Investigation of waveguide structures formed by irradiation of fused quartz with hydrogen ions

The effective refractive index of modes traveling in waveguides formed by irradiation of fused quartz with hydrogen ions was determined as a function of the implanted-ion dose, ion energy, and annealing temperature. The change in the refractive index Δn in the irradiated layer was estimated. Annealing in the temperature range 600–700°C reduced the waveguide thickness without altering significantly the value of Δn. Two integrated-optics components–a mode selector and a waveguide polarizer–were made from these waveguides.