Polymer waveguides for explosives detection

POLY 124

Rena L. Hammer, rlhammer@uab.edu, Department of Chemistry, Univesity of Alabama at Birmingham, 1530 3rd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35294-1240, William F. Sherwood, sherwood81@comcast.net, Northridge High School, 2901 Northridge Road, Tuscaloosa, AL 35406, Medhat S. Farahat, mfarahat@mint.ua.edu, Center for Materials for Information Technology, The University of Alabama, P.O. Box 870209, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0209, and David E. Nikles, dnikles@mint.ua.edu, Department of Chemistry and Center for Materials for Information Technology, The University of Alabama, Box 870209, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0209.
Spectroscopic ellipsometry detected changes in refractive index for films of either polycarbonate, poly(1-vinylimidazole) or poly(2-vinyl-4,6-diamino-1,3,5-triazine-co-styrene) on silicon wafers when 4-nitrotoluene entered the films. The changes in refractive index were much more than adequate (Δn > 0.003) for use in an explosives sensor based on a Mach Zender interferometer. In the case of the poly(1-vinylimidazole) and the poly(2-vinyl-4,6-diamino-1,3,5-triazine-co-styrene) the refractive index changed after only 4 seconds exposure to a saturated atmosphere of 4-nitrotoluene vapor. These results suggest we can build a very sensitive, fast detector for TNT based explosives.
 

Undergraduate Research in Polymer Science
6:00 PM-8:00 PM, Sunday, April 6, 2008 Morial Convention Center -- Hall A, Poster

Division of Polymer Chemistry

The 235th ACS National Meeting, New Orleans, LA, April 6-10, 2008