On the linear and nonlinear optical properties of ZnO/PS-PMMA nanocomposite films

193 6 O On n t th he e l li in ne ea ar r a an nd d n no on nl li in ne ea ar r o op pt ti ic ca al l p pr ro op pe er rt ti ie es s o of f t th he er rm ma al ll ly y s st ta ab bl le e, , Z Zn nO O/ /P PS S-P PM MM MA A n na an no oc co om mp po os si it te e f fi il lm ms s 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Synthesis details 6.3 Structural characterization 6.4 Thermal analysis 6.5 Optical Studies 6.6 Nonlinear optical studies 6.7 Conclusion The linear and nonlinear optical properties of highly transparent and thermally stable zinc oxide (ZnO)/ poly (styrene)-poly (methyl methacrylate) (PS-PMMA) nanocomposite films have been investigated and the details are given in this chapter. ZnO nanoparticles of size around 10 nm, as confirmed from Transmission electron spectroscopy (TEM) studies are used to synthesize the ZnO/PS-PMMA nanocomposite samples. The nanocomposite films, deposited by spin coating technique are characterized by XRD, FT-IR, AFM, UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy, TGA, Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and Z-scan technique. In present work, the host matrix used is the blend of the two polymers, PS and PMMA. Both of these polymers are highly transparent and environmentally stable and proven to be excellent for forming nanocomposites with ZnO. Hence, in the present work, the nanocomposite samples of ZnO with PS-PMMA blend have been synthesized and their linear and nonlinear optical properties, investigated. Excellent optical limiting and efficient UV shielding are found to be the significant advantageous characteristics of these composite samples.