Photorefractive Performance of Poly[methyl-3-(9-carbazolyl) propylsiloxane] Based Composites Sensitized with Poly(3-hexylthiophene) in a 0.2-1wt % Range

In this work, we report on the characterization of six low-$T_g$ poly[methyl-3-(9-carbazolyl) propylsiloxane] based photorefractive (PR) composites sensitized with poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) in different concentrations, ranging from 0.2 to 1 wt %. At 632.8 nm, photoconductivity, space charge field, refractive index modulation, and grating buildup time were measured versus external electric field. The photoconductivity was strongly dependent on the visible light absorption and mobility. The magnitude of space charge field was affected by the conductivity contrast $\sigma_{ph}/(\sigma_{ph}+\sigma_d)$. The refractive index modulation increased with the magnitude of space charge field and the PR grating buildup speed increased with the photoconductivity.