Azobenzene Containing Low-Molecular Weight Organic Glasses for Optical Recording

Abstract

Abstract In this work photoinduced processes and holographic surface relief formation in azobenzene containing low- molecular weight organic glasses were studied. The molecular glasses due to trans-cis isomerisation and photo- orientation of molecules possess high sensitivity to the light irradiation and therefore they are promising media for holographic recording. Electric field of linearly polarized light causes an alignment of molecule dipoles perpendicularly to the electric field vector and this process is accompanied by an appearance of photoinduced optical anisotropy in organic glasses. The photoinduced birefringence and dichroism induced by 532 nm light was studied. Holographic recording in organic molecular glasses was performed with 532 nm solid-state diode-pumped laser Verdi-6. Very rapid holographic grating recording and surface relief formation at small recording beam intensities was observed. The dependence of recorded grating diffraction efficiency and surface relief depth on recording beams polarization state and intensities was studied. The surface relief was studied with AFM.