Fabrication Of Nd : Kgw Waveguides By Use Of Nozzle-Gas-Assisted Pld Method

Nd:KGW [or Nd:KGd(WO4)2] films are grown using the nozzle-gas-assisted pulsed-laser deposition (NGA-PLD) method. A KrF excimer laser is used for the ablation of K-rich ceramic targets and films are deposited on r-cut sapphire substrates. The dependences of the oxygen nozzle gas on the film optical and crystallographic properties are investigated. The Nd:KGW film is colored if the mass flow is not sufficient. The origin of the color is attributed to the oxygen deficiency phase which is confirmed by the optical absorption and x-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements. Highly crystallized Nd:KGW films are grown by NGA-PLD under the optimized conditions. Comparing the films grown by conventional PLD (C-PLD) method, a dramatic improvement in the film surface morphology is achieved with NGA-PLD.