Growth of nonlinear and lasing optical thin films

Thin films of optical and nonlinear optical materials form the basis for a wide range of devices such as waveguide lasers, amplifiers, modulators, second harmonic generators and switches. Our work in this area has concentrated on two separate techniques for fabricating thin films, and we describe here our progress to date in controlling both the linear and nonlinear properties of the films, and more specifically, the active dopants that are intentionally included and manipulated during the film growth