Defect detection in LiNbO3 crystals using cross Nicol optical system with heating function

LiNbO3 crystals are important for applications such as optical devices and surface acoustic wave filters. However, defects in such crystals can negatively affect device characteristics. Consequently, control of defects is important during device manufacturing. In this study, a new defect detection method using a cross Nicol optical system with a heating function and defect image enhancement is proposed. Experiments confirmed that defects detected by this method correspond to those imaged by X-ray topography. It was found that additional defects are formed by charge induced during heating. (C) 2017 The Japan Society of Applied Physics