Nov. 12, 2002 - Researchers are beginning to explore the next generation of electronics using materials to transmit data at the speed of light through a collaboration between The University of Akron and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Materials and Manufacturing Directorate.
The University's College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering and the AFRL have established a Collaborative Center in Polymer Photonics (CCPP), according to polymer Dean Dr. Frank Kelley. Funding for the project totaling $2.7 million over three years comes from the AFRL, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research and University matching funds.
Photonics is a wide-ranging technology in which photons are manipulated in a way that is very similar to electrons in electronics. It has applications in the industrial, biomedical, telecommunications and defense industries, and could lead to high-performance photonic computers.
A precise description of photonics is quantum electronics, which describes the relationship between electrons and the quantum nature of matter and radiation, Kelley says of the principle involved. In an electronic circuit, signal transmission is usually carried out by electrons while in a photonic circuit, light performs this function. Because photons travel at the speed of light, the rate of transmission in a photonic circuit can be several orders of magnitude faster than in an electronic circuit.
The overall goal of the center will be the development of polymer-based materials for photonic applications, Kelley says.
Polymers have played a vital role in products extensively used in the micro-electronic industry such as printed circuit boards, wire coatings, housings and electronic flexible interconnections, he says. However, with the rapid development of communication technologies for use in the information superhighway, the application of new polymeric materials to applied photonics has begun.
Kelley says the center will help to accelerate current research through the identification and development of critical technologies. The center will foster flexibility in responding rapidly to new directions in research and will leverage resources from other institutions throughout the state. The center also will implement the continuous growth of polymer research into new scientific and technological areas.
UA polymer and physics investigators participating in the project include Dr. William Brittain, Dr. Stephen Cheng, Dr. Liming Dai, Dr. Mark Foster, Dr. Frank Harris, Dr. Thein Kyu, Dr. Sergei Lyuksyutov, Dr. Wayne Mattice and Dr. Alexei Sokolov.
The cutting-edge research conducted in this collaboration will lead to polymers and other new types of materials combining with glass and other materials in the transmission of data because they are lighter, less expensive, easier to work with and more durable, Cheng says.
According to Cheng and Harris, the initial research will focus on various aspects of developing and assembling polymer-related materials into structures that have photonic properties; combining polymers to amplify the energy of light used in photonic applications; polymers that conduct electricity and also could have applications in photonics; polymers with the capability to convert energy among different forms (radiation, electric and chemical energies); computer modeling interactions between light and polymers; and new experimental and theoretical methods to characterize these polymer materials.
The focus on these technologies will have a far-reaching effect on the advanced materials industry, Cheng says.