Quantitative analysis of chalcogenide glass aging in flexible photonic devices

Chalcogenide glass (ChG) shows significant promise for applications in flexible integrated photonics due to its excellent optical properties and monolithic integration capability. However, the long-term stability of chalcogenide materials remains a critical challenge, limiting the broader deployment of device applications. To date, there has been limited research focused on flexible photonic devices fabricated from Ge-Sb-Se-based ChGs, particularly regarding their aging behavior and mechanical robustness under operational conditions. To address this, we employed the resonant refractometry method to investigate the aging process of Ge-Sb-Se ChG in flexible integrated photonic devices. Our experimental results reveal that thermal annealing plays a significant role in accelerating the aging behavior of ChG devices. Devices that underwent thermal annealing demonstrated enhanced stability, suggesting that thermal annealing serves as an effective approach to accelerate the aging process in optical performance. Additionally, we showed that the flexible devices retained their excellent mechanical stability even after undergoing thermal annealing. The findings of this study offer insights into strategies for improving the long-term stability of Ge-Sb-Se-based photonic devices.