Novel plastic optical fibers (POF) based on
polymethylmethacrylate, PMMA, doped with luminescent
conjugated polymers and oligomers were fabricated. Our
innovative approach is based on the chemical binding between
the PMMA matrix and the dopant material as an alternative to
the blending approach (mixture) of PMMA and the active
material. We aimed at controlling load and dispersion of the
luminescent polymer in the PMMA matrix, which are crucial
for the optimisation of these optical media, while reducing the
possibility of dopant segregation during the fiber drawing.
Stimulated emission and optical switching inside the fiber were
observed in some of the new materials, indicating that they can
represent possible routes to plastic optical media, namely
POFs, exhibiting gain and ultrafast switching.