Blazed grating optical waveguide and preparation method thereof

Abstract

The invention discloses a blazed grating optical waveguide and a preparation method thereof. The method comprises the following steps: plating a first film layer with a specific refractive index on the surface of a substrate; coining a blazed grating pattern layer on the surface of the first film layer; depositing a second film layer on the surface of the blazed grating pattern layer; etching the second film layer above the blazed surface in the blazed grating pattern layer; and etching the blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer to prepare the blazed grating on the first film layer. According to the method, a second film layer is deposited on an embossed blazed grating pattern, then the blazed grating is transferred to a first film layer with a high refractive index through etching, and the anti-blazed angle of the blazed grating is controlled through residues of the second film layer arranged on the outer side of an anti-blazed surface in the transfer process. Therefore, the adjustability of the anti-blazing angle of the blazed grating is improved, and the diffraction optical waveguide manufacturing method for directly etching the blazed grating on the high-refractive-index film layer is realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure generally relates to the field of optical waveguide technology. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a blazed grating optical waveguide and a method for making the same. Background Art

[0002] One of the difficulties of augmented reality (AR) technology is the optical combiner that combines the virtual world and the real world. Among the many existing technical routes, the diffraction optical waveguide is the most promising. The diffraction optical waveguide uses a coupling grating to couple the light source in the micro projector into the optical waveguide, which guides the diffracted light to propagate in it, and then the coupling grating outputs the light from the inside of the optical waveguide to the external space.

[0003] Among diffraction waveguides, there is a special type of blazed grating waveguide, that is, a diffraction waveguide with a blazed grating as the diffraction grating. Blazed grating is a type of diffraction grating with sawtooth or triangular grooves, and the angle between the inclined surface of the grating groove (also called the blazed surface) and the grating plane is called the blazed angle. When light from an external light source is irradiated onto the blazed grating, the blazed grating can maximize the diffraction efficiency of light of a specific wavelength (or blazed wavelength) and minimize the diffraction efficiency of light of other wavelengths, where the blazed wavelength is determined by the blazed angle; therefore, the blazed grating waveguide utilizes the selectivity of the blazed grating to the wavelength of incident light, and can selectively diffract and transmit light of a specific wavelength, thereby achieving high-quality color image display.

[0004] At present, the production method of blazed grating optical waveguide mainly includes: covering a high refractive index film layer (the film layer material is, for example, TiO 2 , HfO 2 ); a blazed grating template is made on a silicon substrate, an imprinting process is used to imprint the imprinted glue of the blazed grating shape onto the high refractive index film layer, and then the blazed grating shape is transferred to the high refractive index film layer through an etching process. However, since the imprinted glue is relatively soft, during the etching transfer process, it is difficult to keep the anti-blaze surface (each sawtooth of the blazed grating protrudes two surfaces, namely the blazed surface and the non-blazed surface) vertical, resulting in the anti-blaze angle (i.e. the angle between the anti-blazed surface and the grating plane) cannot be controlled to 90°. In view of this, the present disclosure discloses a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide, thereby improving the controllability of the anti-blazed angle of the blazed grating. Summary of the invention

[0005] In order to at least solve one or more technical problems described in the above background technology section, the present disclosure proposes the following technical solutions and multiple embodiments thereof.

[0006] In a first aspect, the present disclosure provides a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide, comprising: coating a first film layer having a specific refractive index on a substrate surface; imprinting a blazed grating pattern layer on the surface of the first film layer; depositing a second film layer on the surface of the blazed grating pattern layer; etching the second film layer above the blazed surface in the blazed grating pattern layer; and etching the blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer to prepare a blazed grating optical waveguide on the first film layer.

[0007] In a second aspect, the present disclosure provides a blazed grating optical waveguide, wherein the blazed grating optical waveguide is prepared according to the method described in the first aspect.

