Radiation imagery chemistry: process – composition – or product th – Imaging affecting physical property of radiation sensitive... – Radiation sensitive composition or product or process of making
Reexamination Certificate
2001-07-11
2003-10-14
Baxter, Janet (Department: 1752)
Radiation imagery chemistry: process, composition, or product th
Imaging affecting physical property of radiation sensitive...
Radiation sensitive composition or product or process of making
C430S285100, C430S321000, C430S325000, C430S330000, C430S328000, C522S084000, C522S085000, C522S086000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06632585
ABSTRACT:
This application is a 371 of PCT/JP00/07949 filed Nov. 10, 2000.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a photosensitive composition, an optical waveguide element comprising the same and a process for producing the optical waveguide element.
PRIOR ART
Along with the rapid spread of the Internet and multi-media, a need for optical communication systems having higher speed and larger capacity has recently been growing. As a means of meeting the need, much attention is being paid to a wavelength multiplex communication system (WDM) which eliminates the need of increasing the number of optical fibers and makes use of the existing optical fibers. Optical parts and materials are necessary for the construction of this system. Among the optical parts are an optical waveguide element, an optical filter element and the like. For these optical parts and materials for optical communication, the supply of a material which needs to have transmission at communication wavelength ranges and such characteristic properties as heat resistance, water resistance and chemical resistance, and makes it possible to produce them and incorporate them in a mounting module with ease is desired.
The following materials (i) to (vi) are known as the material which satisfies the above requirements:
(i) a coating solution composition for forming an optical material which comprises a trifunctional silane and metal alkoxide, and an optical material formed therefrom (JP-A 7-331173) (the term “JP-A” as used herein means an “unexamined published Japanese patent application”),
(ii) a resin material for optical transmission lines which is a partial hydrolysis and condensation polysiloxane resin of deuterated tetraalkoxysilane and an optical waveguide formed therefrom (JP-A 8-313742),
(iii) an optical waveguide element having a grating manufactured from a photosensitive material comprising methacryloxypropyl trimethoxysilane, zirconium alkoxide and acrylic acid (JOURNAL OF LIGHTWAVE TECHNOLOGY, Vol. 16, No. 9, pp. 1640-1646, September 1998, SPIE Vol. 3282, pp. 17-30 and SPIE Vol. 3282, pp. 50-58)
(iv) a polymer optical waveguide element having a low loss at a communication wavelength (Optonews, No. 2, pp. 31-32, 1999),
(v) an organic-inorganic hybrid material having excellent transparency and comprising methacryloxypropylmethyl dichlorosilane (MPMDCS), 1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-tridecafluorooctylmethyl dichlorosilane (FOMDCS) and heptadecafluorodecyl methacrylate (HFDMA) (M. Menning, M. Zahnhausen, H. Schmidt, Proc. SPIE Vol. 3469, pp. 68-78, 1998) (The C—H group of MPMDCS which is a photosensitive raw material remains unchanged and FOMDCS having a large number of C—F groups and HFDMA which is a photosensitive organic monomer are added excessively to reduce the number of the C—H groups), and
(vi) an organic-inorganic hybrid material which comprises tetraalkoxysilane, alkyltrialkoxysilane and aryltrialkoxysilane (WO 98/25862) (This publication shows that the absorption of IR having a wavelength of 1.3 &mgr;m and a wavelength of 1.553 &mgr;m derived from the C—H bond can be reduced by using CD
3
Si(OC
2
H
5
)
3
and C
6
D
5
Si(OC
2
H
5
)
3
).
However, the above prior arts have the following problems. First, since the above material (i) has an alkyl group and alkoxy group and its absorbed harmonic component based on the C—H bond is at a near infrared range, it cannot be said that it has high transmission at communication ranges of 1.55 &mgr;m and 1.3 &mgr;m.
The material (ii) has such a problem that when a film having a thickness required for the formation of an optical waveguide element is to be formed therefrom, the film is easily cracked although the loss of light having communication wavelengths is reduced by using deuterated tetraalkoxysilane. Further, it is not easy to form a diffraction grating on the optical waveguide.
Since the element (iii) is made from a photosensitive material, an optical waveguide having a grating can be easily manufactured by a method such as optical processing. However, like the above material (i), it cannot be said that the element has high transmission at communication ranges. As the element (iv) is made from a polymer, it does not always have satisfactory workability, reliability for parts and stability.
The above organic-inorganic hybrid material (v) must contain an organic component having a C—F group in excess to ensure light transmission and only an organic-inorganic hybrid material having an extremely small content of an inorganic component is provided. The content of the inorganic component cannot be increased in full so as to improve thermal characteristics (environmental resistance and dimensional stability obtained by reducing thermal expansion coefficient).
The above material (vi) cannot be used as a material to be processed by photolithography for the manufacture of a diffraction grating by double-beam interference exposure, the manufacture of an optical waveguide by exposure using a photomask and patterning by the leaching of an unexposed portion, or the manufacture of a diffraction grating by phase mask exposure because the alkyl group (methyl group) or aryl group (phenyl group) contained in CD
3
Si(OC
2
H
5
)
3
and C
6
D
5
Si(OC
2
H
5
)
3
does not have photopolymerizability or thermopolymerizability.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems of the prior art. That is, it is an object of the present invention to provide a photosensitive composition which has high transmission at wavelength ranges used for communication, excellent characteristic properties such as heat resistance, water resistance and chemical resistance and is used as a process material which makes it possible to form a grating and incorporate it in a mounting module with ease. It is another object of the present invention to provide a photosensitive composition for forming a light transmitting material which enables the free control of the proportions of an organic component and an inorganic component and fine light processing through exposure and has a photosensitive organic group.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description.
According to the present invention, firstly, the above objects and advantages of the present invention are attained by a photosensitive composition (may be referred to as “composition A” hereinafter) for forming a light transmitting material, comprising a silane compound or hydrolysis/dehydration condensation reaction product thereof, a photoinitiator and water, wherein
the silane compound is represented by the following formula (1):
R
1
SiX
1
3
(1)
wherein R
1
is an organic group having a polymerizable carbon-carbon double bond, and X
1
is a hydrolyzable group or atom, with the proviso that at least 40% of the total number of hydrogen atoms of the organic group R
1
are substituted by at least one substituent atom selected from the group consisting of deuterium, fluorine, chlorine and bromine.
According to the present invention, secondly, the above objects and advantages of the present invention are attained by a photosensitive composition (may be referred to as “composition B” hereinafter) for forming a light transmitting material, comprising:
(A) a metal compound represented by the following formula (2) or a hydrolysis/dehydration condensation reaction product thereof:
M
1
X
2
4
(2)
wherein M
1
is Si, Al, Zr, Ge or Ti, and X
2
is a hydrolyzable group or atom;
(B) acrylic acid, methacrylic acid or acid ester thereof represented by the following formula (3):
wherein R
2
is a hydrogen atom, alkyl group or ketoalkyl group, and Y is a hydrogen atom or methyl group, with the proviso that at least 40% of the total number of hydrogen atoms in the formula (3) are substituted by at least one substituent atom selected from the group consisting of deuterium, fluorine, chlorine and bromine;
(C) a photoinitiator; and
(D) water.
According to the present invention, thirdly, the above objects and advantages of the present invention are attained by a p
Baxter Janet
Lee Sin J.
Nippon Sheet Glass Co. Ltd.
Wenderoth , Lind & Ponack, L.L.P.
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