Photochromic isomerization of spirobenzopyran in nanoholes of anodic alumina.

A notable change in the photochromic characteristics was observed when the benzene solution of spirobenzopyran was put in nanoholes of anodic alumina. The absorption peak that appeared in the ultraviolet irradiation process shifted to a shorter wavelength, and the decay time of the decoloration process became approximately 200 times longer than that of the original solution. After a preservation period of several days, however, both the absorption wavelength and the decay time recovered to those of the original solution. These experimental results suggest that the photochromic isomerization in the alumina nanoholes is affected by the large surface area of the matrix rather than the limited free volume.

[1]  Masahiro Irie,et al.  Photooptical Switching of Polymer Film Waveguide Containing Photochromic Diarylethenes , 1994 .

[2]  Bruce Dunn,et al.  Photochromism of spiropyrans in aluminosilicate gels , 1990 .

[3]  Germano Montemezzani,et al.  Reversible optical structuring of polymer waveguides doped with photochromic molecules , 2000 .

[4]  M. Irie,et al.  Photochromism of Diarylethenes on Porous Aluminum Oxide: Fatigue Resistance and Redox Potentials of the Photochromes , 2001 .

[5]  M. Miyagi,et al.  Optical waveguides fabricated in anodic alumina films. , 1994, Optics letters.

[6]  Jianyu Liang,et al.  Highly ordered arrays of organic–inorganic nanophotonic composites , 2002 .

[7]  M. Kirihara,et al.  Micropolarizer made of the anodized alumina film , 1989 .

[8]  R A Lessard,et al.  Photochromic behavior of spiropyran in polymer matrices. , 2001, Applied optics.

[9]  Kazuyuki Horie,et al.  Photochemistry in polymer solids-7. Photochromic reaction of spiropyran in polycarbonate film , 1985 .

[10]  M. Miyagi,et al.  Light scattering by liquid crystals in columnar micropores , 1994 .

[11]  D A Parthenopoulos,et al.  Three-Dimensional Optical Storage Memory , 1989, Science.

[12]  Marian Kryszewski,et al.  Kinetic matrix effects (response and density distribution functions): ring closure. Reaction of indolinobenzospiropyrans in glassy poly(alkyl methacrylates) , 1980 .

[13]  J. G. Victor,et al.  On measuring the distribution of local free volume in glassy polymers by photochromic and fluorescence techniques , 1987 .

[14]  David Avnir,et al.  Effects of the changes in the properties of silica cage along the gel/xerogel transition on the photochromic behavior of trapped spiropyrans , 1988 .

[15]  Kenji Fukuda,et al.  Ordered Metal Nanohole Arrays Made by a Two-Step Replication of Honeycomb Structures of Anodic Alumina , 1995, Science.

[16]  D. Avnir,et al.  Applications of the sol-gel process for the preparation of photochromic information-recording materials: synthesis, properties, mechanisms , 1989 .

[17]  Jean-Pierre Boilot,et al.  Large and Stable Refractive Index Change in Photochromic Hybrid Materials , 1998 .

[18]  Ekaterina Ponizovskaya Devine,et al.  Wide photonic band gaps at the visible in metallic nanowire arrays embedded in a dielectric matrix , 2003 .

[19]  A. Yacoubian,et al.  Enhanced optical modulation using azo-dye polymers. , 1993, Applied optics.

[20]  Toshihiko Nagamura,et al.  Ultrafast wide range all-optical switch using complex refractive-index changes in a composite film of silver and polymer containing photochromic dye , 1998 .

[21]  J. M. Otón,et al.  Photochromic doped sol-gel materials for fiber-optic devices , 1997 .

[22]  I. Yamaguchi,et al.  All-optical spatial light modulator with surface plasmon resonance. , 1993, Optics letters.

[23]  Kingo Uchida,et al.  Photochromic liquid-core fibers with nonlinear input-output characteristics , 2003 .

[24]  H. Franke,et al.  Opto‐optical switching in ion‐implanted poly(methyl methacrylate)‐waveguides , 1992 .

[25]  David Levy,et al.  Photochromic Sol−Gel Materials , 1997 .