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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 February 2011
The effects of high-pressure water vapor annealing (HWA) on the refractive index of PS have been studied. HWA was conducted at 260 °C and 1.3 MPa, for 3 h. The refractive index (real part n and imaginary part k) was estimated by fitting reflectivity spectra. HWA considerably modifies the layers refractive index. It enhances the optical transparency of PS, particularly at short wavelengths down to below 400 nm. Both n and k are significantly reduced by HWA between 400 nm and 850 nm. These results are attributed to the high level of oxidation of PS after HWA. The high transparency of the treated layers enables Si-based photonics in the full visible range and also in the near UV range. Distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs) have been fabricated. The central wavelengths appear blue-shifted compared to untreated samples due to the reduced refractive index. Almost no changes could be found in the reflectivity properties after one year storage in air for HWA-treated DBRs. Therefore, HWA is very useful for getting stable practical photonics devices in the visible and near UV range.