This three-year award in support of U.S.-France collaborative research in optical materials involves George Stegeman of University of Central Florida's Center for Research and Education in Optics and Lasers (CREOL) and Alain Brun of the Institut d'Optique Theorique et Appliquee. The objective of their research is to investigate performance of poled polymers for nonlinear optics, using cascaded quadratic nonlinearities. They will develop new polymeric material systems for use with "cascading" processes at telecommunication wavelengths that require low optical losses, processable polymers and highly nonlinear polymers. They will investigate photostability properties and develop reactive ion etching techniques for channel waveguide fabrication.
The US investigator brings to this collaboration expertise in organic polymer materials. This is complemented by the French group's expertise in hybrid inorganic/organic polymer materials prepared by using the sol-gel process. The collaboration will advance fundamental understanding of the properties of these materials and their potential use in telecommunication devices.
