Abstract

Photopolymers are appealing materials for the fabrication of diffractive optical elements (DOEs). We evaluate the possibilities of polyvinyl-alcohol/acrylamide-based photopolymers to store diffractive elements with low spatial frequencies. We record gratings with different spatial frequencies in the material and analyze the material behavior measuring the transmitted and the reflected orders as a function of exposition. We study two different compositions for the photopolymer, with and without a cross-linker. The values of diffraction efficiency achieved for both compositions make the material suitable to record DOEs with long spatial periods. Assuming a Fermi–Dirac-function-based profile, we fitted the diffracted intensities (up to the eighth order) to obtain the phase profile of the recorded gratings. This analysis shows that it is possible to achieve a phase shift larger than $2\pi \mathrm{rad}$ with steep edges in the periodic phase profile. In the case of the measurements in reflection, we have obtained information dealing with the surface profile, which show that it has a smooth shape with an extremely large phase-modulation depth.

© 2009 Optical Society of America

Study of reflection gratings recorded in polyvinyl alcohol/acrylamide-based photopolymer

Rosa Fuentes, Elena Fernández, Celia García, Augusto Beléndez, and Inmaculada Pascual
Appl. Opt. 48(34) 6553-6557 (2009)

In dark analysis of PVA/AA materials at very low spatial frequencies: phase modulation evolution and diffusion estimation

Sergi Gallego, Andrés Márquez, Stephan Marini, Elena Fernández, Manuel Ortuño, and Inmaculada Pascual
Opt. Express 17(20) 18279-18291 (2009)

Real-time interferometric characterization of a polyvinyl alcohol based photopolymer at the zero spatial frequency limit

S. Gallego, A. Márquez, D. Méndez, C. Neipp, M. Ortuño, M. Álvarez, E. Fernandez, and A. Beléndez
Appl. Opt. 46(30) 7506-7512 (2007)

Diffusion-based model to predict the conservation of gratings recorded in poly(vinyl alcohol)–acrylamide photopolymer

Sergi Gallego, Cristian Neipp, Manuel Ortuño, Andrés Márquez, Augusto Beléndez, and Inmaculada Pascual
Appl. Opt. 42(29) 5839-5845 (2003)

Analysis of PVA/AA based photopolymers at the zero spatial frequency limit using interferometric methods

Sergi Gallego, Andrés Márquez, David Méndez, Manuel Ortuño, Cristian Neipp, Elena Fernández, Inmaculada Pascual, and Augusto Beléndez
Appl. Opt. 47(14) 2557-2563 (2008)