Eu 3+ -doped microcavities fabricated by sol–gel process

Abstract

The fabrication of microcavities by a sol–gel process and their optical properties are described. The cavities are constituted of an Eu3+-doped SiO2 active layer inserted between two Bragg mirrors, fabricated by stacking alternatiely undoped TiO2 and SiO2 sol–gel thin films. Eu3+ luminescence modification due to the cavity effect, intensity enhancement and modification of the line shape has been observed, and shows a cavity quality factor of 1200. The reflectivity factor of the associated Bragg mirrors reaches 99.8% for seven alternate SiO2/TiO2 layers.