Abstract: The surface relief gratings(SRG) of azo polymers formed upon irradiation with an interference pattern of coherent light have attracted great attention recently. In this study, a novel photodynamic azo polyelectrolyte was synthesized by incorporating azobenzene units into poly(acrylic acid) backbone. The polymer structure and properties were characterized by ¹HNMR, elemental analysis, GPC, TA, UV Vis and contact angle measurement. The spin coated films on glass substrates were prepared from DMF solutions of the azo polyelectrolyte. The atomic force microscopy image of the films, which were exposed to the interference pattern of p polarized Ar⁺ laser beams at 140 mW/cm², showed that the synthesized azo polyelectrolyte possessed a good photodynamic property. Good quality SRG structures were clearly generated(the depth from peak to trough was 100 nm).

Key words: Azo polyelectrolyte, Reversible photo processing, Surface relief gratings