Why Damage Thresholds are so Important and how they can be Further Improved

Date Announced: 04 Feb 2016

As laser powers are ever increasing, laser optics are required to withstand high energy densities and therefore it is critical to measure the damage threshold of optics.

Factors That Influence Damage Threshold
The damage threshold of a laser optic depends on many factors. The substrate material and the quality of the polish can affect this however, in most cases the coating is the limiting factor. Different coating materials can be used, and there are different coating techniques that result in differences in the hardness of the dielectric coatings.  In addition, there is a certain degree of freedom in the coating design used. These factors can be optimised to ultimately produce laser optics with the highest possible damage thresholds.

Measuring Damage Threshold
After production, the actual damage threshold values are measured and compared with the theoretical values to ensure the design is optimised.

Optimising Layer Designs
Measurement of the damage threshold of different designs on the same substrates, and comparison with layer design theory, guarantees continuous improvements in coatings.  

http://www.lasercomponents.com/uk/optics/laser-optics/coated-laser-optics/

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E-mail: info@lasercomponents.co.uk

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