SCHOTT releases new components with high laser damage threshold

Before the coating, optical glasses are cleaned thoroughly
Photo by SCHOTT AG

SCHOTT, the specialty glass manufacturer, offers a full range of coated materials for use in laser applications. With more than 50 years of experience in developing laser glass and inventing new processing techniques, SCHOTT is able to make sure that the glass, the processing method used, and the coatings are optimally matched to meet even the most rigorous customer requirements. For example, SCHOTT now offers active and passive glass components with an extremely high laser damage threshold. This technology can be used in simple components, such as optical mirrors, as well as complex materials, like active laser glass. SCHOTT exhibited its active laser glasses and passive optical components at LASER World of Photonics in Munich, Germany.

Pulsed lasers achieve increasingly greater pulse power, which can present technical challenges when developing and manufacturing active media and passive optical components, such as mirrors, lenses, and beam splitters. “To manufacture high-performance laser glass, manufacturers must be skilled in two different areas: mechanical processing and design,” explains Dr. Marc Clement, Director of Business Development for Laser Glass at SCHOTT Advanced Optics. “First, the mechanical process must be optimally geared toward the coating, which is applied later in the production process. Furthermore, the layer design, materials, and processes must suit the components’ use in order to optimally adapt them for the laser beam path.”

SCHOTT is well-equipped to meet these production demands with its industry-leading know-how and comprehensive fleet of machinery based at its Center of Excellence for coatings in Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland. “This means we can not only supply active laser glasses, but also the passive components needed to meet customer demands, all from a single source,” adds Clement.

By expanding its coating technologies, SCHOTT can produce components for laser applications that feature extremely high laser damage thresholds and resistance. This paves the way for new applications. These types of components are used in projects like the European Light Infrastructure (ELI), but they can also be used by customers for commercial applications.

Passive components include laser windows; debris shields; polarizers; beam splitters; aspherical, cylindrical, and spherical lenses; as well as mirrors. SCHOTT also supplies these passive components made of quartz glass, optical glass (SCHOTT N-BK7®, FK5), filter glass, and the glass-ceramic ZERODUR® with particularly laser-resistant layers.

For more information, please visit http://www.schott.com.

• CID: 16583