Abstract

Photopolymerizable hybrid sol-gel are extremely interesting for optical and photonic applications. They combine the properties of glasses with the possibility of photopatterning the layer at the micrometer scale. The presented results concern the generation of 1000 lines/mm volume gratings created by transmission using an interferences pattern at 514 nm. Diffraction efficiencies up to 90 % were reached. Eight holographic gratings were also multiplexed in the layer giving diffraction efficiencies between 4 and 6 %. To elaborate non-linear quadratic optical devices, the hybrid sol-gel matrix was doped with push-pull chromophores. Such a photosensitive system could enable simultaneous photopatterning of the layer and poling of the non-linear optical (NLO) molecules. First, the solubility of the NLO chromophores in the matrix was studied.

© 2005 Optical Society of America