PHOTOINDUCED DICHROISM AND BIREFRINGENCE IN FILMS OF MORDANT PURE YELLOW POLY(VINYL ALCOHOL) - SIMULTANEOUS REAL-TIME INVESTIGATIONS AT 2 WAVELENGTHS

Photoinduced anisotropy in films of azo-dye Mordant Pure Yellow (MPY) dissolved in a polyvinyl alcohol matrix, is investigated. The photodichroism and photoinduced birefringence are measured in real time for two wavelengths, 488 nm (in the absorption band) and 633 nm (outside it), on excitation with an Ar+ laser beam. It is shown that strong dichroism is induced without changing the average optical density of the film, and the kinetic curves of the birefringence and the dichroism are substantially different. The conclusion is made that the photoprocesses of the dye molecules cause a reconstruction of the matrix.