[0008] According to the method for preparing a blazed grating disclosed in the present disclosure, a second film layer is deposited on the imprinted blazed grating pattern, and then the blazed grating is transferred to a first film layer with a high refractive index by etching, and during the transfer process, the anti-blaze angle of the blazed grating is controlled by the residual material of the second film layer arranged on the outside of the anti-blaze surface, thereby improving the controllability of the anti-blaze angle of the blazed grating, and realizing a method for manufacturing a diffraction optical waveguide by directly etching a blazed grating on a high refractive index film layer. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] By reading the detailed description below with reference to the accompanying drawings, the above and other objects, features and advantages of the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will become readily understood. In the accompanying drawings, several embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in an exemplary and non-limiting manner, and the same or corresponding reference numerals represent the same or corresponding parts, wherein:

[0010] Figure 1 An exemplary schematic diagram of a method for producing a blazed grating optical waveguide is shown.

[0011] Figure 2 An exemplary flow chart of a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0012] Figure 3 An exemplary schematic diagram of a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0013] Figure 4 An exemplary schematic diagram of the blazed grating pattern transfer process in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0014] Figure 5 An exemplary schematic diagram of a transferred blazed grating pattern in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0015] Figure 6 An exemplary schematic diagram of forming an etching mask in a non-grating structure area in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0016] Figure 7 An exemplary schematic diagram of a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0017] Figure 8 The block diagram shows the hardware configuration of the apparatus that can implement the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0019] It should be understood that the terms "include" and "comprising" used in the specification and claims of the present disclosure indicate the presence of described features, integers, steps, operations, elements and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and / or collections thereof.

[0020] It should also be understood that the terms used in this disclosure are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the disclosure. As used in this disclosure and claims, the singular forms of "a", "an", and "the" are intended to include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be further understood that the term "and / or" used in this disclosure and claims refers to any combination of one or more of the associated listed items and all possible combinations, including these combinations.

[0021] As used in this specification and claims, the term "if" may be interpreted as "when" or "upon" or "in response to determining" or "in response to detecting," depending on the context. Similarly, the phrase "if it is determined" or "if [described condition or event] is detected" may be interpreted as meaning "upon determination" or "in response to determining" or "upon detection of [described condition or event]" or "in response to detecting [described condition or event]," depending on the context.

[0022] The specific implementation of the present disclosure is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0023] One of the difficulties of augmented reality (AR) technology is the optical combiner that combines the virtual world and the real world. Among the many existing technical routes, diffraction waveguide is the most promising. The near-eye display system based on diffraction waveguide includes a micro projector and a diffraction waveguide. The micro projector is composed of a micro display chip and an imaging lens group. The light emitted from any point on the micro display chip is converted into a beam of parallel light after passing through the imaging lens group and irradiated onto the diffraction waveguide. The diffraction optical waveguide is composed of a high-refractive-index flat glass and multiple diffraction gratings made on the glass, wherein the diffraction gratings include an input grating and an output grating. When the parallel light emitted by the micro-projector reaches the input grating, it will be diffracted by the input grating. According to the grating equation d sinθ=mλ (where d is the grating constant, θ is the diffraction angle, λ is the wavelength of the incident light, and m is the diffraction order), the grating will diffract the incident light to a set angle according to the wavelength. Subsequently, the diffracted light is totally reflected and propagated in the high-refractive-index glass until it encounters an output grating. The output grating will couple a portion of the diffracted light out of the glass, and at the same time, the remaining diffracted light will continue to be totally reflected and propagated. This process is repeated continuously, and the light beam encounters the output grating multiple times. Each time it encounters the output grating, a portion of the light will be coupled out, thus playing the role of replicating the exit pupil. The parallel light coupled out of the waveguide is focused by the lens and formed into an image on the retina, and then received by the human eye, while the image from the real world can directly enter the human eye through the flat glass, that is, the human eye can receive virtual images and the real world at the same time.

