Optical bistability in Coumarin-450 doped polymeric samples

Experimental observations of optical bistability in Coumarin-450 dye molecule entrapped in polymeric (PMMA) host inside Fabry–Perot cavity have been reported. Efforts have been made to demonstrate the nonlinear behavior of optical materials in solid form using 532 nm of Nd: YAG laser. The nonlinearity in terms of optical bistability and excited state absorption (ESA) has been discussed. The nonlinearity in Coumarin-450 dye molecule originated from unique intensity dependence of the complex index of refraction. It has been observed that nonlinear refraction dominates over nonlinear absorption in giving rise to the optical bistability. Nonlinear refractive index in both polymeric and liquid samples has been calculated.