Thorium free antireflection coating in MWIR region on Silicon optics

Most infrared transmitting optics have high refractive indices which in turn have high per surface reflection loss. So antireflection coating has very important role in increasing the transmission in the desired wavelength region. In this paper a study has been carried out on the design and fabrication of Thorium free antireflection coating effective for Silicon substrate in MWIR (3.6–4.9 μm) region. The wave band 3.6–4.9 μm is chosen for the reported work because the detected system used in MWIR region has a band selection filter effective in the same wavelength region. Comprehensive search method was used to design the multilayer stack on Silicon substrate. The coating materials used in the design were Germanium (Ge) and Silicon dioxide (SiO₂). The fabrication of coating was made in a coating plant fitted with Cryo pump system and Residual Gas Analyzer. The evaporation was carried out at high vacuum (2–6 × 10–6 mbar) using Electron Beam Gun and layer thicknesses were measured with crystal monitor. The result achieved for the antireflection coating was 96% average transmission in 3.6–4.9 μm band which withstood MIL-F-48616 environmental testing. This work provides an alternate antireflection coating on Silicon by replacing radioactive Thorium Fluoride, used as a coating material in most IR antireflection coating designs.     

A novel trilayer antireflection coating using dip-coating technique

We report a new structure for broadband antireflection coating by dip-coating technique, which has minimal cost and is compatible with large-scale manufacturing. The coatings are prepared by depositing SiO 2 sol-gel film on a glass substrate, subsequently depositing SiO 2 single-layer particle coating through electrostatic attraction, and depositing a final very thin SiO 2 sol-gel film to improve the mechanical strength of the whole coating structure. The refractive index of the structure changes gradually from the top to the substrate. The transmittance of a glass substrate has been experimentally found to be improved in the spectral range of 400 1 400 nm and in the incidence angle range from 0 to at least 45 . The mechanical strength is immensely improved because of the additional thin SiO 2 sol-gel layer. The surface texture can be applied to the substrates of different materials and shapes as an add-on coating.     

基于时间控厚离子束溅射技术的宽带减反膜制备

 为了制备满足设计要求的宽角度、宽波段减反膜,利用离子束溅射沉积技术,在时间-功率控厚的模式下,对膜层沉积速率进行了精确修正。在实验中,利用时间-功率控厚的离子束溅射沉积技术,选择HfO₂和SiO₂作为高低折射率组合,在超抛ZF6玻璃基底上制备了宽角度、宽带减反膜,通过对实验后的透过率光谱曲线的数值反演计算,获得膜层厚度修正系数,初步得到了沉积速率随沉积时间变化的规律。利用修正后的沉积参数制备设计的膜系,在0°~30°入射角度下,600~1 200 nm波段的平均透过率达到99%以上。     

用低压反应离子镀的方法制备Ge_(1-x)C_x单层非均匀增透膜的研究

用低压反应离子镀(RLVIP)的方法在Ge基底上制备了Ge1-xCx单层非均匀增透薄膜。随着沉积速率在0.05~0.4nm/s之间的变化,其折射率在2.31~3.42之间可变。实验结果表明,镀制的Ge1-xCx单层非均匀增透保护薄膜均为无定形结构,并实现了从2000~8000nm的宽波段增透。当沉积速率为0.1nm/s时,单面平均透过率从68.6%提高到了80.9%,比单面未镀膜时提高了17.9%。通过对薄膜的稳定性和牢固度进行测试表明,制备的Ge1-xCx单层非均匀增透薄膜具有良好的性能。     

二氧化硅亚波长纳米微结构的增透特性

对亚波长纳米微结构-非紧密堆积多晶胶体晶体光学薄膜的增透特性进行了研究。采用浸渍-提拉法在玻璃表面组装了亚波长纳米微结构,并利用等效介质理论分析其光学性质,理论和实验符合。研究表明实验制备的纳米微结构具有优异的增透性质,通过控制组装条件可以控制膜层厚度实现高增透效率从可见光到近红外的有效调谐,且微结构在玻璃基底上的等效折射率接近1.22,透射率最大能提高约7%,达到99.8%的增透效果。     

