Abstract: A process is disclosed for fabricating narrow line-width yttrium iron garnet (YIG) disks suitable for microwave applications. The process comprises forming an epitaxial thin film of yttrium iron garnet, containing from about 0.5 to 1.5 atom percent trivalent lanthanum ions on the dodecahedral sites, on a substrate such as gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG), forming a thin layer of SiO.sub.2 on the YIG film, forming a photoresist mask layer on the SiO.sub.2 layer, removing portions of the photoresist mask layer to expose portions of the underlying SiO.sub.2 layer, removing portions of the SiO.sub.2 layer to expose portions of the underlying YIG layer and removing the exposed portions of the YIG layers to form isolated La:YIG disks supported on the GGG substrate. The substrate is then further processed, as by dicing, to provide individual La:YIG disks for fabrication into microwave devices. Linewidths of about 0.45 Oe are obtained by the process.

Abstract: An and apparatus for removing and recovering contaminating liquid from articles comprising washing the article with a liquid two phase system, one of the phases in the two phase system being immiscible with and preferably insoluble with the contaminating liquid. The remaining phase being miscible with but not the same as the contaminating liquid. The apparatus comprises a series of wash and separating tanks in conjunction with appropriate valves and pumps for utilizing the method to automatically recover contaminating liquid and return it to the process step in which it is used. This creates a balanced rinse and recovery system which prevents loss of contaminating liquid and substantially eliminates the necessity for adding new contaminating liquid to the process step in which the contaminating liquid is used.