Study of Optical Limiting Behavior in Nickel Complex Dye Doped Polymeric and Silica Matrix under Nanosecond Laser Source Excitation

During the present course of investigations, nickel-complex bis (4-dimethylaminodithiobenzyl)-nickel)(BDN) dye is encapsulated in poly-methylmethacrylate (PMMA) and tetra-ethylorthosilicate (TEOS) matrix to obtain solid-state transparent samples. Nanosecond pulses of Nd: YAG laser at 532nm wavelength with 5ns pulses and 200mJ maximum energy per pulse is employed as source for experimental characterization of optical limiting behavior. Limiter performance parameters viz. limiting threshold and dynamic range are reported. Comparative analysis of limiting character of the dye in polymeric and silica matrices is made. Self-defocusing and nonlinear absorption attributes to limiting behavior in polymer matrix whereas in silica environment, limiting is governed by nonlinear scattering due to nanoscale pore-size.