This dissertation focuses on the structural transformations in photo-thermo-refractive (PTR) glass that enable recording phase holograms for efficient transformation of optical beams and high resolution spectroscopy. PTR glass is a multicomponent silicate matrix doped with Ce, Ag, Sn and Sb. It is a holographic phase medium with the ability of permanent refractive index change after UV exposure and thermal development above 500°C due to the precipitation of a NaF crystalline phase. Electronic processes are studied by analyzing the structure of absorption and luminescence bands of PTR glass matrix and its dopants. We analyze the structural transformations in PTR glass from the perspective of induced optical scattering. A high-sensitivity experimental setup for measuring scattering at 90° with respect to a 1-mm diameter probe beam at 405 nm was constructed. A specific algorithm of UV exposures and thermal regimes to reveal the lowest temperature at which inhomogeneities arise was proposed. It was shown that no scattering increase observed in UV exposed PTR glass after thermal processing at temperatures below 450°C. This means that all structural transformations produced by this treatment occurred at atomic scale. Finally, we discuss the low temperature ion exchange method. We describe the theoretical basis of this method and present an experimental layout capable of performing low-temperature ion exchange in the surface of PTR samples. Results of a system that provides measurements of surface refractive index called 'the waveguide method' is presented. It is shown how this system can be used for the characterization of planar optical waveguides created on the surface of PTR glass samples and how their refractive index profile can be calculated by the inverse Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin (WKB) method.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ucf.edu/oai:stars.library.ucf.edu:etd2020-2501 |
| Date | 01 January 2023 |
| Creators | Alvarez Aguirre, Roberto Alejandro |
| Publisher | STARS |
| Source Sets | University of Central Florida |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020- |
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