Preparation and Optical Properties of Erbium Doped Chalcogenide Glass Films by Magnetron Sputtering

Abstract

  Erbium doped Ge-Ga-Se thin films were deposited by RF magnetron sputtering of powder and sintered composite targets. The dependence of the photoluminescence (PL) intensity of the films on the deposition conditions has been investigated. It is found that the intensity of PL depends on the RF power, whereas the composition of the films does not depend on that of the targets. Although the shape of PL spectrum in the films is similar to that of bulk glasses, the value of the PL life times in the films is shorter than that of bulk glasses. The reason would be the difference of composition of matrix glasses between bulk and the films.