Synthesis and properties of nonlinear optical chromophore containing alkoxy-substituted phenylene as conjugation bridge

We designed and synthesized a push–pull type chromophore (St-TCF) containing phenylene ring as a conjugation bridge. Bulky alkyl chain was substituted into the phenylene bridge to minimize intermolecular interaction of the neighbor molecules and to enhance solubility of the chromophore in solvents and polymer host. The chemical structure and purity were verified by 1H NMR, 1H–1H COSY, 13C NMR, DEPT and Mass spectroscopy. The NMR spectra showed that we obtained the chromophore in a trans conformation. In spite of the bulky alkyl chains, St-TCF exhibited fairly high melting point of 167 °C. The chromophore was thermally stable up to 200 °C in the nitrogen atmosphere. The relatively high melting point and decomposition on-set may be attributable to the rigid phenylene ring. The chromophore was blended with an optically transparent polymer host and then the macroscopic electro-optic activity was evaluated. In a preliminary result, the polymer films containing St-TCF as a concentration of 50 wt% exhibited as large as 20–24 pm/V electro-optic coefficient at 1.55 μ.