Princeton Instruments has introduced protected and enhanced silver coatings for diamond-turned optics and glass. This addition to its Acton Optics product line offers durability and reflectance for applications including military optics, telescopes, spaceflight hardware, analytic instruments and ultrafast Ti:sapphire lasers.

These robust coatings exceed the requirements of MIL-M-13508, pass the saltwater immersion test of Mil-F-48616 and perform to specifications after rigorous testing under conditions including humidity, temperature, adhesion, abrasion and solubility.

Mark Dykstra, business manager at Acton Optics, said, “These dependable coatings can be manufactured to provide greater than 98-percent average reflectance over very broad bandwidths and on a variety of substrates. This newly developed coating protects diamond turned optics from scratches and corrosion, overcoming a historic weakness with these delicate metallic surfaces.”

These proprietary coatings offer high performance in visible and infrared wavelengths simultaneously and are suitable for reflectivity from 500 nm to 2 μm. The performance can easily be extended to 20 μm and beyond.

The longevity of the silver mirror is maximized by the precise deposition of proprietary binder layers and dielectric overcoat layers, carefully selected based on substrate choice and application. This process provides the mirrors with longevity and allows them to be cleaned at the point of use, even in the harshest environments.

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