to produce dense shift free thin films with high refractive index, good adhesion and extremely low absorption. With the Advanced Plasma Source (APS) LEYBOLD OPTICS has developed a high power plasma source for PIAD. The APS provides high ion current densities over a large surface area in a neutral plasma to produce high quality layers at a high productivity.     

Evolution of optical properties with deposition time of silicon nitride and diamond-like carbon films deposited by radio-frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition method

The paper presents investigations of the optical properties of thin high-refractive-index silicon nitride (SiN_x) and diamond-like carbon (DLC) films deposited by the radio-frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition method for applications in tuning the functional properties of optical devices working in the infrared spectral range, e.g., optical sensors, filters or resonators. The deposition technique offers the ability to control the film's optical properties and thickness on the nanometer scale. We obtained thin, high-refractive-index films of both types at deposition temperatures below 350 °C, which is acceptable under the thermal budget of most optical devices. In the case of SiN_x films, it was found that for short deposition processes (up to 5 min long) the refractive index of the film increases in parallel with its thickness (up to 50 nm), while for longer processes the refractive index becomes almost constant. For DLC films, the effect of refractive index increase was observed up to 220 nm in film thickness.     

Ellipsometric and Rutherford Back scattering Spectrometry studies of SiO(X)N(Y) films elaborated by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition technique

Silicon oxynitride (SiO(X)N(Y)) thin films were deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition technique (PECVD) from silane (SiH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), ammonia (NH3) and nitrogen (N2) mixture. Spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE), in the range of wavelengths 450-900 nm, was used to define the film thickness and therefore the deposition rate, as well as the refractive index as a function of the N2O gaseous flow. While considering the (Si3N4, SiO2, H2 or void) heterogeneous mixture, Maxwell Garnett (MG) theory allows to fit the SE measurements and to define the volume fraction of the different phases. Finally, Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS) results showed that x = O/Si ratio increases gradually with increasing the N2O flow, allowing the correlation of the SiO(X)N(Y) films main parameters.     

氧化锌/二氧化硅复合膜的结构色研究

采用静电自组装技术,以氧化锌（ZnO）和二氧化硅（SiO2）溶胶颗粒为前驱体,通过控制双组分膜层的不同厚度,制备出结构色鲜艳的ZnO/SiO2复合膜,并利用分光测色仪、多角度分光光度仪及扫描电子显微镜等研究复合膜的颜色、微观结构和形态特征。研究结果发现,ZnO/SiO2复合膜的亮度和色度均较单一组分薄膜的高,复合薄膜的颜色仍随厚度和观察角度的变化而变化。通过对薄膜的微观结构分析,结合其厚度随周期数的变化规律,发现复合薄膜的厚度随着自组装循环次数的增加而增加,薄膜中的纳米粒子并没有形成明显的高低折射率交替分布的双层结构,可能形成的是高折射率层（H层）、有效折射率层（eff层）和低折射率层（L层）的多层微观结构。这种特殊的多层结构与光作用发生干涉,形成了鲜亮度和饱和度更高的结构色。     

Ellipsometry on sputter-deposited tin oxide films: optical constants versus stoichiometry, hydrogen content, and amount of electrochemically intercalated lithium

Tin oxide thin films were deposited by reactive radio-frequency magnetron sputtering onto In(2)O(3):Sn-coated and bare glass substrates. Optical constants in the 3002500-nm wavelength range were determined by a combination of variable-angle spectroscopic ellipsometry and spectrophotometric transmittance measurements. Surface roughness was modeled from optical measurements and compared with atomic-force microscopy. The two techniques gave consistent results. The fit between experimental optical data and model results could be significantly improved when it was assumed that the refractive index of the Sn oxide varied across the film thickness. Varying the oxygen partial pressure during deposition made it possible to obtain films whose complex refractive index changed at the transition from SnO to SnO(2). An addition of hydrogen gas during sputtering led to lower optical constants in the full spectral range in connection with a blueshift of the bandgap. Electrochemical intercalation of lithium ions into the Sn oxide films raised their refractive index and enhanced their refractive-index gradient.     

Temperature-stable bandpass filters deposited with plasma ion-assisted deposition

Plasma ion-assisted deposition with an advanced plasma source was investigated to produce narrow-bandpass filters in the near-infrared spectral range for telecommunication applications. The multilayer coatings were qualified by the optical performance, the vacuum-to-air behavior, the temperature stability, and the film stress. TiO(2)/SiO(2) and Ta(2) O(5)/SiO (2) material combinations were used and compared. The coating system produced low absorbing multilayers with a very low coefficient of expansion and low stress. The coefficient of expansion was in the low 10(-6) °C range, and film stress values in the range between 1 and 2 × 10(8) N/m(2) were obtained. TiO(2)/SiO(2) was the preferred material combination. The optical monitoring system allowed the production of bandpass filters with a performance close to that of the theoretical values.     

Equivalent refractive index of multilayer films of different materials

The variation of the equivalent refractive index with composition of multilayer films of ZnS-MgF₂-SiO, ZnS-Na₃AlF₆ and Ge-ZnS, prepared by depositing alternate layers of different materials, has been investigated. It has been established that, for small step thicknesses (much less than the wavelength of light to be used for measurements) of each layer, the composite multilayer films are optically equivalent to homogeneously mixed films of the same materials of corresponding relative compositions. Further, the results show that the indices of the multilayer films of ZnS-MgF₂-SiO and ZnS-Na₃AlF₆ are in good agreement with the values predicted on the basis of the Lorentz-Lorenz theory. The refractive index of Ge-ZnS multilayer films is in agreement with the Drude theory. Our studies also show that the refractive index of a multilayer film composed of three materials, two of which react chemically in the molten and vapour states, as, for example, ZnS and SiO in ZnS-MgF₂-SiO films, is equivalent to that expected theoretically for a homogeneously mixed film of the same materials. The controlled and predictable equivalent behaviour of multilayer films suggests their use to produce variable refractive index optical coatings by selecting any number of materials which may or may not react with each other chemically.