SBIR Phase I: Permanent Erasable Optical-Recording Material

该SBIR一期项目旨在开发用于光学记录的新材料。目前，还没有一种光记录材料能够满足光数据存储、高分辨率空间光调制器和可重构光互连等应用的所有要求。理想的光学记录材料应具有高分辨率、永久信息存储、读取无擦除能力、高灵敏度、高光化学和热稳定性以及光学擦除能力。光致变色材料是一种很有前途的光学记录材料，因为它们具有高分辨率，易于制造，价格低廉，并且对记录光相对敏感。然而，除非使用不同波长的光进行读取和记录，否则不能在不擦除的情况下读取当前光致变色材料中记录的信息。记录的信息也会随着时间和使用而褪色，材料也会光降解。该项目的总体目标是通过开发一种满足上述光学记录所有要求的新型光致变色材料来克服现有光学记录材料的局限性。该项目将表明，信息可以永久地记录在这种材料中，随后使用相同波长的光读取而不会被擦除。这将通过开发一种新的、可逆的固定方法来实现。此外，该项目将表明，记录的信息可以被删除和重新记录。在第二阶段，该公司将在固定方法、记录灵敏度和其他重要光学特性方面开发这些材料，并通过研究相关应用（如全息摄影和光学计算）来展示这些材料的实用性。本文提出的光学记录材料的成功开发将使高密度光学存储器的生产成为可能，该存储器可以在小至1 cm3的体积内存储1太比特的信息。非常高分辨率空间光调制器。可重构光互连、全息记录材料和光开关材料也将受益于这种材料。

This SBIR Phase I project is directed toward developing new materials for optical recording. At present, no optical recording material is available that meets all of the requirements for applications such as optical data storage, high resolution spatial light modulators and reconfigurable optical interconnects. The ideal optical recording material would have high resolution, permanent information storage, read without erase capability, high sensitivity, high photochemical and thermal stability, and optical erase capability. Photochromic materials are promising optical recording materials since they exhibit high resolution, are easy to fabricate, are inexpensive, and are relatively sensitive to recording light. However, information recorded in current photochromic materials cannot be read without erasure unless a different wavelength of light is used for reading and recording. The recorded information also tends to fade with time and use, and the materials photodegrade. The overall goal for this program is to overcome the limitations of existing optical recording materials through the development of a novel photochromic material that meets all of the above requirements for optical recording. This project will show that information can be permanently recorded into this material and subsequently read without erasure using the same wavelength of light. This will be accomplished by developing a novel, reversible fixing method. In addition, the project will show that recorded information can be erased and re-recorded. In Phase II, the firm will develop these materials with respect to the fixing method, recording sensitivity, and other important optical properties, and demonstrate the utility of these materials by investigating relevant applications, such as holography and optical computing. The successful development of the optical recording material proposed here would enable the production of high-density optical memories with the potential to store 1 terabit of information within a volume as small as 1 cm3. Very high resolution spatial light modulators. reconfigurable optical interconnects, holographic recording materials, and optical switching materials would also benefit from this material.