Structural influence of the inorganic network in the laser performance of dye-doped hybrid materials

Abstract

We report a systematic study of the influence on the laser action of Rhodamine 6G (Rh6G) of the composition and structure of new hybrid matrices based on 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) as organic monomer and different weight proportions of dimethyldiethoxysilane (DEOS) and tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) as inorganic part. We selected mixtures of di- and tetra-functionalized alkoxides trying to decrease, in a controlled way, the rigidity of the three-dimensional network by making use of the flexibility provided by the linear chains acting as a spacer of the inorganic domains. The organization of the molecular units in these nanomaterials was studied through a structural analysis by solid-state NMR. The different reactivity exhibited by di- and tetra-functionalized silanols generates a non-homogeneous tri-dimensional network. Thus, the laser performance in dye-doped hybrid materials is improved when the inorganic phase is composed of a unique alkoxide.