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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2013

Photorefractive effect at 775 nm in doped lithium niobate crystals

The photorefractive effect induced by 775-nm laser light on doped lithium niobate crystals is investigated by the direct observation in the far field of the transmitted-beam distortion as a function of time. Measurements performed at various Zr-doping concentrations and different light intensities show that the 775-nm light beam induces a steady-state photorefractive effect comparable to that of 532-nm light, but the observed build-up time of the photovoltaic field is longer by three-orders of magnitude. The 775-nm photorefractivity of lithium niobate crystals doped with 3 mol. % ZrO{sub 2} or with 5.5 mol. % MgO is found to be negligible.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2013

Pyroelectric field assisted ion migration induced by ultraviolet laser irradiation and its impact on ferroelectric domain inversion in lithium niobate crystals

The impact of UV laser irradiation on the distribution of lithium ions in ferroelectric lithium niobate single crystals has been numerically modelled. Strongly absorbed UV radiation at wavelengths of 244–305 nm produces steep temperature gradients which cause lithium ions to migrate and result in a local variation of the lithium concentration. In addition to the diffusion, here the pyroelectric effect is also taken into account which predicts a complex distribution of lithium concentration along the c-axis of the crystal: two separated lithium deficient regions on the surface and in depth. The modelling on the local lithium concentration and the subsequent variation of the coercive field are used to explain experimental results on the domain inversion of such UV treated lithium niobate crystals.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Precise, reproducible nano-domain engineering in lithium niobate crystals

We present a technique for domain engineering the surface of lithium niobate crystals with features as small as 100 nm. A film of chromium (Cr) is deposited on the lithium niobate surface and patterned using electron beam lithography and lift-off and then irradiated with a wide diameter beam of intense visible laser light. The regions patterned with chromium are domain inverted while the uncoated regions are not affected by the irradiation. With the ability to realize nanoscale surface domains, this technique could offer an avenue for fabrication of nano-photonic and phononic devices.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Growth, defect structure, and THz application of stoichiometric lithium niobate

Owing to the extraordinary richness of its physical properties, congruent lithium niobate has attracted multidecade-long interest both for fundamental science and applications. The combination of ferro-, pyro-, and piezoelectric properties with large electro-optic, acousto-optic, and photoelastic coefficients as well as the strong photorefractive and photovoltaic effects offers a great potential for applications in modern optics. To provide powerful optical components in high energy laser applications, tailoring of key material parameters, especially stoichiometry, is required. This paper reviews the state of the art of growing large stoichiometric LiNbO{sub 3} (sLN) crystals, in particular, the defect engineering of pure and doped sLN with emphasis on optical damage resistant (ODR) dopants (e.g., Mg, Zn, In, Sc, Hf, Zr, Sn). The discussion is focused on crystals grown by the high temperature top seeded solution growth (HTTSSG) technique using alkali oxide fluxing agents. Based on high-temperature phase equilibria studies of the Li{sub 2}O–Nb{sub 2}O{sub 5}–X{sub 2}O ternary systems (X = Na, K, Rb, Cs), the impact of alkali homologue additives on the stoichiometry of the lithium niobate phase will be analyzed, together with a summary of the ultraviolet, infrared, and far-infrared absorption spectroscopic methods developed to characterize the composition of the crystals. It will be shown that using HTTSSG from K{sub 2}O containing flux, crystals closest to the stoichiometric composition can be grown characterized by a UV-edge position of at about 302 nm and a single narrow hydroxyl band in the IR with a linewidth of less than 3 cm{sup −1} at 300 K. The threshold concentrations for ODR dopants depend on crystal stoichiometry and the valence of the dopants; Raman spectra, hydroxyl vibration spectra, and Z-scan measurements prove to be useful to distinguish crystals below and above the photorefractive threshold. Crystals just above the threshold are preferred for most nonlinear optical applications apart holography and have the additional advantage to minimize the absorption even in the far-infrared (THz) range. The review also provides a discussion on the progress made in the characterization of non-stoichiometry related intrinsic and extrinsic defect structures in doped LN crystals, with emphasis on ODR-ion-doped and/or closely stoichiometric systems, based on both spectroscopic measurements and theoretical modelling, including the results of first principles quantum mechanical calculations on hydroxyl defects. It will also be shown that new perspective applications, e.g., the generation of high energy THz pulses with energies on the tens-of-mJ scale, are feasible with ODR-doped sLN crystals if optimal conditions, including the contact grating technique, are applied.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Optical waveguides in lithium niobate: Recent developments and applications

