All-polymer photonic devices using excimer laser micromachining

A method for preparing endfaces of polymer waveguides on plastic substrates using excimer laser radiation is presented. Using a focussed excimer laser beam at 193 nm, clean vertical cuts have been achieved through plastic substrate, polymer waveguide core, and upper cladding material. This technique allows efficient coupling of light from an optical fiber into all-polymer photonic devices and facilitates dicing and optical fiber alignment groove fabrication.