HOLOGRAPHIC CHARACTERIZATION OF EPOXY-RESINS AT 351.1 NM

The optical characteristics of two commercially available UV curable e poxy resins are investigated using nondegenerate four-wave mixing. The materials assessed are optimized for use with a UV argon-ion laser. T he holographic gratings were written at a wavelength of lambda = 351.1 nm for an irradiance range 0.5 to 3.0 W/cm(2) and read at lambda = 63 2.8 nm to compare the reactivity, curing speed, shrinkage, and resolut ion of the resins. These experiments were carried out to prove the sui tability of the photopolymerization systems for microstereolithography . (C) 1998 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers. [S0091- 3286(98)02110-2].