Method of forming reflecting dielectric mirrors

Abstract

A mirror structure includes a plurality of features of a defined size. The features include alternating spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer, and are specifically arranged in an ordered form so that the structure is highly reflective. Thermally-assisted methods are introduced for forming such structures.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The invention relates to the field of optics, and in particular to the creation of reflecting dielectric mirror structures, such as fibers.

[0003] Polymer fibers have become ubiquitous in applications such as textile fabrics, due to their excellent mechanical properties and availability of low-cost, high-volume processing techniques. However, the control over their optical properties has so far remained relatively limited. Conversely, dielectric mirrors are used to precisely control and manipulate light in high performance optical applications, but fabrication of these fragile mirrors has been mostly restricted to planar geometries and remains costly.

[0004] Planar dielectric mirrors, also known as one-dimensional photonic crystals, can exhibit highly efficient reflection of electromagnetic (EM) radiation and precise frequency selectivity. Advances in vapor deposition technology have enabled a high degree of control over film layer thicknesses, resulting in an ability to control the spectral response of these mirrors to absolute accuracies of better than one angstrom. This has led to such specialized applications as gain flatteners in optical communications, add-drop channel filters in dense wavelength division multiplexing systems, laser resonator components, or simple high efficiency reflectors. Unlike metallic mirrors, which typically absorb a few percent of any incident light, dielectric mirrors can be fabricated with external reflectivities approaching 100%.

[0005] A typical dielectric mirror is a planar stack of dielectrics made of two alternating materials with different refractive indices. Although these mirrors do not possess a complete photonic band gap, it has recently been shown that they can be designed to reflect light of all incidence angles and polarizations across broad, selectable frequency ranges. This advance has inspired interest in the utilization of omnidirectional dielectric mirrors in applications requiring strong confinement or reflection of light at many angles, such as optical cavities or hollow waveguides.

[0006] The degree of utilization of all types of dielectric mirrors has been impeded by cost and complexity associated with their fabrication, which typically involves physical or chemical vapor deposition of many alternating layers in sequence, and by difficulties associated with depositing these mirrors on non-planar surfaces. In addition, the mirror films are typically fragile and not freestanding.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a mirror structure. The mirror structure includes a plurality of features of a defined size. The features include alternating spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer, and are specifically arranged in an ordered form so that the structure is highly reflective.

[0008] According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of forming a mirror structure. The method includes forming a plurality of features of a defined size. The features include alternating spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer. The method further includes specifically arranging the features in an ordered form so that the structure is highly reflective.

[0009] According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a mirror structure. The mirror structure includes a plurality of features of a defined size. The features includes multiple spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer. Also, the spatial units are of size between 1 nanometer and 20000 nanometers.

[0010] According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of forming a mirror structure. The method includes forming a plurality of features of a defined size. A plurality of spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer are formed on each of said features. Also, the spatial units are of size between 1 nanometer and 20000 nanometers. According to yet another aspect of the invention, there is provided a mirror structure. The mirror structure includes a plurality of layers of a thermoplastic polymer of a defined size, and a plurality of layers of chalcogenide glass of a defined size. The layers of thermoplastic polymer and chalcogenide glass are arranged in an ordered form so that the structure is highly reflective.

[0011] In yet another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of forming a mirror structure. The method includes forming a plurality of layers of a polymer plastic of a defined size, and a plurality of layers of chalcogenide glass of a defined size. The layers of thermoplastic polymer and chalcogenide glass are arranged in an ordered form. At some point in the forming process, the thermoplastic polymer and chalcogenide glass are thermally co-processed simultaneously in order to form the mirror structure. In one representation, the layers of thermoplastic polymer and chalcogenide glass are rolled or stacked, and at a specific temperature the layers of polymer plastic and chalcogenide glass are thermally drawn together or bonded so that the resulting structure is highly reflective.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] FIG. 1 is a photograph of a 200 μm OD fibers that are formed using selected materials in accordance with the invention;

[0013] FIG. 2 is a photonic band diagram for a one-dimensional photonic crystal having a periodic refractive index alternating between 2.8 and 1.55;

[0014] FIGS. 3A-3B are graphs of measured reflectance spectra for a 400 μm OD and 200 μm OD dielectric fiber, respectively, relative to gold-coated fibers of the same diameter;

[0015] FIGS. 4A-4C are SEM micrographs of a 400 μm OD fiber cross-section.

