THE SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERIZATION, AND PHOTOCHEMICAL CROSS-LINKING OF AN NLO EPOXY POLYMER

A photocrosslinkable second order nonlinear optical (NLO) epoxy polyme r. Bisphenol A-Nitroaminotolane, containing covalently attached cinnam ate side chain substituents (BisA-NAT-CM), was synthesized. After coro na poling Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) is used to measure tile rel axation of the anisotropy after the electric held is removed. Upon pho tolysis at 260 nm the cinnamoyl side chains undergo photochemical dime rization to crosslink the NLO polymer. Photobleaching is not a problem under these conditions. The photocrosslinked NLO polymer shows virtua lly no relaxation over a period of 500 hours at room temperature and g ood temporal stability at temperatures as high as 110 degrees C.