Photophysics of the all-optical orientation dynamics of a pyrylium salt

The all-optical poling of polymers is a key process for the optical control of plastic materials for second order nonlinear optical effects. It is bas ed on the photochromic behavior of dyes submitted to bi-color exciting lase r beams. In order to achieve a total control of the process, active researc h is performed in the search for efficient transparent materials and effici ent opto-mechanical coupling mechanisms of photochromic dye molecules in po lymer matrices. We hereby propose and demonstrate the use of twisted intern al charge transfer (TICT) for the all-optical poling of tri-aryl-pyrylium c ations. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.