[0016] FIG. 5 is a cross-section micrograph of a film used to form a chiral waveguide; and

[0017] FIG. 6 is a micrograph of a PES-As2Se3 drawn fiber.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] The invention combines some of the advantages of two dissimilar materials in the fabrication of polymeric fibers having on or within them a multilayer dielectric mirror structure. Thermal processing techniques are used to create and then reduce a macroscopic layered dielectric structure to sub-micron length scales, thus establishing a photonic band gap in the mid-IR range. The selection of materials involves the empirical identification of a pair of amorphous materials, such as poly(ether-sulfone)(PES) and arsenic triselenide (As2Se3), which have substantially different refractive indices yet have similar thermo-mechanical properties within a certain thermal processing window. Amorphous materials, such as inorganic glasses and some thermoplastic polymers, have gradual variation in viscosity with temperature when compared to crystalline materials. This is due to the lack of a first-order-thermodynamic transition in an amorphous material as it is cooled from a melt to the glassy state. The absence of a first-order transition implies a corresponding continuous variation in free volume and configuration entropy, which are controlling factors in viscosity; thus the viscosity does not vary abruptly with changing temperature. This continuous viscosity variation is one of the most important factors that allows inorganic glasses and organic thermoplastics to be formed by high-speed thermal processes, such as drawing, blowing, pressing, and extrusion.

[0019] There are serious difficulties in property matching that must be considered in order to utilize similar viscous thermal processes in the fabrication of omnidirectional mirror structures. The selected materials should have low optical absorption over a 2 cm in order to create a structure having approximately 20 alternating layers of PES and As2Se3. In this way, a periodic dielectric structure with 20 or more layers is fabricated, yet only one vapor deposition step is strictly required. The layers of PES and As2Se3 form features of the same size and dimensions. These features are specifically arranged in an ordered form. The dielectric structure is consolidated into a solid preform through heating in a vacuum oven at a low pressure and an elevated temperature.

[0020] In particular, the dielectric structure has a certain order or design that the materials form features in a regular, controlled fashion. The features can consist of spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer, and can have an engineered structure with periodic, pseudo-periodicity, or there can be no strict periodicity, but the features are nevertheless purposefully arranged. The essential point is that the feature arrangement of the materials in the final structure is not random or probabilistic, but is engineered or designed using techniques described hereinafter. The spatial units can have dimensional sizes between 1-20000 nanometers.

[0021] The resulting multilayer fiber preform is subsequently thermomechanically drawn down using an optical fiber draw tower into hundreds of meters of multilayer fiber with sub-micron layer thickness, thus establishing a photonic bandgap in the mid-IR range. Fibers of varying outer diameters from 175-500 μm with a typical standard deviation of 10 μm from target are drawn from the same preform to demonstrate adjustment of the reflectivity spectra through thermal deformation. The spectral position of the photonic band gap is precisely controlled by the optical monitoring of the outer diameter (OD) of the fiber during draw, which is later verified by reflectivity measurements on single and multiple fibers of different diameters. Using multiple preforms, various fibers can also be drawn having the same diameter, but completely different spectral signatures. The resulting dielectric mirror fibers exhibit reflectivity at selectable IR wavelength ranges that matches or exceeds the reflectivity of gold-coated fibers.

[0022] FIG. 2 is a photonic band diagram for a one-dimensional photonic crystal having a periodic refractive index alternating between 2.8 and 1.55. In theory, predicting the spectral response of these fibers, it is convenient to calculate the photonic band structure that corresponds to an infinite one-dimensional photonic crystal. This allows for the analysis of propagating and evanescent modes in the structure, corresponding to real and imaginary Bloch wave number solutions. The electric field vector is parallel to the mirror layer interfaces for the transverse electric (TE) polarized modes, and likewise the magnetic field vector is parallel to the interfaces for the transverse magnetic (TM) modes. The parallel wave vector (ky) is the vector component of the incident EM wave that is parallel to the layer interfaces. The phase space accessible from an external ambient medium is contained between the light lines that are defined hv the glancing-angle condition ω=cky/n0, and the modes between the 35° lines correspond to those sampled experimentally. Axes are normalized to the thickness a of one bilayer with a period consisting one high and one low index layer.

[0023] FIG. 2 depicts the photonic band diagram for an infinite structure having similar periodicity and refractive indices to the mirror structures fabricated herein. Three photonic band gaps 2, 4, and 6 are present where high reflectivity is expected within the 0-35° angular ranges, and the fundamental gap contains a range of external omnidirectional reflectivity. The gray regions represent propagating modes within the structure, while the white regions represent evanescent modes. The lower dark shaded trapezoid represents a region of external omnidirectional reflection.

