Comparison of the holographic properties of DCG and polymer materials containing hydroxyl and/or carboxyl functional groups

摘要

Abstract: The optical properties of dichromated gelatin (DCG) as a material for volume holography are close to ideal. The material shows large refractive index modulation, high spatial resolution, negligible absorption, and low scattering. The inexpensive fabrication of large format HOEs is attained by automation of the entire process - film manufacturing, hologram copying, that the master hologram is extremely thin and consists of the holographic layer only. DCG layers, however, can not be easily lifted from the glass or plastic substratum. It is possible to achieve this objective by using other materials. As an alternative to gelatin we investigated the holographic properties of materials that contain hydroxyl, carboxyl or carbonyl groups. The investigated materials are: poly(vinyl alcohol) PVA, poly(acrylic acid) PAA and mixtures of these, such as PVA/PAA and chemically modified cPVA. The subject matter of this paper is the comprehensive presentation of the result of the experimental investigation of the holographic properties of the above introduced materials and their comparison to the properties of DCG holographic films. This comparison includes, but is not limited to the diffraction efficiency, grating strength and the transmission characteristics of the films. !19