Chapter 4
Perfluorocyclobutane Polymers for Optical Fiber and Dielectric Waveguides
Downloaded by PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV on August 31, 2012 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: September 13, 2001 | doi: 10.1021/bk-2001-0795.ch004
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Dennis W. Smith, Jr. , Adrienne B. Hoeglund , Hiren V. Shah , Michael J. Radier , and Charles A. Langhoff 2
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Department of Chemistry, Clemson University, 219 H . L . Hunter Chemistry Laboratory, Clemson, SC 29634 Corporate Research, The Dow Chemical Company, 1712 Building, Midland, MI 48674
The thermal cyclopolymerization of trifunctional and bifunctional aryl trifluorovinyl ether monomers to perfluorocyclobutane polymers affords high temperature, variable refractive index, low dielectric constant and low transmission loss materials for potential use in optical communication and microelectronic devices. Copolymerization reactions were studied to determine monomer reactivity differences and reveal the dependence of optical properties on copolymer structure. Random copolymerization affords tunable thermal and optical properties as a function of copolymer composition. Organic polymers for applications such as dielectric waveguides and optical fiber are increasingly attractive alternatives to inorganic components in telecommunication devices. ' Polymers offer flexibility, low cost fabrication and connection, high transparency in the visible and near-infrared spectra, and versatility in structure, properties, and grades for task specific integration such as local-area-network applications. However, glass-derived components remain formidable incumbents due to their lower density, high heat resistance, lower attenuation, wider bandwidth, and higher transmission speeds over the majority of common optical polymers. For example, P M M A exhibits a maximum transmission wavelength at 650 nm due to C - H vibrational overtone absorptions. Most telecommunication systems require low transmission losses (
