Optical limiting studies of ZnO nanotops and its polymer nanocomposite films

In the present work, we have investigated the optical limiting property of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanotop colloids and nanocomposite films of polymer-ZnO nanotops, using Z-scan technique. ZnO nanotops are prepared using two different capping agents. Films of polymethyl methacrylate-ZnO nanotop composite are fabricated for two concentrations of ZnO using spin coating technique. On exposing the nanocolloids to a pulsed nanosecond laser, the two photon absorption coefficient is enhanced with increase in applied fluence and particle size. The efficiency of limiting is found to be enhanced for the composite films, opening a way towards optoelectronic device fabrication. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4745605]