Looking for a material that:
- Is transparent/clear - the clearer the better
- Can be made to about 80cm long x 8cm wide by somewhere between 2-5cm thick (likely 2-3cm, exact details will depend on the material's properties)
- Can be shaped on the cross section, either during manufacturing, or after
- Is at least a bit flexible - I'd estimate no more than 20 degree bend along the length, without too much force required - i.e. something that could be bent by hand, like a plastic ruler.
- Has a refractive index for visible light of 1.5 or above (higher is better)
- Is cheap, or at least not too expensive
- Is resistant to chipping or snapping
Can anyone help?
Partial matches to the above might be welcomed, but it would be useful to know why they are only partial matches. The key points are (1), (2), (3), (4) - other than those, the higher refractive index the better, the cheaper the better, the more resistant to chipping and snapping the better, but those are continuums rather than fixed points! The method of shaping also matters, ie something that can theoretically be shaped but in practice requires a really expensive or rare process, or hand shaping, is not practical.
For example, I have access to injection molded Polyester resin, but I understand that might not be flexible.