Fabrication of broadband antireflection coatings using broadband optical monitoring mixed with time monitoring

Multi-layer optical coatings with complex spectrum requirements, such as multi-band pass filters, notch filters, and ultra-broadband antireflection coating, which usually contain very thin layers and sensitive layers, are difficult to be fabricated using a quartz crystal monitoring method or a single wavelength optical monitoring system(SWLOMS). In this paper, a broadband antireflection(AR) coating applied in the wavelength range from 800 nm to 1800 nm was designed and deposited by ion beam sputtering(IBS). Ta_2O_5 and Si O_2 were chosen as high and low refractive index coating materials,respectively. The optimized coating structure contains 9 non-quarter-wave(QW) layers totally with ultra-thin layers and sensitive layers in this coating stack. In order to obtain high transmittance, it is very important to realize the thickness accurate control on these thin layers and sensitive layers. A broadband optical monitoring mixed with time monitoring strategy was successfully used to control the layer thickness during the deposition process. At last, the measured transmittance of AR coating is quite close to the theoretical value. A 0.6% variation in short wavelength edge across the central 180 mm diameter is demonstrated. A spectrum shift of less than 0.5% for 2 continuous runs is also presented.

Post-treatment of 351 nm SiO_(2) antireflective coatings for high power laser systems prepared by the sol-gel method

Different post-treatment processes involving the use of ammonia and hexamethyldisilazane(HMDS) were explored for application to 351 nm third harmonic generation SiO_(2)antireflective(3ω SiO_(2)AR) coatings for high power laser systems prepared by the sol-gel method.According to experimental analysis,the 3ω SiO_(2)AR coatings that were successively post-treated with ammonia and HMDS at 150℃ for 48 h and again heat-treated at 180℃ for 2 h(N/H 150+180 AR) were relatively better.There were relatively fewer changes in the optical properties of the N/H 150+180 AR coating under a humid and polluted environment,and the increase in defect density was slow in high humidity environments.The laser-induced damage threshold of the N/H 150+180 AR coating reached 15.83 J/cm;(355 nm,6.8 ns),a value that meets the basic requirements of high power laser systems.

Preparation of ultra-broadband antireflective coatings for amplifier blast shields by a sol–gel method

A type of λ/4–λ/4 ultra-broadband antireflective coating has been developed using modified low refractive silica and high refractive silica layers by a sol–gel dip coating method for amplifier blast shields of the Shen Guang Ⅱ high power laser facility(SG-Ⅱ facility). Deposition of the first layer(high refractive index silica) involves baking at 200℃ in the post-treatment step. The second layer(low refractive index, n = 1.20) uses low refractive index silica sol modified by acid catalysis. Thermal baking at temperatures no less than 500℃ for 60 min offers chemical stability, ethanol scratch resistance, and resistance to washing with water. The average residual reflection of dual-side-coated fused silica glass was less than 1% in the spectral range from 450 to 950 nm. Transmission gain has been evaluated by taking into account angular light, and the results show that the transmission gain increases with increasing light incidence. Even at 60°, the transmission spectrum of the broadband antireflective coating effectively covered the main absorption peak of Nd:glass.

Optical property of an antireflection coating fabricated by an optimal spin-coating method with a pH-modified SiO2 nanoparticle solution

An antireflection(AR) coating is fabricated by applying an optimal spin-coating method and a p H-modified SiO_2 nanoparticle solution on a cover glass. Because the p H value of the solution will affect the aggregation and dispersion of the SiO_2 particles, the transmittance of the AR-treated cover glass will be enhanced under optimal fabricated conditions. The experimental results show that an AR coating fabricated by an SiO_2 nanoparticle solution of pH 11 enhances the transmittance approximately by 3% and 5% under normal and oblique incident conditions, respectively. Furthermore, the AR-treated cover glass exhibits hydrophobicity and shows a 65% enhancement at a contact angle to bare glass.

Engineered biomimicry for harvesting solar energy:a bird’s eye view

All three methodologies of engineered biomimicry–bioinspiration,biomimetics,and bioreplication–are represented in current research on harvesting solar energy.Both processes and porous surfaces inspired by plants and certain marine animals,respectively,are being investigated for solar cells.Whereas dye-sensitized solar cells deploy artificial photosynthesis,bioinspired nanostructuring of materials in solar cells improves performance.Biomimetically textured coatings for solar cells have been shown to reduce optical reflectance and increase optical absorptance over a broad spectral regime.Compound lenses fabricated by a bioreplication technique offer similar promise for reduced reflectance by increasing the angular field of view.

Hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets incorporated antireflective silica coating with enhanced laser-induced damage threshold

Boron nitride(BN) nanosheets incorporated silica antireflective(AR) coating was successfully prepared on fused silica substrate to improve the antilaser-damage ability of transmissive optics used in high-power laser systems. The BN nanosheets were obtained by urea assisted solid exfoliation, and then incorporated into basic-catalyzed silica sols without any further treatment. The transmission electron microscope(TEM) images indicated that the BN nanosheets generally consisted of 2–10 layers. The antireflective BN/SiO_2 coating exhibited excellent transmittance as high as 99.89% at351 nm wavelength on fused silica substrate. The thermal conductivity 0.135 W · m^(-1)· K^(-1) of the BN/SiO_2 coating with 10% BN addition was about 23% higher than 0.11 W · m^(-1)· K^(-1) of the pure SiO_2 AR coating. The laser-induced damage threshold(LIDT) of that BN/SiO_2 coating is also 23.1% higher than that of pure SiO_2 AR coating. This research provides a potential application of BN/SiO_2 coatings in high-power laser systems.