High-performance antireflection coatings for telecommunications

Ian C. Stevenson

doi:10.1117/12.549230

29 September 2004 High-performance antireflection coatings for telecommunications

Ian C. Stevenson

Proceedings Volume 5527, Advances in Thin Film Coatings for Optical Applications; (2004) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.549230
Event: Optical Science and Technology, the SPIE 49th Annual Meeting, 2004, Denver, Colorado, United States

Abstract

The demands of the optical communications industry have resulted in a dramatic increase in the performance requirements for thin film optical filters. Complex coatings are now manufactured with a level of control that was almost unthinkable a decade ago. In the area of anti-reflection coatings for optical fibers and laser diodes, not only has there been a push towards much lower reflectance requirements, the measurement methods and terminology are different. AR coatings are expected to have optical return losses (ORLs) of -40dB to -50dB, corresponding to reflectance values of 0.01% to 0.001%. By comparison, an element in a typical precision optics system might have an AR requirement of < 0.1% (-30dB). From a manufacturing standpoint, these requirements pose two problems: how to make such coatings, and how to measure them. In this work we review the progress towards routine manufacture of such ultra low reflectance coatings. We examine both the process control issues and the obstacles that must be overcome in the reflection measurement.

Citation Download Citation

Ian C. Stevenson "High-performance antireflection coatings for telecommunications", Proc. SPIE 5527, Advances in Thin Film Coatings for Optical Applications, (29 September 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.549230

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