Diamond waveguides fabricated by reactive ion etching

We demonstrate for the first time the feasibility of all-diamond integrated optic devices over large areas using a combination of photolithography, reactive ion etching (RIE) and focused ion beam (FIB) techniques. We confirm the viability of this scalable process by demonstrating guidance in a two-moded ridge waveguide in type 1b single crystal diamond. This opens the door to the fabrication of a diamond-based optical chip integrating functional elements such as X-crossings, Y-junctions, evanescent couplers, Bragg reflectors/couplers and various interferometers. (C) 2008 Optical Society of America