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Deformable silicone grating fabricated with a photo-imprinted polymer mold
Itsunari Yamada1, Junji Nishii2, Mitsunori Saito3
1Department of Electronic Systems Engineering, School of Engineering, The University of Shiga Prefecture, Hikone, Shiga 522-8533, Japan.
The Review of Scientific Instruments
|February 13, 2014
Summary
Researchers created a tunable transmission grating using silicone elastomer. Compressing the material altered its grating period and diffraction transmittance, offering tunable optical properties.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Optics
- Polymer Science
Background:
- Tunable optical components are crucial for advanced photonic devices.
- Developing cost-effective and adaptable grating structures remains a key challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To fabricate a tunable transmission grating using a silicone elastomer (polydimethylsiloxane).
- To investigate the impact of compressive stress on the grating's optical characteristics, specifically its period and diffraction transmittance.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of the grating via molding a silicone elastomer using a photoimprinted polymer grating on a glass plate.
- Evaluation of optical properties, including grating period and diffraction transmittance, under varying compressive stress.
Main Results:
- The fabricated silicone elastomer grating exhibited tunable optical properties under compression.
- Grating period was found to be a function of compressive stress, changing from 3.02 to 2.86 μm.
- Diffraction transmittance also varied with applied compressive stress.
Conclusions:
- Silicone elastomers can be effectively molded into tunable transmission gratings.
- Compressive stress provides a viable method for tuning the optical performance of these gratings.
- This approach offers potential for developing adaptable optical elements for various applications.
