This study reports research related to different preparation methods and characterization of polymer nanocomposites for optical applications. The Eu-ion doped Gd2O3 nanophosphor powder with different nanoparticle content was embedded in the matrix of PMMA. Preparation was carried out by mixing molding (bulk), electrospinning (nanofibers) and solution casting (thin films) with neat particles and particles coated with AMEO silane. Among the pros and cons for proposed methods, the mixing molding enables to avoid solvent use while the best deagglomeration and nanoparticle distribution is gained using the electrospinning method. The results of dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and nanoindentation revealed that the storage modulus of the composites was higher than that of pure PMMA and increased with nanophosphor content. Surface modification of particles improved the mechanical properties of nanocomposites

The results of a study related to the processing and characterization of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)-Y 2 O 3 (Eu 3+ ) nanocomposites are presented herein. The nanocomposite samples were prepared using a laboratory mixing molder with different contents of Eu-ion doped Y 2 O 3 nanophosphor powder. The influence of particle content on the optical and dynamic mechanical properties of the nanocomposites was investigated. The intensity of the luminescence emission spectra increased as the nanophosphor content in the composite increased. The results of dynamic mechanical analysis revealed that the storage modulus, loss modulus and glass transition temperature (T g ) of the polymer composites increased with increasing content of the nanophosphor powder. The microhardness data also confirmed that the hardness number increased with nanoparticles concentration in the PMMA nanocomposites. The obtained results revealed a relatively linear relationship between T g and the Vickers hardness.

Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) is one of the most powerful tools to study the behavior of plastic and polymer composite materials and it is a potentially very useful tool to simulate behavior of plastic optic fibers (POF) in real applications. The possibility of simultaneous measurements of some optical properties during DMA would significantly upgrade investigations of POF alone or embedded in some materials. In this work, single cantilever DMA of the POFs that was done simultaneously with measuring the transmitted optical signal intensity is described and discussed. In order to compare mechanical results of the same material for cylindrical and rectangular specimens, rectangular plates were prepared by melting POFs and the same kind of tests were performed. It is shown that changes of the optical signal intensity correspond to the changes of storage modulus of the POF during DMA, and the maximums in optical signals intensity indicate the beginning of glass transition processes in the POF material.

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