[0024] According to the working principle of the above-mentioned diffraction optical waveguide, it can be understood that the diffraction optical waveguide uses a coupling grating to couple the light source in the micro-projector into the optical waveguide, the optical waveguide guides the diffracted light to propagate therein, and then the coupling grating outputs the light from the inside of the optical waveguide to the external space. Among the diffraction optical waveguides, there is a special type of blazed grating optical waveguide, that is, a diffraction optical waveguide with a blazed grating as the diffraction grating. The blazed grating is a type of diffraction grating with a sawtooth or triangular groove, and the angle between the inclined surface of the grating groove (also called the blazed surface) and the grating plane is called the blazed angle. The existence of the blazed angle enables the incident light to generate constructive interference at a specific diffraction order when it is reflected and diffracted on the inclined surface of the grating groove, thereby concentrating most of the light energy on a specific order, thereby improving the diffraction efficiency of the grating at that order. That is to say, when light emitted by an external light source shines on the blazed grating, it can maximize the diffraction efficiency of light of a specific wavelength (or blazed wavelength) and minimize the diffraction efficiency of light of other wavelengths, where the blazed wavelength is determined by the blazed angle; therefore, the blazed grating optical waveguide utilizes the selectivity of the blazed grating for the wavelength of incident light to selectively diffract and transmit light of a specific wavelength, thereby achieving high-quality color image display.

[0025] Figure 1An exemplary schematic diagram of a method for producing a blazed grating optical waveguide is shown. The method for producing a blazed grating optical waveguide mainly comprises: covering a high refractive index film layer (the film layer material is, for example, TiO 2 , HfO 2 ); a blazed grating template is made on a silicon substrate, an imprinting process is used to imprint the imprinted glue of the blazed grating shape onto a high refractive index film layer, and then an etching process is used to transfer the blazed grating shape to the high refractive index film layer. However, since the imprinted glue is relatively soft, during the etching transfer process, it is difficult to keep the anti-blaze surface (each tooth of the blazed grating protrudes two surfaces, namely the blaze surface and the anti-blaze surface) vertical, resulting in the anti-blaze angle (i.e., the angle between the anti-blaze surface and the grating plane) cannot be controlled to 90°. In view of this, the present disclosure discloses a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide, thereby improving the controllability of the anti-blaze angle of the blazed grating.

[0026] Figure 2 An exemplary flow chart of a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments, the method includes: step 201, coating a first film layer with a specific refractive index on the surface of the substrate; step 202, imprinting a blazed grating pattern layer on the surface of the first film layer; step 203, depositing a second film layer on the surface of the blazed grating pattern layer; step 204, etching the second film layer above the blazed surface in the blazed grating pattern layer; step 205, etching the blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer to prepare a blazed grating on the first film layer.

[0027] It is understood that the substrate can be glass with a high refractive index, and a blazed grating optical waveguide can be prepared by coating a first film layer with a higher refractive index on the surface of the substrate and forming a blazed grating on the first film layer. Figure 2 The method flow shown is Figure 3 An exemplary schematic diagram of a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0028] Figure 3Sub-figure (a) in explains step 201 and step 202. It is understandable that the blazed grating pattern layer can be embossed on the surface of the first film layer by an embossing process; in some embodiments, the blazed grating pattern layer is embossed on the surface of the first film layer by a UV curing embossing process. In these embodiments, the embossing glue is first spin-coated on the surface of the first film layer, and then the blazed grating template is pressed on the embossing glue and irradiated with UV light. After the embossing glue is completely cured, the template is removed and demolded. It is understandable that the embossing process will leave a portion of the embossing residual glue on the first film layer. In some embodiments, the thickness of the first film layer is greater than the height of the blazed grating. In other embodiments, the thickness of the first film layer is determined according to the height of the embossing residual glue at the bottom of the blazed grating pattern, for example, the thickness of the first film layer is set to the sum of the height of the blazed grating and the height of the embossing residual glue at the bottom of the blazed grating pattern.

[0029] Figure 3 Sub-figure (b) in FIG. 2 illustrates step 203. In some embodiments, the second film layer is an ALD film layer deposited on the surface of the blazed grating pattern layer by using an atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique.

[0030] Figure 3 Sub-figure (c) in FIG. 2 explains step 204. In some embodiments, an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) is used to etch the second film layer above the blazing surface in the blazed grating pattern layer. It can be understood that by utilizing the principle of ICP anisotropy, the second film layer above the blazing surface can be completely etched, and the film layer outside the anti-blazing surface can be etched less or not etched, so that after the second film layer is etched, only the second film layer outside the anti-blazing surface remains.