The state of the art of optical waveguide fabrication in lithium niobate is reviewed, with particular emphasis on new technologies and recent applications. The attention is mainly devoted to recently developed fabrication methods, such as femtosecond laser writing, ion implantation, and smart cut waveguides as well as to the realization of waveguides with tailored functionalities, such as photorefractive or domain engineered structures. More exotic systems, such as reconfigurable and photorefractive soliton waveguides, are also considered. Classical techniques, such as Ti in-diffusion and proton exchange, are cited and briefly reviewed as a reference standpoint to highlight the recent developments. In all cases, the application-oriented point of view is preferred, in order to provide the reader with an up-to date panorama of the vast possibilities offered by lithium niobate to integrated photonics.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Periodic domain inversion in x-cut single-crystal lithium niobate thin film

We report the fabrication of periodically poled domain patterns in x-cut lithium niobate thin-film. Here, thin films on insulator have drawn particular attention due to their intrinsic waveguiding properties offering high mode confinement and smaller devices compared to in-diffused waveguides in bulk material. In contrast to z-cut thin film lithium niobate, the x-cut geometry does not require back electrodes for poling. Further, the x-cut geometry grants direct access to the largest nonlinear and electro-optical tensor element, which overall promises smaller devices. The domain inversion was realized via electric field poling utilizing deposited aluminum top electrodes on a stack of LN thin film/SiO{sub 2} layer/Bulk LN, which were patterned by optical lithography. The periodic domain inversion was verified by non-invasive confocal second harmonic microscopy. Our results show domain patterns in accordance to the electrode mask layout. The second harmonic signatures can be interpreted in terms of spatially, overlapping domain filaments which start their growth on the +z side.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Visible light absorbance enhanced by nitrogen embedded in the surface layer of Mn-doped sodium niobate crystals, detected by ultra violet - visible spectroscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and electric conductivity tests

Sodium niobate crystals doped with manganese ions, Na(NbMn)O{sub 3}, were annealed in a nitrogen N{sub 2} flow at 600, 670, and 930 K. It was verified that simultaneous doping with Mn ions and annealing in nitrogen enhanced the photocatalytic features of sodium niobate. The transmission in the ultraviolet-visible range was measured at room temperature. The absorbance edge is in the range from 3.4 to 2.3 eV. The optical band gap E{sub gap} = 1.2–1.3 eV was evaluated using the Tauc relation. Crystals annealed at 670 K and 930 K exhibited an additional shift of the absorption edge of ∼20–40 nm toward longer wavelengths. The optical energy gap narrowed as a result of the superimposed effect of Mn and N co-doping. The x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy test showed that N ions incorporated into the surface layer. The valence band consisted of O 2p states hybridized with Nb 4d, Mn 3d, and N 2s states. The disorder detected in the surroundings of Nb and O ions decreased due to annealing. The binding energy of oxygen ions situated within the surface layer was E{sub B} ≈ 531 eV. The other contributions were assigned to molecular contamination. The contribution centered at 535.5 eV vanished after annealing at 600 K and 670 K. The contribution centered at 534 eV vanished after annealing at 930 K. The N{sub 2} annealing partly removed carbonates from the surfaces of the samples. In the 480–950 K range, the electric conductivity activation energy, E{sub a} = 0.7–1.2 eV, was comparable with the optical E{sub gap}. The electric permittivity showed dispersion in the 0.1–800 kHz range that corresponds to the occurrence of defects.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Periodic domain patterning by electron beam of proton exchanged waveguides in lithium niobate

Formation of domain structure by electron beam irradiation in congruent lithium niobate covered by surface dielectric layer with planar and channel waveguides produced by Soft Proton Exchange (SPE) process has been studied. Formation of domains with arbitrary shapes as a result of discrete switching has been revealed. The fact was attributed to ineffective screening of depolarization field in the crystals with a surface layer modified by SPE process. The dependences of the domain sizes on the dose and the distance between irradiated areas have been revealed. Finally, we have demonstrated that electron beam irradiation of lithium niobate crystals with surface resist layer can produce high quality periodical domain patterns after channel waveguide fabrication. Second harmonic generation with normalized nonlinear conversion efficiency up to 48%/(W cm{sup 2}) has been achieved in such waveguides.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2018

Broadband mid-IR difference-frequency generation in 5 mol % MgO-doped periodically and aperiodically poled lithium niobate

