Nanofiber Waveguides and Photophysics of an Organic Dye

We present previously unreported properties of the organic molecular dye compound, 2,3,7,8-tetracyano-5,10-dimethyl-5,10-dihydrodipyrazino[2,3-b: 2', 3' -e] pyrazine (DMTC-pyrazine) (CAS Reg. No. 150960-11-5), including photophysical properties with particular emphasis on optical waveguiding. We show that DMTC-pyrazine can self-assemble into monoclinic crystals that are thermally stable over 300 degrees C. Through shape-engineering, optimized growth conditions produced high yields of nanofiber (aspect ratio >6) crystals. No photobleaching of this dye was observed in air even after hours of on-resonant illumination. Excitation of photoluminescence within the DMTC-pyrazine nanofibers propagates in tightly confined guided modes (up to 25 mu m). The finesse, end-facet reflectance, and group refractive index of nanofiber DMTC-pyrazine Fabry-Perot cavities are reported. (C) 2015 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)