Experiments for inorganic-organic hybrid sol-gel films for micro- and nano-photonics

Inorganic-organic hybrid materials can offer multifunctionality and allow properties tailoring from subnanometer (atomic) to submillimeter (mesoscopic) length scales. That is why these films could play a significant role in the field of micro- and nano-photonic devices (waveguids, emitting devices, quantum dot devices, photonic band gaps and holographic materials). The organic groups can modify the inorganic backbone by reducing the connectivity of the gel network allowing thick film deposition and lessening the processing temperature. In order to follow the sol-gel chemistry in the case of the substituted alkoxides that influence the molecular species presented in solution at the moment of deposition, model systems based on tetraethoxysilane (TEOS), methyltriethoxysilane (MTEOS) and vinyltriethoxysilane (VTEOS) were investigated. The hybrid organic-inorganic sol-gel-based photonic components were realized with phenyltriethoxysilane (PTEOS). The composition and the process were optimized to allow a better control of the optical parameters (losses, refractive index, transmission), to reduce the processing temperature and to improve photosensitivity. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.