| abstract |
The present invention is directed to a method of forming germanium-containing silicones in which germanium is incorporated into the siloxane backbone with Ge-O-Si bond or onto a carboxylated siloxane in a form such as the germanium ester form, which has a COOGe bond. The germanium mole content ranges from 1 mol % to 50 mol %. The groups attached to silicon and/or germanium include alkyl, alkenyl, and carboxyalkyl and their derivatives. In the materials with pendant carboxylic acid groups, the protons can be replaced by metal ions such as an alkali, alkaline earth, transition metal, or rare earth metal ions. The materials can be crossinked, with the crosslinking being initiated by ultraviolet light or other means with or without a photoinitiator. The present invention is also directed to a method of forming a germanium-containing silicate film on a substrate such as silicon or other material wafer through thermal oxidation or other oxidation methods such as those utilized in planar waveguide applications. |