NEW EXPERIMENTAL-TECHNIQUE FOR THE FABRICATION OF ION DIFFUSED OPTICAL-GLASS WAVE-GUIDES

A new electric-field-assisted ion diffusion technique has been used fo r the fabrication of optical waveguides in glass. The construction of the setup is discussed in detail. Ion exchange in standard glass slide can be performed very efficiently and the setup can be conveniently u sed for double diffusions which are required for the fabrication of bu ried waveguides. Silver ions of various mole fractions were diffused i n glass by this technique. Diffusion depth measurements were made both for the fabricated planar and channel waveguides.