[0031] Figure 3 Sub-figure (d) in explains step 205. After etching the second film layer above the blazing surface, the blazing pattern layer and the first film layer can be etched to transfer the blazing grating pattern to the first film layer. In the etching process, the etching rate for different materials can be set by setting the etching selectivity for different materials. For example, for the first material and the second material, the etching selectivity can be calculated according to the following formula (1):

[0032]

[0033] Among them, S R It represents the etching selectivity of the first material relative to the second material, E 1 represents the etching rate of the first material, E 2Represents the etching rate of the second material. For the ICP etching process, the etching selectivity for different materials can be controlled by adjusting the gas pressure, source power (SourcePower), and bias power (BiasPower). In some embodiments, the imprinted glue and the first film layer are set to have a higher selectivity relative to the second film layer. For example, the etching selectivity of the imprinted glue and the first film layer relative to the second film layer is greater than 15:1, so the value can be 20:1, 23:1 or 25:1. It can be understood that since the etching selectivity of the first film layer and the imprinted glue is relatively high relative to the second film layer, the second film layer can be kept from being etched or rarely etched during the etching of the blazed grating pattern layer (whose component is the imprinted glue) and the first film layer.

[0034] Figure 4 FIG. 2 shows an exemplary schematic diagram of the blazed grating pattern transfer process in some embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 4 As shown in sub-figure (a) of FIG, if the blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer are directly etched without setting the second film layer, since the imprint glue is relatively soft, lateral etching and longitudinal etching will occur simultaneously during the etching process, making it difficult to control the anti-blaze angle to 90° after etching. Figure 4 In sub-figure (b), when there are remnants of the second film layer on the anti-blaze surface of the sawtooth in the blaze grating pattern layer, since the etching selectivity of the first film layer and the embossed glue is relatively high relative to the second film layer, when the first film layer and the embossed glue are etched, the remnants of the second film layer will not be etched, thereby blocking the lateral etching during the etching process and only longitudinal etching occurs, thereby ensuring that the anti-blaze angle can be controlled to 90°.

[0035] It is understandable that after the etching is completed, the second film layer residue can be removed by wet cleaning to obtain a blazed grating optical waveguide. It is understandable that the method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide disclosed in the present disclosure deposits a second film layer on the imprinted blazed grating pattern, and then transfers the blazed grating to the first film layer with a high refractive index by etching, and during the transfer process, the anti-blaze angle of the blazed grating is controlled to 90° by the second film layer residue disposed outside the anti-blaze surface, thereby improving the controllability of the anti-blaze angle of the blazed grating, and realizing a diffraction optical waveguide manufacturing method by directly etching a blazed grating on a high refractive index film layer.

[0036] In some embodiments, the refractive index of the first film layer is in the range of [1.7, 2.8], and the thickness is in the range of [50nm, 400nm]. In some embodiments, the thickness of the second film layer is in the range of [3nm, 30nm], and the material of the second film layer is Al 2 O 3 / HfO 2 / Ti 3 N4 / Al 4 N 3 In some embodiments, the refractive index of the substrate is in the interval [1.7, 2.0], and the thickness of the substrate is in the interval [0.5 mm, 1.1 mm].

[0037] The material selected for the first film layer can be determined based on the design of a specific application scenario, and is usually a high refractive index material, such as TiO 2 , SiC or Nb 2 O 5 wait.

[0038] Regarding the material selection of the embossed adhesive, it can be understood that in the process of transferring the blazed grating, in order to ensure that the sawtooth shape remains unchanged, the first film layer and the embossed adhesive can be controlled to have an etching selectivity ratio of 1:1. In addition, when the etching selectivity ratio of the first film layer and the embossed adhesive is not 1:1, in order to prevent a large change in the sawtooth shape during the transfer process, the etching depth of the first film layer can be controlled to be reduced.

