Doped with DR13 molecules TiO₂/organically modified silane organic-inorganic hybrid materials with low propagation loss and ultrafast optical response

Disperse red 13 (DR13) azoaromatic chromophores were incorporated into sol-gel derived TiO2/organically modified silane matrix to achieve a hybrid material with low propagation loss and ultrafast optical response. The planar waveguide and nonlinear optical properties of the as-derived hybrid films were studied by a prism coupling technique and an optical Kerr shutter technique with an 800-nm femtosecond laser, respectively. Results indicate that the response time of the bulk sample doped with 0.1% DR13 molecules is less than 208 fs, and the third-order nonlinear refractive index is estimated at about 1.141×10-15 cm2/W. The planar waveguide film with a low propagation loss less than 1 dB/cm for both transverse electric and transverse magnetic modes at a wavelength of 1312 nm can be easily obtained by a spin-coating process. It can be concluded from the above results that the as-prepared hybrid materials under present conditions are expected to have potential in ultrafast optical applications.