Planar and ridge ZnO optical waveguides produced by 15 MeV C^5+ ion irradiation

In this work swift-heavy C5+ ion irradiation with energy of 15 MeV was taken place in ZnO crystal. Planar waveguide is observed in the ion beam affected region, showing single-mode optical confinement for both TE and TM polarization, with propagation loss at a low level. Refractive index profile of the waveguide was reconstructed, showing an optical “barrier” in the ion trajectory. Furthermore, ridge waveguides with good propagation properties were produced by precise diamond blade dicing. This is the first time to our knowledge the formation of 2-dimensional waveguides in ZnO crystal, using ion beam technique.