Tuning the refractive index of blended polymer films by RIR-MAPLE deposition

Ryan D. McCormick; Eric D. Cline; Arvinder S. Chadha; Weidong Zhou; Adrienne D. Stiff-Roberts

doi:10.1117/12.906878

7 February 2012 Tuning the refractive index of blended polymer films by RIR-MAPLE deposition

Ryan D. McCormick, Eric D. Cline, Arvinder S. Chadha, Weidong Zhou, Adrienne D. Stiff-Roberts

Proceedings Volume 8258, Organic Photonic Materials and Devices XIV; 825806 (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.906878
Event: SPIE OPTO, 2012, San Francisco, California, United States

Abstract

Graded index polymer films enable novel optics using rigid or flexible substrates, such as waveguides or anti-reflection coatings. Previously, such films have been fabricated by nanoimprint lithography or the decomposition of a single component in polymer blends. Yet, it is desirable to have precise control over the polymer film composition in order to have the most flexibility in designing refractive index profiles. Resonant-infrared matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation (RIR-MAPLE) is a polymer thin film deposition technique that enables multi-layer structures on a wide variety of substrate materials, regardless of the solubilities of constituent polymers. In this work, the feasibility of tuning the refractive index of blended polymer films of polystyrene and poly(methyl methacrylate) deposited by RIR-MAPLE is demonstrated. Different polymer blend film compositions are deposited using RIR-MAPLE by varying the polymer target ratio. Transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy are used to characterize the film morphology.

Citation Download Citation

Ryan D. McCormick, Eric D. Cline, Arvinder S. Chadha, Weidong Zhou, and Adrienne D. Stiff-Roberts "Tuning the refractive index of blended polymer films by RIR-MAPLE deposition", Proc. SPIE 8258, Organic Photonic Materials and Devices XIV, 825806 (7 February 2012); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.906878

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