[0024] FIGS. 3A-3B are graphs of measured reflectance spectra for a 400 μm OD and a 200 μm OD dielectric fiber, respectively, relative to gold-coated fibers of the same diameter. The mirror fiber reflectivity is measured from single fibers and parallel fiber arrays using a Nicolet/SpectraTec NicPlan Infrared Microscope and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer (Magna 860). The microscope objective is used to focus on the fibers and has a numerical aperture (NA) of 0.58. This results in a detected cone where the angle of reflection with respect to the surface normal of the structure can vary from normal incidence to approximately 35°, which is determined by the NA of the microscope objective.

[0025] The fibers that are drawn to the 400 μm OD exhibit a very strong reflection band centered at a wavelength of 3.5 μm, as shown in FIG. 3A. Measured reflectivity spectra agree well with the transfer matrix method (TMM) simulations where the reflectivity is averaged across the aforementioned angular range including both polarization modes.

[0026] The fibers that are drawn to the 200 μm OD show a similar strong fundamental reflection band centered near 1.7 μm, as shown in FIG. 3B. This shifting of the primary photonic band gap clearly illustrates the precise engineering of the reflectivity spectra over a wide frequency range through thermal deformation processing. Strong optical signatures are measurable from single fibers at least as small as 200 μm OD. Fiber array measurements, simultaneously sampling reflected light from multiple fibers, agree with the single fiber results shown in FIG. 3B.

[0027] These reflectivity results are strongly indicative of uniform layer thickness control, good interlayer adhesion, and low interdiffusion through multiple thermal treatments. This is confirmed by scanning microscope (SEM) inspections of fiber cross-sections, as shown in FIG. 4, to be discussed hereinafter. In this embodiment, the thickness a for the 400 μm OD fiber is 0.45, and the thickness a for the 200 μm OD fiber is 0.45 μm. The layer thickenesses that are observed correspond well to the measured reflectivity spectra. The fibers have a hole in the center, due to the choice of hollow rod as the preform substrate. The fiber mirror layers have experienced uniform deformation during draw. The rolled-up mirror structure includes a double outer layer of PES for mechanical protection, creating a noticeable absorption peak in the reflectivity spectrum at approximately 3.2 μm., as shown in FIG. 3A.

[0028] FIGS. 4A-4C are SEM micrographs of a 400 μm OD fiber cross-section. The entire fiber is embedded in epoxy. FIG. 4A shows the entire fiber cross-section, with a mirror structure surrounding the PES core. FIG. 4B demonstrates that the majority of the fiber exterior is free of significant defects and that the mirror structure adheres well to the fiber substrates. FIG. 4C reveals the ordering and adhesion within the alternating layers of As2Se3 (bright layers) and PES (dark layers). Stresses that are developed during the sectioning cause some cracks in the mounting epoxy that are deflected at the fiber interface, further demonstrating the mechanical robustness of these mirror-fibers. Fibers from this batch are used in the reflectivity measurements in FIG. 3A.

[0029] The combination of the spectral and direct imaging data demonstrates excellent agreement with the photonic band diagram of FIG. 2. This is summarized by comparing the photonic band gap location for the 400 μm OD fibers as shown in FIG. 2, together with the SEM-measured layer spacing of a=0.90 μm, to the empirical spectral reflection data shown in FIG. 3A. The measured gap width range to midrange ratio of the fundamental gap for the 400 μm OD fiber is 27%, compared to 29% in the photonic band diagram.

[0030] The matching of rheological behavior in elongation at the draw temperature is a factor to the invention. At the draw temperature, the materials should be fluid enough to elongate without significant stress buildup, yet not so fluid that the mirror layers lose their ordered structure. Thermal expansion coefficient (CTE) plays a role in the adhesion and integrity of thin films during any thermal quenching procedure. PES has a linear CTE of 55×10−6/° C., while As2Se3 has a linear CTE of 25×10−6/° C. In the mirror-fiber geometry described herein, this CTE mismatch actually has the effect of strengthening the outer As2Se3 layers by placing them in compression as the PES layers comprising the bulk of the fiber cools and contracts well below the glass transition of As2Se3, much like glaze on a typical coated ceramic body is toughened upon cooling from high temperature sintering.

