Coating Process
LASER COMPONENTS manufactures a variety of coatings like PVD and IAD. Choose the one that fits the best regarding your technical requirements.
Coatings
LASER COMPONENTS owns several coating chambers that are specially optimized for the coating of laser optics. Continiuous refinement and improvement of the coaters ensures the most up-to-date technology and therefore the highest quality.
Just as comparisons made by various institutes and laser manufacturers continue to prove, we have the highest damage thresholds in the industry thanks to an optimized manufacturing process.
Coatings are manufactured for individual pieces and series either according to the standard catalog or customer-specific specifications. We also perform job coatings that are applied to substrates delivered by the customer.
E-Beam Coating
The E-beam process, also referred to as the standard PVD process (Physical Vapour Deposition), is the most commonly used coating technology in the field of laser technology. Due to their fast layer growth and flexible capacity, coatings can be produced with high damage thresholds at reasonable prices.
IAD Coating
For applications that use the highest laser power levels and require a low wavelength drift, we recommend IAD coating (Ion Assisted Deposition). Its damage thresholds are approximately 40 % higher than in E-beam coating and the wavelength drift is significantly lower.
IBS Sputter Coating
For broadband applications in which ultra short pulses appear or when very high energy densities are required, a sputter process is employed for the coating of substrates (IBS: Ion Beam Sputtering). In the process, compact layers form that result in a very low wavelength drift.
Substrates
To rach high damage thresholds for the coatings, the highest demands are made not only of the optimized coating process but of the substrates as well.
The standard substrates at LASER COMPONENTS are specified with a surface figure of l/10 of 3/0.2 and a surface quality of scratch dig 10-5 (5/4 x 0.025 for 1.0" substrates). Incoming inspection constantly monitors the substrate supply.
Quality
LASER COMPONENTS achieves the highest damage thresholds available on the market with its solid state laser coatings (e.g. coatings for Q-switched lasers at 1064 nm, 532 nm, 355 nm, and 266 nm). Coatings for short pulse lasers at 800 nm also exhibit excellent damage thresholds. The damage thresholds are tested at the Laser Center Hanover.
