Optical power limiters (OPLs) are nonlinear optical (NLO) devices that limit the amount of energy transmitted in an
optical system. At low incident optical power or pulse energy, the transmission of the system is high enough to allow
nominal operation of the system. At high incident optical power or pulse energy, the transmission decreases to protect
sensitive components such as optical receivers or transmitters. The interest OPLs for use in the space environment is due
to the increasingly large number of space based missions and devices that require laser protection from laser beam is
coming from, an enemy, misaligned laser in equipment, etc. Temperature and space radiation-induced effects in optical
and electronic materials are well known and they can cause disruption in OPL functions, or in the worst case, failure of
the sensor. Recently, certain hyperbranched polymer-based composites containing OPL chromophores have been
developed that offer high OPL performance and have been shown to function in a simulated + space environment. One
novel high performance polymer material containing carbon nanotubes (CNT) covalently attached to the polymer host is
promising. Preliminary light scattering measurements suggest that nonlinear scattering is not the primary mechanism for
OPL performance.
A novel optical power limiter (OPL) has been designed and fabricated by synergistically combining the different optical power limiting mechanisms of various chromophores that include nanoparticulates such as fullerenes. The multi-mechanistic material, thus obtained, has been put together in a hyperbranched-polymer-based matrix system. Solid films and filters have been successfully fabricated using a solventless curing process, resulting in OPL filters of very high optical quality. These OPL filters have been subjected to gamma radiation and the effects on the OPL properties have been evaluated. The fabricated filters show potential for protecting optical sensors from laser-pulse damage in the space environment. Temperature- and space-radiation-induced effects in optical and electronic materials are well known and can cause disruption in OPL functions or, in the worst case, even failure of a sensor.
Optical limiters are nonlinear optical devices that limit the amount of power or energy transmitted. They function
through either optically-induced nonlinear absorption or refraction or a combination of the two. At low incident optical
power or pulse energy, the transmission of the system is high enough to allow nominal operation of the system. At high
incident optical power or pulse energy, the transmission decreases to protect sensitive components such as optical
receivers or transmitters. The interest in optical power limiters (OPL) for use in the space environment is due to the
increasingly large number of space based missions and applications that require laser protection. Temperature and space
radiation-induced effects in optical and electronic materials are well known and they can cause disruption in OPL
functions, or in the worst case, failure of the sensor. Therefore, designing materials that can withstand the space
environment has been an area of intense exploration in recent years. Some of the best-performing optical limiters are
materials containing chromophores that work via reverse saturable absorption, multiphoton absorption or nonlinear
scattering mechanisms; however, such materials are difficult to prepare and have problems with long-term stability. In
this paper, a novel type of polymeric OPL materials based on a multi-chromophore approach is described. The origin of
the OPL properties in these materials and preliminary results of their effects of radiation on the OPL properties are
discussed.
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