Research at WNF

The first step in reaching our goal of microfabricating optical systems on a chip (oSOC) is to demonstrate clean room fabrication of components such as filters. In this time period, we have identified suitable substrates and a base materials with other additives that will allow precise control of the filter properties through our simulation program. This program1 is simultaneously being developed, tested against experimental results and refined to account for the micro scale physical effects. An example of an array of filters is shown in figure 1 taken through an optical microscope. The same filter material is used to vary the optical density using lithographic techniques. In figure 2, different filters are fabricated on the same substrate. The visible transmission properties of a filters fabricated at WNF are shown in Figure 3. A “red” filter is fabricated using one and two deposited layers. A “blue” layer is constructed using one deposition. Finally, the combination of red (2 layers) and blue (1 layer) transmission is shown.