Development, Modeling and Test of Optical Coatings with Novel Thermal and Stress Management for High Energy Laser Applications
Abstract
The purpose of this multiyear collaboration between groups at the University of New Mexico and Colorado State University was to improve our understanding of optical coatings used in high average power (CW and long-pulse) laser systems. While laser-induced damage by subpicosecond pulses has been studied extensively, damage mechanisms by high power CW and nanosecond (ns) and longer pulse laser sources have been little studied. What is known, is that damage results from as-yet undetected defects in the optical coatings. The goal of this project was to understand and to mitigate the defects in the coating that lead to damage under laser irradiation. In this final report we list the accomplishments of this project and highlight the following four activities: (1) Study of defects in ion-beam sputtered Sc2O3 films; (2) Increased laser damage resistance of multilayer mirrors by modification of the top layer design; (3) The development of a single-pulse damage testing protocol (STEREO-LID) that is superior to the ISO standard for characterizing defects in films; and (4) Third harmonic generation in optical coatings for microscopy of defects and UV pulse generation.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 11, 2017
- Accession Number
- AD1053523
Entities
People
- Carmen S. Menoni
- Luke A. Emmert
- Wolfgang Rudolph
Organizations
- University of New Mexico