Er/sup 3+/-doped Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ thin films by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) exhibiting a 55-nm optical bandwidth

We report the first deposition of Er/sup 3+/-doped aluminum oxide thin-film optical waveguides by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The aluminum and erbium precursors used for the deposition of the thin films were trimethyl-aluminum and Er tri-chelate of 2,2,6,6-tetramethylheptane-3,5 dione respectively. The samples show broad, room-temperature photoluminescence at /spl lambda/=1.533 /spl mu/m. The Er/sup 3+/ concentration ranged from 0.01-0.2 at%. The full width half maximum (FWHM) of the Er/sup 3+/ emission spectrum is 55 nm, considerably broader than in silica glass. The radiative lifetime has been measured at 50-mW pump power.