Salvador Blaya

Optimization of an acrylamide-based dry film used for holographic recording

A study of the optimization and the characteristics of a dry film photopolymerizable recording material is presented. The effects of intensity, the thickness, and the variation of the concentration of each component have been studied. Diffraction efficiencies of 80%, with energetic sensitivities of 40 mJ/cm(2), have been obtained in photosensitive films of a 35-mum thickness with a spatial frequency of 1000 lines/mm.

Theoretical and experimental study of the bleaching of a dye in a film-polymerization process

The quantum efficiency and the molar-absorption coefficients of different phenothiazine dyes are obtained by means of fitting the experimental data of transmittance as a function of time. An analytical expression for the intensity transmitted in a photopolymerizable holographic material is obtained, and good agreement between theory and experience is also achieved. The analysis of these parameters is of fundamental quantities in the photochemical characterization of holographic recording materials.

Nonparaxial diffraction analysis of Airy and SAiry beams

We theoretically analyze Airy beams by solving the exact vectorial Helmholtz equation using boundary conditions at a diffraction aperture. As result, the diffracted beams are obtained in the whole space; thus, we demonstrate that the parabolic trajectories are larger than those previously reported, showing that the Airy beams start to form before the Fourier plane. We also demonstrate the possibility of using a new type of Airy beams (SAiry beams) with finite energy that can be generated at the focal plane of the lens due to diffraction by a circular aperture of a spherical wave modified by a cubic phase. The finite energy ensured by the principle of conservation of energy of a diffracted beam.

Holography as a technique for the study of photopolymerization kinetics in dry polymeric films with a nonlinear response.

A method is reported that makes use of holography to study the kinetics of the radical photopolymerization of acrylamide in a polyvinyl alcohol when the Kogelnik theory is applied. A mechanism of unimolecular termination by the radicals that initiate the polymerization reaction is postulated to calculate the quantum yield, the molar-extinction coefficient, the index of refraction, and the thickness of the film. The conversion percentage of monomers is obtained along with the ratio of rate constants of the mechanism of polymerization from the nonlinear fit of the transmittance curves, their angular response, and the temporal evolution of diffraction efficiency. Compared with previous holographic techniques, this method has the advantage of predicting these chemical parameters using all the data points of the temporal diffraction efficiency variation rather than being restricted to the linear zone of these curves. In this way the whole reaction process, not just the initial process, is taken into account.

Stereoselective synthesis of β-alkoxy- and β-alkylthio-acrylic esters and amides from β-tosylacrylic derivatives

Abstract A simple and stereoselective synthesis of β-alkoxy- and β-alkylthio-acrylic esters and amides (8) by nucleophilic vinylic substitution of the tosyl group by sodium alcoholates and thiolates of (E)-β-tosylacrylic derivatives (7), prepared by iodosulfonylation-dehydroiodination of acrylic compounds, is described. This methodology is applied to the synthesis of sinharine (8eh) a natural antifungal isolated from glycosmis cyanocarpa.

Optical singularities and power flux in the near-field region of planar evanescent-field superlenses.

We rigorously analyze the optical singularities and power flux in the near-field region of the novel superlenses reported in [Science317, 927 (2007)] For this purpose, we derive near-field expressions and a general criterion to classify the optical singularities in the vacuum, which are valid when the (s- or p-polarized) electromagnetic fields are generated by any planar field distribution with Cartesian or azimuthal symmetry. Such general results are particularized to the superlenses [Science317, 927 (2007)], for which we identify a sequence of optical vortices and saddles that arise from evanescent-field interference. While the saddles are always located around the focal region, the vortex locations depend on the source field. The features of the topological connection between vortices and saddles are also discussed.

Near-Field Electromagnetic Analysis of Perfect Black Fresnel Zone Plates Using Radial Polarization

We analyze the near-field focalization properties of perfect black Fresnel Zone Plates (FZPs) through the exact solutions of Maxwell equations for radially polarized fields obtained by means of Luneburg vector diffraction theory. The electromagnetic fields are computed assuming Hermite-Gauss and Bessel-Gauss beams as boundary conditions at the FZP plane z=0, which allows us to demonstrate that the total intensity is necessarily focused at z=0 and thus there is not much improvement of the intensity resolution at the focal plane. On the other hand, the Poynting vector exhibits multiple vortices and saddle points in the near-field region while its z component vanishes at the FZP axis and has a large focal depth as well as several residual contributions outside the focal region. These facts suggest that perfect black FZPs do not focus radially polarized fields at the designed focal length when such length is comparable to the wavelength (or smaller). Our results are very similar to the ones obtained for phase FZPs and they are in good agreement with FDTD simulations.

Three-dimensional analysis of optical forces generated by an active tractor beam using radial polarization

We theoretically study the three-dimensional behavior of nanoparticles in an active optical conveyor. To do this, we solved the Langevin equation when the forces are generated by a focusing system at the near field. Analytical expressions for the optical forces generated by the optical conveyor were obtained by solving the Richards and Wolf vectorial diffraction integrals in an approximated form when a mask of two annular pupils is illuminated by a radially polarized Hermite-Gauss beam. Trajectories, in both the transverse plane and the longitudinal direction, are analyzed showing that the behavior of the optical conveyor can be optimized by conveniently choosing the configuration of the mask of the two annular pupils (inner and outer radius of the two rings) in order to trap and transport all particles at the focal plane.

Rigorous analysis of the propagation of sinusoidal pulses in bacteriorhodopsin films

The propagation of sinusoidal pulses in bacteriorhodopsin films has been theoretically analyzed using a complete study of the photoinduced processes that take into account all the physical parameters, the coupling of rate equations with the energy transfer equation and the temperature change during the experiment. The theoretical approach was compared to experimental data and a good concordance was observed. This theoretical treatment, can be widely applied, i.e when arbitrary pump and/or signal is used or in the case of the pump and signal beams have different wavelengths. Due to we have performed a rigorous analysis, from this treatment the corresponding two level approximation has also been analyzed for these systems.

Coupled wave analysis of holographically induced transparency (HIT) generated by two multiplexed volume gratings

We present a holographic system that can be used to manipulate the group velocity of light pulses. The proposed structure is based on the multiplexing of two sequential holographic volume gratings, one in transmission and the other in reflection geometry, where one of the recording beams must be the same for both structures. As in other systems such as grating induced transparency (GIT) or coupled-resonator-induced transparency (CRIT), by using the coupled wave theory it is shown that this holographic structure represents a classical analogue of the electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT). Analytical expressions were obtained for the transmittance induced at the forbidden band (spectral hole) and conditions where the group velocity was slowed down were analyzed. Moreover, the propagation of Gaussian pulses is analyzed for this system by obtaining, after further approximations, analytical expressions for the distortion of the transmitted field. As a result, we demonstrate the conditions where the transmitted pulse is slowed down and its shape is only slightly distorted. Finally, by comparing with the exact solutions obtained, the range of validity of all the analytical formulae was verified, demonstrating that the error is very low.