A USEFUL AND PRECISE EXPRESSION FOR ORIENTATION FACTOR OF POLED POLYMER FILMS

Based on ID ROGM, d_(33) of poled films can be estimated from orientation factor <cos^3θ>. In this letter, a direct expression

Record-high near-band-edge optical nonlinearities and two-level model correction of poled polymers by spectroscopic electromodulation and ellipsometry

The determination of nonlinearities near the band edge of organic and polymeric electro-optic(EO)materials is important from the viewpoint of molecular nonlinear optics(NLO)and photonic device applications.Based on transmission-mode Stark effect electromodulation(EM)spectroscopy,we study the electric-field-induced changes in optical absorption and refraction of newly developed EO polymers from the visible to near-infrared(NIR)wavelengths and report record-high near-band-edge complex EO effects from poled thin films.Values ofΔn andΔk up to 10^(-3) and 10^(-2) are found at an applied electric field of 2.0×10^(5)-3.0×10^(5)V/cm.The study of linear optical properties of poled films by spectroscopic ellipsometry shows large polinginduced birefringence and a nearly two-fold increase in the extinction coefficients at the extraordinary polarization.Through the Kramers-Kronig analysis,we obtained the real and imaginary second-order nonlinear coefficients up to~3,500 and~5,600 pm/V,respectively,which are believed to be the highest NLO coefficients of poled polymers through the resonance enhancement.Our approach goes beyond the previous works,applicable only to several discrete wavelengths,to a full-spectral analysis with independent verification of slab waveguide measurements.By considering both the electroabsorption and electrorefraction effects,our study overcomes the limitation of the classic qualitative two-level model and provides a quantitative understanding of near-resonance optical nonlinearities of organic EO materials.It can inspire the exploration of high-speed,absorptive,or phase-shifting light-modulators using EO polymers for on-chip applications.

NONLINEAR OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF A-SHAPED NITROPYRIMIDINE DERIVATIVES AND ITS POLYMERIC FILMS

Three A-shaped nitropyrimidine derivatives with benzyl or furfuryl as bridge havebeen synthesized. They possess shorter absorption wavelengths (λ_(cut-off))<400 nm) andhigher βμ values (around 10^(-46) esu). The second order nonlinear optical coefficient d_(33) ofpoled BNPMOPMDA/PMMA doped film is 1.2-2.0×10^(-9) esu obtained by in-situ SHGmeasurements. It can be expected that the chromophore-functionalized polymer containinghigher number density of synthesized chromophore as side chain will be the potential blue-light transparent frequency doubling materials.

Optimized design and fabrication of nanosecond response electro optic switch based on ultraviolet-curable polymers

A nanosecond response waveguide electro-optic （EO） switch based on ultraviolet （UV） sensitive polymers of Norland optical adhesive （NOA73） and Dispersed Red 1 （DR1） doped SU-8 （DR1/SU-8） is designed and fabricated. The absorption properties, refractive indexes, and surface morphologies of NOA73 film are characterized. The single-mode transmission condition is computed by the effective index method, and the percentage of optical field distributed in EO layer is optimized to be 93.78 %. By means of spin-coating, thermal evaporation, photolithography, and inductively coupled plasma etching, a Mach-Zehnder inverted-rib waveguide EO switch with micro-strip line electrode is fabricated on a silicon substrate. Scanning electron microscope characterization proves the physic-chemical compatibility between NOA73 cladding and DR1/SU-8 core material. The optical transmission loss of the fabricated switch is measured to be 2.5 dB/cm. The rise time and fall time of switching are 3.199 ns and 2.559 ns, respectively. These results indicate that the inverted-rib wave- guide based on UV-curable polymers can effectively reduce the optical transmission loss and improve the time response performance of an EO switch.

THE SYNTHESIS OF NEW POLED CROSSLINKED POLYMETHACRYLATES AND THEIR SECOND ORDER NONLINEAR OPTICAL PROPERTIES

Films were prepared from mixtures of copolymers of 4-nitro-4'-[N-methylacryloyloxyethyl, N'-ethyl] amino azobenzene with glycidyl methacrylate (chromophore content: 6 mol%) and copolymers containing anhydride units, which was obtained by the reaction of 4-nitro-4'-[N-hydroxyethyl, N'-ethyl] amino azobenzene with polymethacryloyl chloride (chromophore content: 25 mol %). During thermal poling process the anhydride reacts with the epoxy group and the resulting crosslinked network structure will stabilize the second harmonic generation in the poled film. The second harmonic generation of the poled film shows a maximum with the variation of composition this is presumed to be due to the effects of the increasing of concentration, orientation order as well as orientation stability of chromophore groups during crosslinking.

Preparation and Characterization of Hybrid Films with a TCF Acceptor-based Chromophore for Nonlinear Optical Applications

A tricyanofuran （TCF） acceptor-based nonlinear optical （NLO） chromophore （2-（3-cyano-4-（4-（（2- hydroxyethyl）（methyl）amino）styryl）-5,5-dimethylfuran-2（5H）-ylidene）malononitrile abbr. FS） was synthesized and then reacted with 3-isocyannatopropyl triethoxysilane （ICTES） to form a functionalized silicon alkoxide precursor （named ICTES-FS）. Sol solutions were obtained after co-hydrolysis/condensation of ICTES-FS, tetraethoxysilane （TEOS） and 3-（Trimethoxysilyl）propyl methacrylate （TSPM）. Transparent films were only fabricated with the sol containing high concentration of TSPM. Higher concentration of TSPM was found useful to abate dipolar chromophore interactions and consequent aggregation problems. Second- order NLO properties and temporal stability of sol-gel films were also investigated by virtue of in situ second harmonic generation （SHG）.

Study on thermal stability of poled non-linear optical polymers

A logarithmic expression is proposed to describe relaxation of the polar order in side chain polymers, together with a new way of plotting temperature dependent relaxation data. This results in a straight line extending even below the glass transition temperature in the case of poled nonlinear optics (NLO) side chain polymers. A simple procedure to determine the rotational diffusion constant D-r is given and D-r values of several polymer systems have been evaluated and compared with each other. It appears that, starting from the conventional and well known poled polymer system currently applied, a further lowering of D-r by about 3 orders of magnitude is necessary in order to reach an acceptable orientational stability or lifetime of poled polymers for practical applications. Attempts have been made to introduce electron push-pull substituents into high thermostable molecular frameworks and results of preliminary measurements are reported.