Polymeric composite photorefractive materials for nonlinear optical applications

Polymeric composite materials constitute a new and very promising class of photorefractive materials. In the design of polymeric photorefractive materials we use multicomponent composites in which necessary functionalities can be independently optimized. The investigated composites consisted of charge transporting polymeric matrix, and optically second-order active molecules. Two different photosensitizers were used to vary the wavelength response. Photorefractive properties of these materials were investigated using erasable volume holography in a non-degenerate four-wave mixing geometry and two-beam coupling techniques. A previously developed model of space-charge field grating formation in photoconductive polymers was used to explain the field dependence of four-wave mixing diffraction efficiency. The model takes into account the field dependence of charge photogeneration quantum yield, carrier field mobility, and electro-optic coefficient. Necessary information about these parameters was obtained from the results of photoconductivity and electro-optic modulation experiments. Special attention was focused on the kinetics of photorefractive response in the composite for optical signal processing and optical storage. It was found that a very effective switching of diffraction efficiency induced by dc electric field occurs in this system. Also, the results of kinetic studies of the index grating writing and its subsequent light-induced erasure, as well as a demonstration of the holographic image recording and retrieval, are reported.