Conjugated polymers encapsulated with microspheres of polyvinyl alcohol

The synthesis and characterization of fluorescent microspheres of poly(2-methoxy,5-(2'ethyl-hexiloxy)-p-phenilene vinylene) MEH-PPV conjugated polymer encapsulated with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) are presented. Comparison between the emission spectra obtained for MEH-PPV in chloroform solution and for a single PVA/MEH-PPV microsphere is done. The broadening and the enhancement of the vibronic peaks observed in the isolated microsphere spectrum are interpreted as due to confinement effects. Quality factors, of the order of 104 to 105, were estimated for microspheres radius ranging from 12 to 17 μm, which strongly indicate that PVA/MEH-PPV microspheres are potential candidates for high gain spherical cavity lasers.