[0031] The type of materials and process described hereinbefore can also be applicable for reducing the cost of planar dielectric mirrors, as well as, creating a wide variety of new conformal mirror geometries using various high-throughput processing techniques. These fibers can lead to many new photonic crystal applications involving flexible, woven structures with high reflectivity and a distinct spectral fingerprint.

[0032] FIG. 5 is cross-section schematic of a film used to form a all-dielectric chiral waveguide. In this embodiment, a chiral waveguide structure must not be identical by any rotation except a full 360°. If the plane perpendicular to the fiber is not reproducible by a 180° rotation, then the fiber will have a distinct handedness.

[0033] This aspect of the invention describes a fiber with variations in its cross-section. One simple way to induce variations in the cross-section of the fiber is by using a rolling methodology, as discussed hereinbefore. If flexible materials are used, they can be rolled and then drawn. Two identically drawn fibers being rolled in opposite directions will be mirror images of one another and therefore have chirality.

[0034] For this rolled and drawn structure to be a waveguide, electromagnetic radiation must be confined within the structure. Several methods can be used to create guided modes within the fiber. The invention provides the ability of a chiral device having a large refractive index contrast between two dielectric materials in a controlled layer structure. Such an omnidirectional reflector has been described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,130,780, incorporated herein by reference. This design can be tuned to any wavelength, thus creating a low loss waveguide. The same cannot be said of a metallic surface, because they strongly absorb in the infrared. For such an omnidirectional reflector to be rolled and drawn, many properties between materials must be compatible.

[0035] The chiral waveguide is formed using the same techniques discussed hereinbefore regarding the fibers. In particular, the chiral waveguide uses a chalcogenide glass, such as As2Se3, and polymers, such as PES or polyetherimide (PEI). The properties of the As2Se3 can be tuned by the altering the As—Se ratio, as well as, by doping with various elements including but not limited to germanium, tellurium, and sulfur. Doping affects all the properties of As2Se3, and can therefore be used to fine tune its compatibility with low refractive index materials. The optical properties of As2Se3 give a broad range over which an omnidirectional reflector can be created. Variations of the molecular weight of PES and PEI can result in the tuning of the properties of these materials as well. Other polymers in the same family and other thermoplastics are also strong candidates for use in these fibers.

[0036] Films of PEI or PES are obtained and As2Se3 is deposited on one side. The resulting films are then heated and drawn. The drawn films maintain coherency, as no cracks are evident in the thin As2Se3 film, as shown in FIG. 5. In particular, FIG. 5 shows one of the drawn films demonstrating its thermomechanical compatibility. The refractive index of PES is listed as 1.65, by Goodfellow Corporation. PEI is expected to have a similar refractive index.

[0037] As2Se3 can be deposited by methods including, but not limited to, thermal evaporation, chemical vapor deposition, and sputtering. The PES and PEI can be made into thin freestanding films, dipcoated, and spincoated. The large variety of processing techniques allows various devices to be made out of these materials. For example, an evaporation/dipcoating technique can be used to create a non-chiral omnidirectionally reflective fiber waveguide. An evaporation/spincoating technique can be used to create an one-dimensional omnidirectionally reflective stacks, which can then be heated and molded into shapes and tuned to various frequencies post-production. A two-dimensional photonic crystal fiber preform can be fabricated and drawn down.

[0038] FIG. 6 is a micrograph of a PES-As2Se3 drawn fiber. A rolling methodology is used for forming a preform that includes the step of production or acquisition of a thin film polymer, such as PES or PEI and the subsequent deposition on the thin film polymer of a high refractive index material, such as As2Se3 or other chalcogenide glass. The film is rolled into a preform structure. The preform is then consolidated. The consolidated preform is heated and drawn to produce fibers, as shown in FIG. 6. The aforementioned steps may not all be necessary depending on the materials system that is selected, but they are listed as a general approach to producing rolled fibers.

[0039] An example of these steps is given by a system made from PES and As2Se3, as shown in FIG. 6. It is important to note that is an exemplary embodiment, and other embodiments can use different material compositions. The freestanding polymer film of PES, with a thickness of 25 μm, is obtained and coated via thermal evaporation with a 2 μm film of As2Se3 on both sides. The thicknesses can be varied and coating can be applied on one or both sides. Also, it is conceivable that more than two materials can be used. The film is then rolled tightly and then held together with a wrapping of Teflon tape. Many methods exist for rolling films and this is just one example of such a technique. Many other methods can be used to a rolled photonic crystal fiber.

