Photochemical stability of nonlinear optical chromophores in polymeric and crystalline materials.
We compare the photochemical stability of the nonlinear optical chromophore configurationally locked polyene 2-{3-[2-(4-dimethylaminophenyl)vinyl]-5,5-dimethylcyclohex-2-enylidene} malononitrile (DAT2) embedded in a polymeric matrix and in a single-crystalline configuration. The results show that, under resonant light excitations, the polymeric compound degrades through an indirect process, while the DAT2 crystal follows a slow direct process. We show that chromophores in a crystalline environment exhibit three orders of magnitude better photostability as compared to guest-host polymer composites.
Rezzonico
Daniele
D
Nonlinear Optics Laboratory, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zurich, CH-8093 Zürich, Switzerland. nlo@phys.ethz.ch
Kwon
Seong-Ji
SJ
Figi
Harry
H
Kwon
O-Pil
OP
Jazbinsek
Mojca
M
Günter
Peter
P