Growth of Nd : potassium gadolinium tungstate thin-film waveguides by pulsed laser deposition

Thin Nd-doped potassium gadolinium tungstate [KGW or KGd(WO4)(2)] films are grown by pulsed laser deposition by ablation of a stoichiometric monocryst al target. Rutherford backscattering, x-ray diffraction, atomic force micro scopy, and waveguide propagation analyses are performed. The as-grown films are optically active, as evidenced by the photoluminescence spectra center ed at 1.068 mu m. In some of the films, fine photoluminescence spectra betw een Stark levels are observed. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S00 03-6951(00)00518-0].