[0040] After rolling, the preform is condensed to remove air trapped in the interfaces between the adjacent layers. To do this, the preform is heated in a vacuum oven at approximately 250° C. for approximately 18 minutes. The vacuum oven is then repressurized while still hot and the preform is removed and cooled in a freezer. There are other ways to conduct this process including using a conventional oven or other cooling techniques.

[0041] After consolidation, the capillary tube is etched out with hydrofluoric acid leaving a freestanding multilayer rolled preform. The etch is conducted for approximately 1 hour. The preform is then drawn down about 5 times at approximately 250° C. to yield a chiral photonic crystal fiber. Cross sectional samples are cut and coated for examination with a scanning microscope.

[0042] FIG. 6 shows a micrograph of a cross-section of the drawn fiber. It is clear that the cross-section is reproducible by any rotation other than a multiple of 360°, so any axial variation in the fiber will result in a chiral structure.

[0043] An alternative method for producing a chiral waveguide would be with a sequential thin film deposition. A pair of thermomechanically compatible materials can be both deposited via thin film processing techniques. Here a mask can be used to expose a small portion of a cylindrical substrate. The first materials can be deposited and, without the rotation of the mask, the second materials can be deposited. The substrate can then be rotated and the process repeated. The final structure will appear identical to a rolled preform.

[0044] A simple rolled or a drawn waveguide without variations in the axial direction can also provide some benefits. While the structure is not chiral, this method provides an easy and cost effective technique for producing low loss optical fibers. If the core size of the fiber is large relative to the wavelength of light, it is possible that the rolled structure will have no affect on the light beyond that of a perfectly cylindrical photonic crystal fiber. For small core fibers, novel effects are possible due to the lack of infinite rotational symmetry in the fiber cross section. Due to the loss of this symmetry, angular momentum will no longer be conserved resulting in novel mode structures within the fiber.

[0045] Although the present invention has been shown and described with respect to several preferred embodiments thereof, various changes, omissions and additions to the form and detail thereof, may be made therein, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A mirror structure comprising a plurality of features of a defined size, said features including multiple spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer, that are specifically arranged in an ordered form so that said structure is highly reflective.

2. The mirror structure of claim 1, wherein said features are arranged in a periodic form.

3. The mirror structure of claim 1, wherein said ordered form is engineered or designed.

4. The mirror structure of claim 1, wherein said features are arranged in a pseudo-periodic fashion.

5. The mirror structure of claim 1, wherein said chalcogenide glass is comprised of arsenic triselenide.

6. The mirror structure of claim 1, wherein said thermoplastic polymer is comprised of PES.

7. The mirror structure of claim 1, wherein said features are comprised of alternating layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer.

8. The mirror structure of claim 7, wherein the polymer is first present as a polymer film precursor.

9. The mirror structure of claim 8, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by depositing a layer of chalcogenide glass on said polymer film.

10. The mirror structure of claim 9, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer are formed by rolling or stacking the chalcogenide-coated polymer film into a multilayer structure.

11. The mirror structure of claim 10, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

12. The mirror structure of claim 11, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are reduced in size through drawing.

13. The mirror structure of claim 11, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by placing said multilayer structure in a draw tower at a specified temperature and drawing into said structure having smaller resulting dimensions.

14. The mirror structure of claim 7, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by placing said multilayer structure in a draw tower and drawing into said structure.

15. The mirror structure of claim 1, wherein said features are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

16. An ordered structure comprising a plurality of features of a defined size, said features including multiple spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer, wherein said spatial units are of size between 1 nanometer and 20000 nanometers.

17. The ordered structure of claim 16, wherein said features are comprised of alternating layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer.

18. The ordered structure of claim 17, wherein the polymer is first present as a polymer film precursor.

19. The ordered structure of claim 18, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by depositing a layer of chalcogenide glass on said polymer film.

20. The ordered structure of claim 19, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer are formed by rolling or stacking the chalcogenide-coated polymer film into a multilayer structure.

21. The ordered structure of claim 20, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

22. The ordered structure of claim 21, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are reduced in size through drawing.

23. The ordered structure of claim 21, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by placing said multilayer structure in a draw tower at a specified temperature and drawing into said structure having smaller resulting dimensions.

24. The ordered structure of claim 17, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by placing said multilayer structure in a draw tower and drawing into said structure.

