Organic and Polymeric Nonlinear Optical Materials

INTRODUCTION

The last feature of the Journal of the Optical Society of America Bdevoted to organic and polymeric nonlinear optical materialsappeared more than a decade ago [G. M. Carter and J. Zyss,"Nonlinear optical processes in organic materials," J. Opt. Soc. Am.B 4, 941 (1987)]. Since that time, basic materials studies haveresulted in an understanding of the nonlinear optical response ofmolecules and of a variety of bulk materials, including liquidcrystals, polymers, crystals, ultrathin films, and composites. Usingthis understanding as a guiding principle has brought about thesynthesis of many new materials with superior characteristics, andcritical technological issues such as material reliability, optical loss,and materials processing have been identified and investigated.Studies targeted at understanding such issues have resulted in thedevelopment of low-loss polymers, poled polymers with long-termstability, and new waveguide geometries such as polymer fibers.

Much of the research has been driven by device issues that werebrought to light with the demonstration of a series of devices; thefirst electro-optic modulator device was reported shortly after thelast feature appeared. The merging of new materials concepts anddevice paradigms has led to the development of commercialproducts. At present, 1 X N kHz polymeric switches based on thethermo-electric effect are in production. In addition, severalcompanies are preparing to introduce 100-GHz phase modulators.The past decade is characterized by intense studies of the basicmaterial, phenomenological, and technological issues with theresult that the field is now poised at the threshold of the era ofcommercialization.

The nonlinear optical and electro-optical properties of organicand polymeric materials continue to be the subject of intense study.This great interest is due to the demonstrated fabrication flexibilityof these materials, which can be applied to making many types andmaterials formats, including fibers, thin films created by spincoating and other deposition techniques, and bulk crystals.Furthermore, these materials exhibit a wealth of phenomena thathave been used in a push toward new applications. The nonlinearoptical applications and phenomena include wave mixing,

electro-optics, optical limiting, photorefractivity, all-opticalswitching, and allied properties such as electroluminescence.,Many studies are immediately directed at applications in opticaldata transmission, processing, display and storage, which requirethe identification and processing of novel materials. Still otherstudies seek to expand on our understanding of the basic physicalorigins and structure-property relationships with the support oftheory and characterization. The progress and excitement in thisfield are the result of successful interaction between basic scienceand technology and of interdisciplinary collaboration amongchemists, physicists, materials scientists, and engineers on aninternational scale.

The four dozen papers collected in these two feature issuesrepresent the current diversity and vitality of the organic andpolymeric nonlinear optical materials field. Many of thecontributions are based on work presented at the ThirdInternational Conference on Organic Nonlinear Optics (ICONO'3)held on Marco Island, Florida, in December 1996. The first issue ofthe feature is devoted to second-order materials and phenomena,while the second issue focuses on the topic of devices and onall-optical phenomena, materials, and devices.

The Feature Editors thank all the authors and reviewers; theU.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the Office of NavalResearch, and the National Science Foundation (ElectricalEngineering and Communications Systems) for supportingICONO'3, which brought together many of the researchers thatcontributed to this feature; and the Optical Society of America stafffor their contributions to this feature.

Mark G. KuzykKenneth D. Singer

Robert J. TwiegFeature Editors

Organic and PolymericNonlinear Optical

Materials