Patent ID: 7805826

Claim:
A method for fabricating a nanometer slot waveguide comprising: providing a spacer layer having a thickness of 100 nanometers or less to a first waveguide structure, such that a first surface of the spacer layer substantially contacts a first waveguide layer of the first waveguide structure, wherein the first waveguide structure includes the first waveguide layer and a first substrate layer, the first waveguide layer having a refractive index greater than the first substrate layer; providing a second waveguide structure to the spacer layer in an inverted fashion, such that a second surface of the spacer layer that opposes the first surface of the spacer layer substantially contacts a second waveguide layer of the second waveguide structure, wherein the second waveguide structure includes the second waveguide layer and a second substrate layer, the second waveguide layer having a refractive index greater than the second substrate layer; removing the second substrate layer of the second waveguide structure to create an intermediate waveguide structure; and removing portions of the intermediate waveguide structure to create a nanometer slot waveguide structure, wherein the spacer layer forms the nanometer slot of the nanometer slot waveguide structure and includes an elongated layer having a width between the first and second waveguide layers of less than or equal to 100 nanometers, and is configured to propagate light of a given wavelength along a length of the slot between the first and second waveguide layers, wherein the first waveguide layer in the intermediate waveguide structure has a surface that covers substantially an entire side of the first substrate layer and, in the intermediate waveguide structure, the spacer layer does not contact the first substrate layer.