16 Dec 2024 LASER COMPONENTS is proud to announce yet another product for medical technology: laser optics with coatings that withstand countless sterilisation cycles in an autoclave over the long term. To this end, the company worked with universities and other companies to develop a special coating process. Only a few manufacturers in the world are capable of producing this type of optics.
Disinfection in an autoclave is a widely used sterilisation process in medical practices and hospitals. In order to kill microorganisms, medical instruments and laboratory utensils are exposed to a combination of high pressure, high temperatures and moisture in a pressure-tight vessel. These extreme environmental conditions cause conventional coatings to crack or detach from the substrate. Their optical properties quickly deteriorate, which can result in disturbing double images. Therefore, the optics would have to be replaced very often.
As part of the STAR (Stable Anti-Reflective Coatings for Medical Technology) research project, LASER COMPONENTS and other participants have developed a process for resistant coatings. Measurements show that the original reflectivity is retained even after several hundred autoclave cycles.
Further information Autoclavable Optical Coatings | 
