Buried ion-exchanged glass waveguides using field-assisted annealing

Theoretical and experimental studies on buried ion-exchanged waveguides using field-assisted annealing (FAA) in erbium-doped phosphate glasses are reported. The procedure for making buried waveguides with the use of a two-step process is demonstrated. An analytical model for the FAA process was developed to simulate the experimental conditions, and both the refractive index profiles and the effective buried depths of these waveguides are predicted. The mode intensity profiles as well as the buried depths are measured, and the measured data are in good agreement with the simulated results.