Synthesis of Amino-Functionalized Graphene Oxide/Azobenzene Polyimide and its Simulation of Optical Switches

Abstract

Abstract In this work, an amino-functionalized graphene oxide (AFGO) was synthesized by graphene oxide (GO) and ethylene diamine. A novel amino-functionalized graphene oxide/azobenzene polyimide (AFGO/ACPI) was synthesized with AFGO, azobenzene chromophore and pyromellitic dianhydride (PMDA). The structure, mechanical and thermal property of AFGO/ACPI were characterized and measured by fourier transform infrared, UV-visible spectroscopy, near-infrared spectrum, thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry. To obtain the refractive index of AFGO/ACPI at different temperature and wavelength (532 nm, 650 nm and 850 nm), the attenuated total reflection (ATR) method was used to measure, and thermo optic coefficients (dn/dT) were −7.22×10−4 (532 nm), −6.20×10−4 (650 nm) and −5.84×10−4 (850 nm) °C−1, respectively. The transmission loss of AFGO/ACPI thin film was surveyed using the CCD digital imaging devices and the value was 0.167 dB/cm. According to the thermo-optic effect of AFGO/ACPI film, the 1×2 Y-branch and 2×2 Mach-Zehnder optical switches were simulated. The results showed that the power consumptions of the 1×2 Y-branch and 2×2 Mach-Zehnder optical switches were only 0.63 mW and 1.45 mW. The response time was about 0.5 ms, and compared to the normal polymeric thermo-optic switch, it can improve the response time and contribute to researches of optical switches.