We have theoretically investigated broadband mid-infrared (mid-IR) difference-frequency generation (DFG) in 5 mol % MgO-doped periodically poled lithium niobate (5 mol % MgO : PPLN) based on quasi-phase-matching (QPM) with group-velocity matching (GVM) between the pump and the idler for the eee interaction of QPM. The acceptance bandwidths are 282.3 nm and 35.4 nm around 3.4 μm with the signal and pump wavelengths fixed at 1.550 μm and 1.064 μm, and the required QPM periods are 30.26 μm and 30.25 μm, respectively. A method which can broaden the flattop QPM DFG acceptance bandwidth (ABW) around the GVM wavelength for the idler wavelength in 5 mol % MgO-doped aperiodically poled lithium niobate (5 mol % MgO : APPLN) is proposed. The structure of 5 mol % MgO : APPLN is optimised using a genetic algorithm by adjusting its parameters. The simulation results show that under the GVM conditions, the maximum ABW for the idler is 1045.9 nm and 96.6 nm at a fixed signal wavelength of 1.550 μm and at a fixed pump wavelength of 1.064 μm, respectively. The tradeoff between the reduced effective nonlinear coefficient and DFG ABW is discussed. (paper)

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2018

Optical Properties of Copper-Doped Lithium Niobate Crystals

We have studied the optical properties of copper-doped lithium niobate crystals using semiconductor light-emitting diodes and lasers emitting in the visible and ultraviolet spectral regions as excitation sources. The results demonstrate that, at an excitation frequency approaching the frequency of electronic absorption in copper ions, there is discrete resonance Raman scattering in the form of a frequency comb. The observed Raman satellites of discrete light scattering are due to polar longitudinal A{sub 1} optical modes of the lithium niobate single crystal. Under excitation by a light-emitting diode with a wavelength of 520 nm, we observe a sharp increase in discrete light scattering intensity in comparison with the photoluminescence excited by shorter wavelength excitation sources.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Heterogeneous microring and Mach-Zehnder modulators based on lithium niobate and chalcogenide glasses on silicon

In this study, thin films of lithium niobate are wafer bonded onto silicon substrates and rib-loaded with a chalcogenide glass, Ge 23 Sb 7 S 70 , to demonstrate strongly confined single-mode submicron waveguides, microring modulators, and Mach-Zehnder modulators in the telecom C band. The 200 μm radii microring modulators present 1.2 dB/cm waveguide propagation loss, 1.2 × 10 5 quality factor, 0.4 GHz/V tuning rate, and 13 dB extinction ratio. The 6 mm long Mach-Zehnder modulators have a half-wave voltage-length product of 3.8 V.cm and an extinction ratio of 15 dB. The demonstrated work is a key step towards enabling wafer scale dense on-chip integration of high performance lithium niobate electro-optical devices on silicon for short reach optical interconnects and higher order advanced modulation schemes.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Nanocomposite‐Seeded Epitaxial Growth of Single‐Domain Lithium Niobate Thin Films for Surface Acoustic Wave Devices

Epitaxial lithium niobate (LNO) thin films are an attractive material for devices across a broad range of fields, including optics, acoustics, and electronics. These applications demand high‐quality thin films without in‐plane growth domains to reduce the optical/acoustical losses and optimize efficiency. Twin‐free single‐domain‐like growth has been achieved previously, but it requires specific growth conditions that might be hard to replicate. In this work, a versatile nanocomposite‐seeded approach is demonstrated as an effective approach to grow single‐domain epitaxial lithium niobate thin films. Films are grown through a pulsed laser deposition method and growth conditions are optimized to achieve high‐quality epitaxial film. A comprehensive microstructure characterization is performed and optical properties are measured. A piezoelectric acoustic resonator device is developed to demonstrate the future potential of the nanocomposite‐seeded approach for high‐quality LNO growth for radio frequency (RF) applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Noncontact excitation of multi-GHz lithium niobate electromechanical resonators

Abstract The demand for high-performance electromechanical resonators is ever-growing across diverse applications, ranging from sensing and time-keeping to advanced communication devices. Among the electromechanical materials being explored, thin-film lithium niobate stands out due to its strong piezoelectric properties and low acoustic loss. However, in nearly all existing lithium niobate electromechanical devices, the configuration is such that the electrodes are in direct contact with the mechanical resonator. This configuration introduces an undesirable mass-loading effect, producing spurious modes and additional damping. Here, we present an electromechanical platform that mitigates this challenge by leveraging a flip-chip bonding technique to separate the electrodes from the mechanical resonator. By offloading the electrodes from the resonator, our approach yields a substantial increase in the quality factor of these resonators, paving the way for enhanced performance and reliability for their device applications.

