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Updated: Oct 2, 2025

Synthesis of Cyclic Polymers and Characterization of Their Diffusive Motion in the Melt State at the Single Molecule Level
Published on: September 26, 2016
Intermixed Time-Dependent Self-Focusing and Defocusing Nonlinearities in Polymer Solutions
Athanasios Bogris1,2, Nikolaos A Burger1,2, Konstantinos G Makris1,3
1FORTH, Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, 70013 Heraklion, Crete, Greece.
Abstract:
Low-power visible light can lead to spectacular nonlinear effects in soft-matter systems. The propagation of visible light through transparent solutions of certain polymers can experience either self-focusing or defocusing nonlinearity, depending on the solvent. We show how the self-focusing and defocusing responses can be captured by a nonlinear propagation model using local spatial and time-integrating responses. We realize a remarkable pattern formation in ternary solutions and model it assuming a linear combination of the self-focusing and defocusing nonlinearities in the constituent solvents. This versatile response of solutions to light irradiation may introduce a new approach for self-written waveguides and patterns.
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