Third-order nonlinear and planar waveguide properties of disperse red 13-containing hybrid films based on titania and organically modified silane

Organic-inorganic hybrid waveguide films doped with disperse red 13 (DR13) were prepared by a low-temperature sol-gel process. The thirdorder nonlinearity and planar waveguide property of the hybrid films were studied by using z-scan technique under a femtosecond laser pulsed at 800nm and prism coupling technique. Results indicate that the performance of the third-order nonlinearity in the near ultraviolet region is greatly improved. It is also noted that the as-prepared waveguide films exhibit the properties of low propagation loss and multimode transmission. These results demonstrate that the hybrid planar films might be promising candidates for photonic applications.