Instruments & Instrumentation↗
DOE OSTI2026

Milliwatt-level UV generation using sidewall poled lithium niobate

Integrated coherent sources of ultra-violet (UV) light are essential for a wide range of applications, from ion-based quantum computing and optical clocks to gas sensing and microscopy. Recently, approaches that use frequency upconversion have received considerable attention. Among these, the integrated thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) photonic platform shows particular promise. However, to date, the high propagation losses and lack of reliable techniques for consistent poling of cm-long waveguides with small poling periods have impeded progress. Here, we present a sidewall poled lithium niobate (SPLN) waveguide approach that overcomes these obstacles and results in a two-orders-of-magnitude increase in generated UV power. We demonstrate SPLN waveguides featuring record-low propagation losses of 2.3 dB/cm, complete domain inversion across the waveguide cross-section, and an optimum 50% duty cycle, resulting in a record-high normalized conversion efficiency of 5050%W$^{−1}$cm$^{−2}$, and 4.2 mW of generated on-chip power at 390 nm wavelength. This advancement makes the TFLN platform a viable option for high-quality on-chip UV generation, benefiting emerging applications.

Franken, C. A.A. [Harvard U.; Twente U., Enschede]↗
DOE OSTI2024

Thin-film lithium niobate electro-optic terahertz wave detector

Here, the design, fabrication, and validation of a thin-film lithium niobate on insulator (LNOI) electro-optic (EO) time-domain terahertz (THz) wave detector is reported. LNOI offers unprecedented properties for the EO detection of freely propagating THz wave radiation pulses and transient electric fields because of the large EO coefficient of the material, engineering of the velocity matching of the THz wave and optical wave, and much reduced detector size. The proof-of-concept device is realized using thin-film lithium niobate optical waveguides forming a Mach–Zehnder interferometer with interferometer arms electrically poled in opposite directions. THz waves are coupled effectively to the fully dielectric device from free space without using antennas or plasmonics. The detection of THz waves with frequencies up to 800 GHz is successfully demonstrated. The detector allows for the detection of THz frequency electric fields up to 4.6 MV/m. The observed frequency response of the device agrees well with theoretical predictions.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
DOE OSTI2020

Incorporation of erbium ions into thin-film lithium niobate integrated photonics

As an active material with favorable linear and nonlinear optical properties, thin-film lithium niobate has demonstrated its potential in integrated photonics. Integration with rare-earth ions, which are promising candidates for quantum memories and transducers, will enrich the system with new applications in quantum information processing. In this work, we investigate the optical properties at 1.5 μm wavelengths of rare-earth ions (Er 3+ ) implanted in thin-film lithium niobate waveguides and micro-ring resonators. Optical quality factors near a million after post-annealing show that ion implantation damage can be repaired. The transition linewidth and fluorescence lifetime of erbium ions are characterized. The ion-cavity coupling is observed through a Purcell enhanced fluorescence from which a Purcell factor of 3.8 ± 0.5, compared with waveguide lifetime, is extracted. This platform is compatible with top-down lithography processes and leads to a scalable path for controlling spin-photon interfaces in photonic circuits.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Poling thin-film x-cut lithium niobate for quasi-phase matching with sub-micrometer periodicity

Quasi-phase-matched grating structures in lithium niobate waveguides with sub-micrometer periodicities will benefit the development of short-wavelength nonlinear optical devices. Here, we report on the reproducible formation of periodically poled domains in x-cut single-crystalline thin-film lithium niobate with periodicities as short as 600 nm. Shaped single-voltage poling pulses were applied to electrode structures that were fabricated by a combination of electron-beam and direct-writing laser lithography. Evidence of successful poling with good quality was obtained through second-harmonic microscopy and piezoresponse force microscopy imaging. For the sub-micrometer period structures, we observed patterns with a double periodicity formed by domain interactions and features with sizes <200 nm.

Zhao, Jie (ORCID:0000000306230125)↗
DOE OSTI2020

High frequency lithium niobate film-thickness-mode optomechanical resonator

High-frequency optomechanical resonators are in demand as transduction devices to bridge microwave and optical fields. Thin-film lithium niobate is a promising platform for implementing high-frequency optomechanics for its low optical loss and strong piezoelectric coefficients. However, its strong piezoelectricity is also known to introduce excess phonon loss. Here, we present lithium niobate optomechanical resonators with film-thickness-mode mechanical resonances up to 5.2 GHz, reaching the operating frequency regime of superconducting qubits. By engineering the mechanical anchor to minimize the phonon loss, we achieve a high quality factor up to 12 500 at cryogenic temperatures and, hence, a frequency-quality factor product of 6.6 × 10 13 . Our system also features interference between piezo-optomechanical and electro-optic modulation. A theoretical model is derived to analyze these two effects and their interference.

42 ENGINEERING↗