Characterization of electrooptic polymers with high µβ chromophores for photonic device applications

For electrooptic (EO) polymer devices to be accepted in high speed fiber communication systems, the operation voltage of these devices must be reduced to a level compatible with the high speed electronics that drives the polymer devices. A low operation voltage, or Vπ in the case of modulators, requires EO polymers with high electrooptic coefficients. The electrooptic effect comes from the nonlinear chromophores in the polymer and the alignment of these chromophores by poling. High electrooptic coefficients calls for chromophores with large nonlinearity, i.e., high µβ. The synthesis and characterization of EO polymers with high µβ chromophores1 have been the focus of recent research in the field of nonlinear optic polymers.