Highly photostable organic distributed feedback laser emitting at 573 nm

An efficient, low-cost, and highly photostable second-order distributed feedback (DFB) laser, fabricated by thermal nanoimprint lithography and based on a polymer active film containing a perylenediimide derivative, is reported. It shows a photostability half-life of 3.1 x 10(5) pump pulses (>8 h), when pumped at the same spot of the film. This value is the highest reported to date for organic DFB lasers measured under ambient conditions. The device emits at 573 nm, matching the second low-loss transmission window of poly(methylmethacrylate) (460-590 nm), thus offering potential for applications in data communications based on polymer optical fibers. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3506500]