Surface engineering of polystyrene–cerium oxide nanocomposite thin films for refractive index enhancement

Abstract Polymer nanocomposites have gained much importance in the field of optoelectronics due to their unique optical properties. Refractive index engineering using nanoparticles is an effective strategy that could be applied for the fabrication of optical devices. Herein, we report three different strategies which are employed to enhance the refractive index of polymer thin films. These include incorporating cerium oxide nanoparticles onto the polystyrene matrix, secondly adding cerium oxide nanoparticles onto the cross-linkable polystyrene and thirdly by embedding functionalized cerium oxide nanoparticles onto the cross-linkable polystyrene. Refractive index of the polystyrene thin films was enhanced by dispersing neat CeO 2 nanoparticles and functionalized CeO 2 nanoparticles into the polystyrene matrix. 1.38% enhancement in the refractive index of the polymer nanocomposite thin films could be achieved using our technique. The blending of polystyrene with cerium oxide nanoparticle presents a prospective way to engineer the refractive index of polymer thin films. We firmly believe that the study will be an effective guide towards future research in the area of surface engineering of polymer thin films for refractive index enhancement.