25. The ordered structure of claim 16, wherein said features are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

26. A method of forming a mirror structure, said method comprising: forming a plurality of features of a defined size, said features including multiple spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer; and specifically arranging said features in an ordered form so that said structure is highly reflective.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein said features are arranged in a periodic form.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein said ordered form is engineered or designed.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein said features are arranged in a pseudo-periodic fashion.

30. The method of claim 26, wherein said chalcogenide glass is comprised of arsenic triselenide.

31. The method of claim 26, wherein said thermoplastic is comprised of PES.

32. The method of claim 26, wherein said features is comprised of alternating layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the polymer is first present as a polymer film precursor.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by depositing a layer of chalcogenide glass on said polymer film.

35. The method of claim 34, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer are formed by rolling or stacking the chalcogenide-coated polymer film into a multilayer structure.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are reduced in size through drawing.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by placing said multilayer structure in a draw tower at a specified temperature and drawing into said structure having smaller resulting dimensions.

39. The method of claim 32, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by placing said multilayer structure in a draw tower and drawing into said structure.

40. The method of claim 26, wherein said features are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

41. A method of forming an ordered structure, said method comprising: forming a plurality of features of a defined size; and forming a plurality of spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer on each of said features; wherein said spatial units are of size between 1 nanometer and 20000 nanometers.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein said features is comprised of alternating layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein said polymer is first present as a polymer film precursor.

44. The method of claim 43, wherein said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by depositing a layer of chalcogenide glass on said polymer film.

45. The method of claim 44, said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by rolling or stacking the chalcogenide-coated polymer film into a multilayer structure.

46. The method of claim 45, said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

47. The method of claim 46, said alternating layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by placing said multilayer structure in a draw tower at a specified temperature and drawing into said structure having smaller resulting dimensions.

48. The method of claim 41, wherein said features are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

49. A mirror structure comprising a plurality of layers of a thermoplastic polymer of a defined size, and a plurality of layers of chalcogenide glass of a defined size; wherein said layers of thermoplastic polymer and chalcogenide glass are arranged in an ordered form so that said structure is highly reflective.

50. The mirror structure of claim 49, wherein said ordered form is engineered or designed.

51. The mirror structure of claim 49, wherein said chalcogenide glass is comprised of arsenic triselenide.

52. The mirror structure of claim 49, wherein said thermoplastic polymer is comprised of PES.

53. The mirror structure of claim 49, wherein said layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by depositing layers of chalcogenide glass on polymer films.

54. The mirror structure of claim 53, wherein said layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer are formed into a multilayer structure after being rolled or stacked.

55. The mirror structure of claim 54, said multilayer structure is bonded or consolidated by heating.

56. The mirror structure of claim 55, said multilayer structure is placed in a draw tower at a specified temperature and drawn into said structure with reduced feature sizes.

57. A method of forming a mirror structure, said method comprising: forming a plurality of layers of a thermoplastic polymer of a defined size; forming a plurality of layers of chalcogenide glass of a defined size; and arranging said layers of thermoplastic polymer and chalcogenide glass in an ordered form; rolling or stacking said layers of thermoplastic polymer and chalcogenide glass; and drawing said layers of thermoplastic polymer and chalcogenide glass at a specified temperature so that said structure is highly reflective.

58. The method of claim 57, wherein said chalcogenide glass is comprised of arsenic triselenide.

59. The method of claim 57, wherein said thermoplastic polymer is comprised of PES.

60. The method of claim 57, wherein said layers of chalcogenide glass are formed by depositing layers of chalcogenide glass on polymer films.

61. The method of claim 60, wherein said layers of chalcogenide glass and thermoplastic polymer are formed into a multilayer structure after being rolled or stacked.

62. The method of claim 61, said multilayer structure is formed or bonded through thermally-assisted processes.

63. The method of claim 62, said multilayer structure is placed in a draw tower at a specified temperature and drawn into said structure having reduced feature dimensions.

64. The method of claim 57, wherein said features are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

65. A fiber comprising a plurality of features of a defined size, said features including multiple spatial units that are specifically arranged in an ordered form so that said fiber exhibits high external reflectivity.

66. The fiber of claim 65, wherein said features are arranged in a periodic form.

67. The fiber of claim 65, wherein said ordered form is engineered or designed.

68. The fiber of claim 65, wherein said features are arranged in a pseudo-periodic fashion.

69. The fiber of claim 65, wherein said features are formed or bonded into a multilayer structure using thermally-assisted processes.

70. The fiber of claim 65, wherein said features are comprised of multiple spatial units of a chalcogenide glass and a thermoplastic polymer.