alex.moskalyuk

Channel 16 (UWTV) is showing an interesting presentation by Larry Dalton, professor of Chemistry at the University of Washington. I am not a Chemistry major, and apparently the high-school Chem is not quite enough to fully understand what he’s talking about, but Professor Dalton is conducting research in organic materials capable of transferring data via electric and optical qualities. Advantages? Smaller size and lower voltage consumption, plus cheaper price since organic matter is so widely available (mad props to Mother Nature).

Here’s Dalton’s mission of statement from his personal Web site:

Over the last two decades, advances in electronics have revolutionized the speed with which we perform computing and communications of all kinds. Three key technologies combined to create a platform that enabled the electronic revolution: semiconductor materials, automated microfabrication of integrated electronic circuits, and integrated electronic circuit design. As a result, the mass manufacturing of low-cost integrated circuits has become possible. But now we are outgrowing the performance of electronics in many applications. Signal propagation and switching speeds in the electronic domain are inherently limited. One area where these limitations are seen clearly is in telecommunications, where bandwidth expansion is desperately needed. To overcome these barriers, we must enter a new computing and communications revolution-this time based on photonics. Photonics plays some crucial and complementing roles to electronics in many application domains. Examples of successful use of photonics can be found in broadband communications, high-capacity information storage, and large screen and portable information display. As demands for information bandwidth increase, information photonics is becoming more and more important in every aspect of today’s technology-driven society. The success of a new technology, however, largely depends on the progress achieved in finding and fabricating new high- performance and cost-effective materials. Recently, as the knowledge base of polymeric materials widened, new functions for polymers have been actively investigated. New and improved polymeric materials were found to show promises in generating, processing, transmitting, detecting, and storing light signals.

He also has a paper on electrooptical and optoelectronic devices:

Electro-optic chromophores (FTC and CLD) were synthesized in bulk (kilogram) quantities and were distributed to the participants of this program project (Steier, Fetterman, Chen, and TACAN/IPITEK). They were also provided to other Department of Defense programs including to researchers at China Lake (Navy), Redstone Arsenal (Army), and Wright Paterson (Air Force Research Laboratory) and to various industrial programs (e.g., Lockheed Martin) participating in DoD research programs. FTC and CLD chromophores were systematically modified to improve their properties, including for lattice hardening to stabilize electro-optic activity for operation at elevated temperatures and photon flux levels. Over 100 variants of these chromophores were synthesized and were evaluated. Reaction yields were optimized by systematically variation of reaction conditions. New chromophores were also synthesized at the University of Washington including those involving incorporation of significantly improved chromophores. These new materials involve factors of 1.5-2.0 improvement over FTC and CLD chromophores in terms of electro- optic activity at telecommunication wavelengths. They also have proven more amendable to being processed into hardened material lattices and have exhibited significantly improved thermal and photochemical stability. The role of chromophore structure and the use of radical (and singlet oxygen) scavengers have been investigated. The results can be utilized to fabricate materials with significantly improved photochemical stability.