In-Plane Modulation of non Linear Polymer Devices: Comparison of Electric, Photo-Assisted and Photoinduced Poling Processes

Electrooptical polymer waveguide devices can be easily achieved by simple spin coating of polymer layers, with a transparent polymeric matrix as the passive buffer layer and with a side chain polymer as the active guiding layer. After deposition, the material is centrosymmetric, and therefore deprive of second order property. In order to create a noncentrosymmetric EO active material, a classical poling procedure may be adapted, whereby an electrical static field at elevated temperature, is applied over the side chain polymer resulting in the polar alignment of the chromophores parallel to the substrate.