Polydisulfide Polymer

Abstract

A method for forming a polydisulfide polymer is described. In various implementations, the method includes forming a mixture including one or more thiols, agitating the mixture, precipitating the mixture, and extracting a polydisulfide polymer from the mixture. In various implementations, the polydisulfide polymer has a refractive index of at least 1.7.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method comprising:
 forming a mixture including one or more thiols;   agitating the mixture;   precipitating the mixture; and   extracting a polydisulfide polymer from the mixture, wherein the polydisulfide polymer has a refractive index of at least 1.7.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the mixture includes one or more ene monomers. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the mixture includes a catalyst. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the catalyst speeds up a reaction joining the thiol monomers to each other faster than it speeds up a reaction joining the thiol monomers to the ene monomers. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein agitating the mixture is performed at room temperature. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the mixture is precipitated in a polar solvent. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 mixing the polydisulfide polymer with compounds to form a polymerizable composition;   polymerizing the polymerizable composition to form a resin; and   forming an optical element from the resin.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the compounds include one or more thiol and/or ene compounds. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7 , forming the optical element from the resin includes curing the resin. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the cured resin has a refractive index of at least 1.6, an optical transparency of at least 0.9 per μm, and a thickness of at least 20 nm. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the cured resin has a refractive index of at least 1.7 and a thickness of at least 1.0 μm. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the cured resin has a refractive index of at least 1.8 and a thickness of at least 1.0 cm. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising adding metal oxide nanoparticles to the polymerizable composition. 
     
     
         14 . A polydisulfide polymer comprising one or more thiol monomers, wherein the polydisulfide polymer has a refractive index greater than approximately 1.7, wherein the polydisulfide polymer has an optical transparency of at least 0.9 per μm, and wherein the polydisulfide polymer can be applied to form an optical element at least 20 nm thick. 
     
     
         15 . The polydisulfide polymer of  claim 14 , further comprising one or more ene monomers. 
     
     
         16 . The polydisulfide polymer of  claim 15 , wherein the polydisulfide polymer is a non-stoichiometric polydisulfide copolymer. 
     
     
         17 . An optical element comprising a cured resin based on a polydisulfide polymer including one or more thiol monomers, wherein the cured resin has a refractive index greater than approximately 1.6, wherein the cured resin has an optical transparency of at least 0.9 per μm, and wherein the cured resin is at least 20 nm thick. 
     
     
         18 . The optical element of  claim 17 , wherein the cured resin has a refractive index of at least 1.7 and a thickness of at least 1.0 μm. 
     
     
         19 . The optical element of  claim 18 , wherein the cured resin has a refractive index of at least 1.8 and a thickness of at least 1.0 cm. 
     
     
         20 . The optical element of  claim 17 , wherein the cured resin includes metal oxide nanoparticles.