Vol. 46, Issue 1, pp. 35-45 (2016)

Abstract

The free volume holes and light transmission of hydrogel and silicone-hydrogel polymer contact lenses were investigated. As the material, the Proclear family (omafilcon A) of hydrogel contact lenses and the Biofinity family (comfilcon A) of silicone-hydrogel contact lenses were used. Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy was used to characterize geometrical sizes and fractions of the free volume holes in the investigated samples. There was a clear difference in the size of free volume holes and the fractional free volume between silicone-hydrogel and hydrogel polymer contact lenses. These changes are shown by a thorough analysis of the long-lived component of lifetime of ortho-positronium. At the same time, UV-vis-NIR in the spectral range 200–1000 nm studies were performed on the same samples of contact lenses spectrometry.