[0039] Regarding the material selection of the second film layer, it can be understood that in the process of transferring the blazed grating pattern, in order to prevent the occurrence of lateral etching, it is necessary to control the etching selectivity of the first film layer and the embossed glue relative to the second film layer to a larger value, so as to ensure that the second film layer remains unetched or almost unetched during the transfer process. In some embodiments, the material of the second film layer satisfies: the etching selectivity of the first film layer relative to the second film layer and the etching selectivity of the embossed glue relative to the second film layer are greater than 15:1. In these embodiments, the etching selectivity of the first film layer relative to the second film layer can be determined by testing experiments, for example, at the same etching time, the first film layer and the second film layer are etched in the same way, and the etching selectivity of the first film layer relative to the second film layer is obtained by comparing the etching depth; it can be understood that the etching selectivity of the first film layer relative to the embossed glue and the etching selectivity of the embossed glue relative to the second film layer can be determined by the same method, which will not be repeated here.

[0040] It is understood that the diffraction optical waveguide is usually made of a high refractive index material with a certain thickness. For those skilled in the art, different first film layer material types and first film layer thicknesses can be set as needed, and the present disclosure does not limit this. It is understood that the first film layer can be a high refractive index film layer with a thickness of 50nm-400nm and a refractive index of 1.7-2.8, so that light can be more easily totally reflected in the optical waveguide, and the loss of light in the coupling process can be reduced, and the diffraction effect can be enhanced.

[0041] Refer to Figure 4It can be understood that when the first film layer and the embossed adhesive have a higher etching selectivity relative to the second film layer, during the transfer process, the blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer are etched while the second film layer is not etched, so that the second film layer residue completely blocks the lateral etching, and the anti-blaze angle is controlled to be 90°. Then, when the etching selectivity of the first film layer and the embossed adhesive relative to the second film layer is reduced, during the transfer process, the second film layer residue will also be partially etched, so that there is a certain degree of lateral etching, and the anti-blaze angle is controlled to be an acute angle of any angle.

[0042] In some embodiments, the reverse blaze angle of the blazed grating is within the interval [50°, 90°]. In order to make the reverse blaze angle of the blazed grating optical waveguide adjustable between 50° and 90°, in some embodiments, the etching selectivity of the first film layer and the imprinted glue relative to the second film layer is set according to the designed reverse blaze angle, and etching is performed according to the set etching selectivity, so that after the blazed grating pattern is transferred to the first film layer, the reverse blaze angle of the blazed grating meets the designed angle.

[0043] Figure 5 An exemplary schematic diagram of the transferred blazed grating pattern in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. It can be understood that the etching selectivity of the first film layer relative to the second film layer, the etching selectivity of the first film layer relative to the imprinted adhesive, and the etching selectivity of the imprinted adhesive relative to the second film layer are three important parameters in the etching process, thus constituting the etching conditions in the etching process; by adjusting the etching conditions, the transferred blazed grating can be controlled to have different anti-blazed angles and tooth heights. Figure 5 As shown, under the first etching condition, the anti-flare angle after transfer is controlled to 78.48°, and the tooth height is 65nm; under the second etching condition, the anti-flare angle after transfer is controlled to 80.92°, and the tooth height is 88nm; under the third etching condition, the anti-flare angle after transfer is controlled to 81.30°, and the tooth height is 93nm.

[0044] In some embodiments, the blazed grating pattern is transferred to the first film layer through an ICP etching process. During the transfer process, the etching selectivity of the first film layer and the imprinted glue relative to the second film layer and the etching selectivity of the first film layer relative to the imprinted glue are controlled by adjusting the gas pressure, source power or bias power of the ICP etching process.

[0045] In some embodiments, the blazed grating pattern layer includes a grating structure region and a non-grating structure region. Before etching the second film layer above the blazed surface in the blazed grating pattern layer, the method includes: forming an etching mask on the surface of the non-grating structure region of the second film layer.

[0046] Figure 6 FIG. 2 shows an exemplary schematic diagram of forming an etching mask in a non-grating structure region in some embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 6 As shown, after the blazed grating pattern layer is embossed on the surface of the first film layer by the embossing process, the middle area with the sawtooth or triangular grooves in the blazed grating pattern layer is the grating structure area, and the edge areas on both sides of the blazed grating pattern layer are the non-grating structure areas. Due to the characteristics of the embossing process, the thickness of the embossed glue in the non-grating structure area is thinner than that in the grating structure area. In the process of etching the blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer, the embossed glue in the non-grating structure area will be etched before the embossed glue in the structure area, thereby causing the first film layer under the non-grating structure area of ​​the blazed grating pattern layer to be exposed, resulting in a difference in etching rates between the grating structure area and the non-grating structure area, affecting the accuracy of the transfer of the blazed grating pattern to the first film layer.

