Lithium niobate ridge waveguides and modulators fabricated using smart guide

Abstract

Ridge waveguides are fabricated using submicron thin films of lithium niobate prepared by crystal ion slicing and wafer bonding (“smart guide”). The waveguides are made by physical etching the lithium niobate thin film using ion beam milling. The waveguides are low loss. An electro-optic polarization modulator with $V_{\pi }L$ of $15\mathrm{V}\mathrm{cm}$ at $\lambda =1.55\mu \mathrm{m}$ is demonstrated using the waveguides.