Photochemical process in dichromated photosensitive material: dichromated (polyvinyl alcohol-polyacrylic acid)-- a model for dichromated gelatin?

Gelatin (G) can be described as a peptidic chain with different pendent groups among which, hydroxy groups-OH, carboxylic groups-COOH and amino groups -NH 2 . Works performed on polyacrylic acid (PAA), a poymeric chain with only pendent-COOH group and on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) with only -OH group revelaed the strong influence of the nature of the chemical structure on the photochemical behavior of dichromated photopolymers, DCG, DCPAA and DCPVA. Actually, the stability and the state of complexation of the different chromium species was completely opposite in the two matrices: the stabilization of chromium (V) resulting from the photochemical charge transfer in DCPVA, by complexation with PVA is in contrast to what was observed in DCPAA where chromium (V) was highly instable. Regarding chromium (III), the final reduction chromium species, it is complexed in PAA and not in PVA. The primary proces is identical in DCG and in DCPVA, so PVA appears as a good model of the first step of gelatin behavior. But the material obtained after irradiation and treatment of DCG only contains chromium strongly complexed by gelatin. The experiments performed on films of DC with only a few percents of PAA gave evidence for the strong influence of the presence of the carboxylic groups on the photochemical behavior: the rate of the formation and the stability of chromium species, mainly chromium (V), involved in the process. Chromium (V) appears to play a key role in the photosensitive properties of dichromated materials. The diffraction efficiencies of holograms recorded in DCPAA or DCPVA resemble the profiles of chromium (V) evolution.