Fabrication of submicron chalcogenide glass photonic crystal by resist-free nanoimprint lithography

We reported the fabrication of submicron photonic crystal with As40Se40Te20 chalcogenide glass by resist-free thermal nanoimprint using a soft stamp. The As40Se40Te20 glass was prepared with melt-quenching method, and measured to have broad transmission range, high linear and nonlinear refractive index, and good thermal stability. Due to the very low glass transition temperature, the thermal nanoimprint was accomplished directly on the resist-free bulk glass with the soft stamp. By choosing suitable imprint condition, submicron chalcogenide glass photonic crystal with the band gap covering telecom wavelength was obtained. Taking advantage of the high nonlinearity of As40Se40Te20 glass, the imprinted PC structure may have potential applications for all-optical switch in optical communications.