Spectral and global diffuse properties of high-performance translucent polymer sheets for energy efficient lighting and skylights.

A visible and near-IR spectral study is presented for a translucent smooth polymer sheet in which dopant particles are clear polymer with a refractive index close to that of the clear polymer host. Diffuse, specular, and total reflectance and transmittance and absorptance as a function of sheet thickness and dopant levels approach ideal behavior for lighting applications. A fourth optical parameter, side loss S(T), is introduced to fully account for the measured data. This covers radiation that is trapped by total internal reflection (TIR) and travels sideways sufficiently far, including to the sheet's edges, to miss detection on exit. S(T) has a strong spectral character, whereas total T and R spectra closely follow the spectrally flat wavelength dependence of the undoped clear sheet. Three distinct regimes are identified for the behavior with wavelength of the specular and diffuse components and are linked to rear surface TIR and side loss.