Measurements of reactive ion etching process effect using long-period fiber gratings

The paper presents for the first time a study of long-period fiber gratings (LPFGs) applied for the measurements of reactive ion etching (RIE) process effect in various places of a plasma reactor. For the purposes of the experiment a number of highly sensitive LPFGs working at the dispersion turning point was fabricated using electric arc discharges. We show that the LPFGs allow for monitoring of the phenomena taking place in the reactor, especially those resulting in reduction of the LPFG diameter. Results of the measurements supported by simulations have shown that etching rate significantly decreases with elevation of the sample up to 3.6 mm over the electrode in the reactor, and stays constant above this height. (C) 2014 Optical Society of America