High Temperature NLO Chromophores for Polymer Applications

The demands on organic polymeric nonlinear optical materials include large and stable bulk nonlinearities which are not significantly degraded during the processing involved in semiconductor integration and subsequent use of the device. Poled polymer, electro-optical applications such as modulation or switching, may involve continuous operating temperatures of 80-100°C and processing excursions up to 250°C or more for brief periods.1 At elevated temperatures, any device must maintain polar order and the NLO chromophore must be stable or the bulk nonlinearity will degrade.