[0047] In view of the above problems, the embodiment of the present disclosure forms an etching mask on the surface of the non-grating structure area of ​​the second film layer, thereby protecting the non-grating structure area from being etched, so that the method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide disclosed in the embodiment of the present disclosure is suitable for large-scale mass production of blazed grating optical waveguides. It can be understood that the grating structure area or the non-grating structure area can be defined as a space area perpendicular to the substrate surface. Since the blazed grating optical waveguide includes multiple levels, each level can be divided into a corresponding grating structure area and a non-grating structure area, so the "non-grating structure area of ​​the second film layer" refers to the part of the second film layer in the non-grating structure area.

[0048] In some embodiments, the thickness of the etch mask is within the interval [1 μm, 1.5 μm].

[0049] In these embodiments, a photoresist is firstly spin-coated on the surface of the non-grating structure region of the second film layer, and then the mask plate is aligned with the non-grating structure region of the second film layer, and the photoresist is exposed using a light source such as ultraviolet light, thereby forming an etching mask on the surface of the non-grating structure region of the second film layer. It can be understood that the thickness of the etching mask can be controlled within the range [1 μm, 1.5 μm] by controlling the amount of photoresist added and the exposure time.

[0050] In some embodiments, after etching the second film layer residue and the first film layer outside the anti-blazing surface in the blazed grating pattern layer to prepare a blazed grating in the first film layer, the method includes: removing the etching mask and the second film layer on the surface of the non-grating structure area.

[0051] Figure 7 An exemplary schematic diagram of a method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide in some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Figure 7As shown, the process of preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide includes: as shown in sub-figure (a), a first film layer with a higher refractive index is plated on the surface of a substrate, and a blazed grating pattern layer is embossed on the surface of the first film layer; as shown in sub-figure (b), a second film layer is deposited on the surface of the blazed grating pattern layer; as shown in sub-figure (c), an etching mask is formed on the surface of the non-grating structure area of ​​the second film layer; as shown in sub-figure (d), the second film layer above the blazed surface in the blazed grating pattern layer is etched; as shown in sub-figure (e), the blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer are etched to prepare a blazed grating on the first film layer; as shown in sub-figure (f), the etching mask and the second film layer on the surface of the non-grating structure area are removed to obtain a blazed grating optical waveguide.

[0052] In some embodiments, embossing the blazed grating pattern layer on the surface of the first film layer includes: the thickness of the embossed adhesive residue is less than or equal to 30 nm.

[0053] It is understandable that the thickness of the imprinted adhesive residue can be controlled by controlling the imprinting time and the demoulding speed in the imprinting process, so that the thickness of the imprinted adhesive residue can be controlled within 30 nm.

[0054] Furthermore, the present disclosure also discloses a blazed grating optical waveguide, which is prepared according to the method for preparing a blazed grating described in the previous embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0055] Furthermore, the present disclosure also discloses a device for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide, comprising: a processor configured to execute program instructions; and a memory configured to store program instructions, so that when the program instructions are loaded and executed by the processor, the device executes the method for preparing a blazed grating described in the previous embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0056] Figure 8 FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an apparatus 800 that can implement an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 8 As shown, the apparatus 800 may include a processor 801 and a memory 802. The processor is configured to execute program instructions, and the memory is configured to store program instructions. When the program instructions are loaded and executed by the processor, the apparatus executes the method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide according to any one of the above embodiments. Figure 8 In the device 800, only the components related to this embodiment are shown. Therefore, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that the device 800 may also include Figure 8 The specific functions implemented by the memory 802 and the processor 801 of the device 800 provided in the embodiment of this specification can be explained in comparison with the aforementioned implementations in this specification, and can achieve the technical effects of the aforementioned implementations, so they will not be repeated here.

[0057] The apparatus 800 may correspond to a computing device having various processing functions. For example, the apparatus 800 may be implemented as various types of devices, such as a personal computer (PC), a server device, a mobile device, and the like.

