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Diffusion of gallium in sapphire
V.Apostolopoulos, L.M.B.Hickey1, D.A.Sager, J.S.Wilkinson
Optoelectronics Research Centre, University of Southampton, UK
1. Southampton Photonics Inc., Phi House, Chilworth Science Park, Enterprise Road,
Southampton SO16 7NS, UK.
Abstract
In this paper, the characteristics of the diffusion of gallium into sapphire are investigated by SIMS analysis, as a step towards the fabrication of optimized Ga:sapphire optical waveguides. The diffusion coefficient was obtained for temperatures between 1400°C and 1600°C, and the results confirm that sapphire substrates can be readily doped with gallium, to depths in the order of microns, at a temperature of 1600°C. The procedure yields samples with low surface roughness and no apparent unwanted surface features, and the dopant concentration can be selected over a wide range, as gallium has a high solid solubility in sapphire.
Journal of the European Ceramic Society (2006) Vol.26(13) pp.2695-2698
doi: 10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2005.06.039
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Copyright University of Southampton 2006