Molecular dynamics simulation of the SRG formation in poly(methyl methacrylate) doped with dispersed red 1

We report large scale molecular dynamics simulations of the photoisomerization of chromophores dispersed inside a glassy polymer. We study the nonequilibrium dynamics of the polymers and of the chromophores at constant temperatures. We observe an huge increase of the diffusion coefficient of both the polymer and the chromophore when the isomerization is switched on. This result suggests a simple explanation (P. Lefin, C. Fiorini, J.M. Nunzi, Pure Appl. Opt. 7, 71 (1998)) for the mass transport and the SRG formation that appear in illuminated azo-polymers.