[0058] The processor 801 can control the operation of the device 800. For example, the processor 801 can be implemented by a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), an application processor (AP), an artificial intelligence processor chip (IPU), etc. provided in the device 800. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In this embodiment, the processor 801 can be implemented in any appropriate manner. For example, the processor 801 can take the form of a computer-readable medium, a logic gate, a switch, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic controller, and an embedded microcontroller, etc., such as a microprocessor or a processor and a computer-readable program code (such as software or firmware) that can be executed by the (micro) processor.

[0059] The memory 802 can be used to store various data and instructions processed in the device 800. For example, the memory 802 can store processed data and data to be processed in the device 800. The memory 802 can store data that has been processed or to be processed by the processor 801, for example, the set thickness of the first film layer and the second film layer. In addition, the memory 802 can store applications, drivers, etc. to be driven by the device 800. For example: the memory 802 can store various programs related to the method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide to be executed by the processor 801. The memory 802 can be a DRAM, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The memory 802 can include at least one of a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory can include a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable ROM (PROM), an electrically programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), a flash memory, a phase change RAM (PRAM), a magnetic RAM (MRAM), a resistive RAM (RRAM), a ferroelectric RAM (FRAM), etc. The volatile memory may include dynamic RAM (DRAM), static RAM (SRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), PRAM, MRAM, RRAM, ferroelectric RAM (FeRAM), etc. In some embodiments, the memory 802 may include at least one of a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a high-density flash memory (CF), a secure digital (SD) card, a micro secure digital (Micro-SD) card, a mini secure digital (Mini-SD) card, an extreme digital (xD) card, caches, or a memory stick.

[0060] In summary, the specific functions achieved by the blazed grating optical waveguide and the device for preparing the blazed grating optical waveguide provided in the embodiments of this specification can be explained in comparison with the aforementioned embodiments in this specification, and can achieve the technical effects of the aforementioned embodiments, so they will not be repeated here.

[0061] Although multiple embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown and described herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that such embodiments are provided by way of example only. Those skilled in the art may think of many changes, modifications, and alternatives without departing from the thought and spirit of the present disclosure. It should be understood that in the process of practicing the present disclosure, various alternatives to the embodiments of the present disclosure described herein may be adopted. The attached claims are intended to define the scope of protection of the present disclosure, and therefore cover equivalents or alternatives within the scope of these claims.

Claims

1. A method for preparing a blazed grating optical waveguide, characterized in that: include: Coating a first film layer having a specific refractive index on the surface of the substrate; embossing a blazed grating pattern layer on the surface of the first film layer; Depositing a second film layer on the surface of the blazed grating pattern layer; Etching a second film layer above the blazing surface in the blazing grating pattern layer; as well as The blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer are etched to prepare a blazed grating on the first film layer.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The refractive index of the first film layer is within the range of [1.7, 2.8], and the thickness is within the range of [50nm, 400nm].

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The thickness of the second film layer is in the range of [3nm, 30nm], and the material of the second film layer is Al2O3 / HfO2 / Ti3N4 / Al4N3.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The refractive index of the substrate is within the interval [1.7, 2.0], and the thickness of the substrate is within the interval [0.5 mm, 1.1 mm].

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The anti-blaze angle of the blazed grating is within the interval [50°, 90°].

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The blazed grating pattern layer comprises a grating structure region and a non-grating structure region, and before etching the second film layer above the blazed surface in the blazed grating pattern layer, the method comprises: An etching mask is formed on the surface of the non-grating structure region of the second film layer.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The thickness of the etching mask is within the range of [1 μm, 1.5 μm].

8. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that After etching the blazed grating pattern layer and the first film layer to prepare a blazed grating on the first film layer, the method comprises: The etching mask and the second film layer on the surface of the non-grating structure area are removed.

9. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of embossing a blazed grating pattern layer on the surface of the first film layer includes: a thickness of the embossed adhesive residue is less than or equal to 30 nm.

10. A blazed grating optical waveguide, characterized in that: The blazed grating optical waveguide is prepared according to the method according to any one of claims 1-9.

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