Composite polymer fibers
First Claim
1. A composite polymer fiber, comprising:
- a polymer filler material; and
a plurality of polymer scattering fibers disposed within the filler material, the scattering fibers having longitudinal axes substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the composite polymer fiber;
wherein at least one of the filler material and the scattering fibers is formed of a birefringent material, the refractive indices of the filler material and the scattering fibers being substantially matched for light incident in a first polarization state on the composite polymer fiber and being substantially unmatched for light incident in a second polarization state orthogonal to the first polarization state.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A composite polymer fiber comprises a polymer filler material and a plurality of polymer scattering fibers disposed within the filler material. At least one of the filler material and the scattering fibers is formed of a birefringent material. The refractive indices of the filler material and the scattering fibers can be substantially matched for light incident in a first polarization state on the composite polymer fiber and unmatched for light incident in an orthogonal polarization state. The scattering fibers may be arranged to form a photonic crystal within the composite fiber. The composite fibers may be extruded and may be formed into a yarn, a weave or the like. If the filler material is soluble, it may be washed out of the yarn or weave, and the scattering fibers may then be infiltrated with a resin that is subsequently cured.
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Citations
54 Claims
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1. A composite polymer fiber, comprising:
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a polymer filler material; and
a plurality of polymer scattering fibers disposed within the filler material, the scattering fibers having longitudinal axes substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the composite polymer fiber;
wherein at least one of the filler material and the scattering fibers is formed of a birefringent material, the refractive indices of the filler material and the scattering fibers being substantially matched for light incident in a first polarization state on the composite polymer fiber and being substantially unmatched for light incident in a second polarization state orthogonal to the first polarization state. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. An optical body, comprising:
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a polymer matrix; and
a plurality of polymer composite fibers disposed within the polymer matrix, at least one of the polymer composite fibers comprising a plurality of scattering fibers of a first polymer material within a filler of a second polymer material different from the first polymer material, the polymer composite fibers being arranged substantially parallel in the polymer matrix, at least one of the polymer matrix, the first polymer material and the second polymer material being birefringent. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A method of producing an optical body, comprising:
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extruding composite fibers, each composite fiber containing a plurality of scattering fibers, made of a first polymer, dispersed in a filler, made of a second polymer, the second polymer being soluble;
orienting the first polymer so that the first polymer becomes birefringent;
forming a yarn containing the oriented composite fibers;
washing the yarn in a solvent to remove the second polymer;
forming an array of yarn where the array of yarn has a preferred orientation;
saturating the array of yarn with a resin; and
hardening the resin. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43)
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44. A method of producing an optical body, comprising:
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extruding composite fibers, each composite fiber containing a plurality of scattering fibers, made of a first polymer, dispersed in a filler, made of a second polymer, at least one of the first and second polymers being orientable;
arranging the composite fibers together; and
fusing the composite fibers to form a fused optical body. - View Dependent Claims (45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54)
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Specification