Fabrication and characterization of whispering-gallery-mode resonators made of polymers

High-quality whispering-gallery-mode resonators made of polymethylmethacrylate ( PMMA) are fabricated by simple mechanical turning and polishing according to a technique used by Ilchenko et al. to produce crystalline whispering-gallery-mode resonators with high quality factors (Q-factors). The high-Q PMMA resonators are investigated in two wavelength regimes: in the near infrared between the wavelengths 1470 and 1580 nm and at the wavelength 635 nm. The Q-factor in the infrared regime is limited by material absorption to 3 x 10(5). At 635 nm the Q-factor is limited by surface scattering only and reaches 4 x 10(7), which is a new record for polymers. (C) 2009 Optical Society of America