Synthesis and Characterization of Electro-Optic Polyurethaneimide-Polyimide Copolymers

Abstract

Polyurethaneimide prepolymer was synthesized using the synthesized chromophore C containing tricyanofuran, hexafluorodianhydride and phenyl diisocyanate as monomers. Polyimide prepolymers were synthesized using fluorinated aromatic diether dianhydride and fluorinated aromatic diamine as monomers. Polyurethaneimide-polyimide (PUI-FPI) copolymers were then synthesized by a polycondensation reaction of the polyimide and polyurethaneimide prepolymers. The electro-optic (EO) PUI-FPI copolymers had a special segment structure and concentrate the advantages of polyurethaneimide and polyimide. The copolymers exhibited good film-forming properties, high glass transition temperature (Tg =196 °C), and high thermal stability (Td up to 358 °C). The copolymers possessed a high EO coefficient (γ33 =72 pm/V) at the 1550 nm wavelength, good long-term electro-poled orientation stability, and low optical propagation loss (1.2–1.4 dB/cm) at 1550 nm. Mach-Zehnder interferometric electro-optic modulators were designed and fabricated using the synthesized copolymer as the waveguide material. The prepared polymer optical waveguide EO modulators showed a good low-frequency electro-optic modulation response. The results showed that the synthesized polyurethaneimide-polyimide copolymers meeted the performance requirements for the preparation of polymeric optical waveguide devices and were suitable as polymeric electro-optic waveguide materials.