Modeling and recording characteristics of a dye-doped polymer bilayer film

The optical, thermal, and structural behavior of a laser-irradiated dye-in-polymer bilayer film consisting of an elastic and a plastic layer was investigated by a computer modeling and recording experiment. The results of numerical calculations describe absorption of optical energy in the recording layers, the heat flow, and the resultant bump formation throughout the multilayer. Recording performance of the material is strongly affected by the dye concentration and the thickness of the plastic layer. The calculated and measured properties of the media are compared, and the relationship between the dye concentration, thickness of plastic layer, and thermal, structural, and recording performance are described. Received: 9 March 1999 / Revised version: 10 May 1999 / Published online: 29 July 1999