Waveguide inscription in Bismuth Germanate crystals using high repetition rate femtosecond lasers pulses

We report on the inscription of optical waveguides into crystalline bismuth germanate (Bi4Ge3O12, BGO) via the femtosecond laser direct-write (FLDW) technique. We found that by utilizing femtosecond laser pulses at Megahertz (MHz) repetition rates, a uniquely different fabrication regime can be exploited. In this paper, we show that cumulative heating effects can initiate a local transformation of the crystalline structure into an amorphous (glass-like) state that is characterized by an increased refractive index. We compare and contrast this novel, type-I modification based waveguide inscription regime with the previously reported fabrication of type-II damage/stress field structures in BGO and present measurements that indicate that the femtosecond laser writing process unavoidably causes a reduction in the electro-optic coefficient in the waveguides as compared to the bulk material. We discuss the potential of this technique for the fabrication of advanced sensor arrays for high-energy radiation detection and voltage sensing applications. (C) 2015 Optical Society of America