Holographic recording and AFM characterization of diffractive optical elements in azopolymer–Au Nanocomposites

Abstract

Azopolymer nanocomposites doped with gold nanoparticles represent promising photoresponsive materials for the fabrication of diffractive optical elements due to their strong photoinduced surface mass transport. In this work, diffraction gratings and vortex-type diffractive optical elements were recorded in thin films of azopolymer nanocomposites containing Au nanoparticles, followed by morphological characterization using atomic force microscopy (AFM). AFM analysis revealed well-defined surface relief structures with an average fringe period of approximately 7.5 μm.