Thiol-ene polymer metal oxide nanoparticle high refractive index composites
View Patent ↗A bulk polymer composite comprising a thiol-ene polymer matrix, or the corresponding polymers derived from a phosphinyl, selenol, or arsinyl monomer, and metal oxide nanoparticles dispersed within said matrix, said nanoparticles being bonded to polymer molecules contained in the matrix. Terpolymers that further comprise repeat units derived from a molecular metal oxide cluster, and composites in which such terpolymers function as a matrix for metal oxide nanoparticles are also disclosed.
1. A bulk polymer composite comprising a thiolene polymer matrix and metal oxide nanoparticles dispersed within said matrix, said nanoparticles being bonded to polymer molecules contained in the matrix;
wherein said polymer comprises repeat units derived from a first multifunctional monomer comprising a plurality of vinyl groups, a polythiol, and a molecular metal oxide cluster, and said repeat units correspond to the structure
where M is sulfur, silicon, tin, or an organic moiety; and where n is the number of repeat units.
2. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein the nanoparticles are ≦00 nm in size as incorporated into a monomer formulation from which the polymer is prepared.
3. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein the value of n is between 10 and 1000.
4. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein the value of n is between 50 and 200.
5. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein M is the sulfur.
6. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein M is the silicon.
7. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein M is the tin.
8. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein M is the organic moiety.
9. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein the composite is incorporated into a corrective lens.
10. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein the composite has a refractive index of at least 1.65.
11. The bulk polymer composite as set forth in claim 1 wherein the composite has a refractive index of at least 1.65 and an Abbe number of at least 38.