Design of Polymeric 3D Printable Materials for THz Technology Applications

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Optics and Photonics
• Polymer Chemistry

Background:

• Terahertz (THz) radiation is crucial for advanced applications in biomedical diagnostics, security, and wireless communication.
• Polymers are essential for THz devices (lenses, waveguides, metasurfaces), but current material selection lacks rational design, limiting progress.
• Existing polymers often fail to balance low THz losses with high printability, hindering the development of functional THz technologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between polymer composition and THz transparency in photocurable resins.
• To establish practical guidelines for tailoring THz response through resin formulation.
• To enable the rational design of polymers for advanced THz applications using 3D printing.

Main Methods:

• Developed a framework to predict THz properties based on polymer structural features (heteroatoms, cyclic structures, C/O ratio).
• Investigated (meth)-acrylic resins with aliphatic backbones, correlating THz response with the carbon-to-oxygen (C/O) atomic ratio.
• Fabricated photonic crystals for THz modulation using digital light processing (DLP) 3D printing with optimized THz-transparent resins.

Main Results:

• Established predictable THz behavior for (meth)-acrylic resins with aliphatic backbones, linked to the C/O ratio.
• Achieved significantly lower THz absorption coefficients (down to 5 cm^-1 at 1 THz) compared to commercial resins (19-30 cm^-1).
• Fabricated 3D-printed photonic crystals demonstrating controllable THz response up to 2 THz, extending beyond the typical sub-0.5 THz limit.

Conclusions:

• Rational resin design is critical for creating polymers that combine high printability with excellent THz transparency.
• The developed material-driven approach provides a pathway for tailoring polymers for specific THz applications.
• Accessible 3D printing methods, combined with optimized materials, enable the fabrication of technologically relevant THz devices.