A novel wet-etching method using joint proton source in LiNbO/sub 3/

By mixing benzoic and adipic acids as the source of proton exchange, wet etched ridge waveguides are fabricated in Z-cut LiNbO₃. Under appropriate adipic-benzoic acid concentration ratios, the joint proton source can suppress the proton diffusion in the lateral directions, and thus, the sidewalls are much more vertical than the usual. The etched depths are also enhanced for more than 30%. And meanwhile, the fabricated ridge waveguides possess smooth surfaces and the scattering losses are lower than that of the conventionally produced samples