Sputtering and Pulsed Laser Deposition for Near‐ and Mid‐Infrared Applications: A Comparative Study of Ge ₂₅ Sb ₁₀ S ₆₅ and Ge ₂₅ Sb ₁₀ Se ₆₅ Amorphous Thin Films

Abstract

The deposition of Ge 25 Sb 10 S 65 and Ge 25 Sb 10 Se 65 amorphous chalcogenide thin films was performed by radio‐frequency magnetron sputtering and pulsed laser deposition technique. The deposited layers were characterized by studying their morphology, topography, chemical composition, structure, and optical functions permitting a direct comparison of two deposition methods for obtaining attractive amorphous chalcogenide films. Reactive ion etching was then used to pattern rib/ridge waveguides in sulfide and selenide films with low surface roughness, vertical sidewalls, and reasonable etching rate. Optical losses of fabricated waveguides were measured at 1550 nm with values better than 1 dB/cm obtained for sulfide/selenide films deposited by both techniques.