ABSTRACTThe local environment of the polarizable ion in heavy metal oxide glasses is postulated to strongly influence the nonlinear response of these materials. We have previously observed that post-implantation thermal annealing changes the chemical properties of the implanted layer in a different fashion in Pb- and Bi- implanted SiO2. In this paper we report the optical behavior of Sb-implanted SiO2 as a function of annealing temperature and atmosphere. High purity fused silica substrates were implanted at room temperature to a dose of 6 × 1016 ions/cm2, and subsequently annealed at temperatures from 500 to 1000 C in argon and oxygen atmospheres. RBS, optical absorption (1.8 to 6.2 eV), infrared reflectance (450 to 5000 cm-1), and nonlinear index of refraction were measured before and after annealing. The results of these measurements indicate that annealing treatment significantly affects the local environment of the implanted Sb ions, and consequently the optical response.
Characterization of Thermally Annealed Sb Implanted Fused Silica