Silicon solar cells with Al2O3 antireflection coating

The paper presents the possibility of using Al₂O₃ antireflection coatings deposited by atomic layer deposition ALD. The ALD method is based on alternate pulsing of the precursor gases and vapors onto the substrate surface and then chemisorption or surface reaction of the precursors. The reactor is purged with an inert gas between the precursor pulses. The Al₂O₃ thin film in structure of the finished solar cells can play the role of both antireflection and passivation layer which will simplify the process. For this research 50×50 mm monocrystalline silicon solar cells with one bus bar have been used. The metallic contacts were prepared by screen printing method and Al₂O₃ antireflection coating by ALD method. Results and their analysis allow to conclude that the Al₂O₃ antireflection coating deposited by ALD has a significant impact on the optoelectronic properties of the silicon solar cell. For about 80 nm of Al₂O₃ the best results were obtained in the wavelength range of 400 to 800 nm reducing the reflection to less than 1%. The difference in the solar cells efficiency between with and without antireflection coating was 5.28%. The LBIC scan measurements may indicate a positive influence of the thin film Al₂O₃ on the bulk passivation of the silicon.     

Simple fabrication of an antireflective hemispherical surface structure using a self-assembly method for the terahertz frequency range

A hemispherical surface structure was fabricated on a sapphire substrate by utilizing a self-assembly and spin-coating process for a terahertz (THz) antireflection coating. The self-assembled glass spheres and spin-coated material led to a gradual change in the effective refractive index. The aspect ratio of the hemispherical surface structure was controlled easily by adjusting the thickness of the B-staged bisbenzocyclobutene used as a coating. The reflectance of the fabricated hemispherical surface structure, having a period of 140 μm, exhibited low reflectance and low Fabry-Perot resonance in a THz spectral range from 0.1 to 1.9 THz.     

Anisotropic antireflection coatings: use as a laser intracavity polarization-direction selector

A double-layer anisotropic antireflection coating is designed and fabricated using the technique of serial bideposition. Both layers in the coating are biaxial with nanostructural columns directed normal to the substrate. Incident light with the p polarization encounters a pair of quarter-wave layers with refractive indices that satisfy the standard relationship for zero reflectance at the design wavelength. Light with the s polarization meets non-quarter-wave layers and different indices and hence is partially reflected. As an example to illustrate potential applications of the coating, we have used a thin glass plate with anisotropic antireflection coatings on both sides as an intracavity element to select the direction of polarization of an open-cavity HeNe laser.     

三硼酸锂晶体上1064 nm,532 nm,355 nm三倍频增透膜的设计

采用矢量法设计了三硼酸锂晶体上1064 nm、532 nm和355 nm三倍频增透膜,结果表明1064 nm、532 nm和355 nm波长的剩余反射率分别为0.0017%、0.0002%和0.0013%。根据误差分析,薄膜制备时沉积速率精度控制在 5.5%时,1064 nm、532 nm和355 nm波长的剩余反射率分别增加至0.20%、0.84%和1.89%。当材料折射率的变化控制在 3%时,1064 nm处的剩余反射率增大为0.20%,532 nm和355 nm处分别达0.88%和0.24%。与薄膜物理厚度相比,膜层折射率对剩余反射率的影响大。对膜系敏感层的分析表明,在1064 nm和355 nm波长,从入射介质向基底过渡的第二层膜的厚度变化对剩余反射率的影响最大,其次是第一膜层。在532 nm波长,第一和第三膜层是该膜系的敏感层。同时发现,由于薄膜材料的色散,1064 nm5、32 nm和355 nm波长的剩余反射率分别增加至0.15%、0.31%和1.52%。     

Antireflection film in one-dimensional metallo-dielectric photonic crystals

We calculated the transmittance of a one-dimensional (1D) metallo-dielectric photonic crystal (MDPC) in the optical region including the absorption losses in metal layers. The structure consists of five Ag and four GaN layers stacked alternately. When we add an antireflection coating to each end of the stack, the transmittance of the MDPC is increased twice as much and the oscillations in the transmission spectrum are also smoothed out compared with the case without them. The transmittance for oblique incident angles is also increased by the addition of two antireflection layers at the ends of the 1D MDPC.     

双波段宽带减反膜的研究

根据电视/红外双色制导的要求,研制了锗酸盐基底上的双波段宽带减反膜。其膜系设计采用二氧化钛和二氧化硅分别作为高、低折射率膜料的13层膜堆,镀制的膜层满足环境稳定性标准。在0.56~0.75μm波长范围内,双面镀膜后的平均透过率大于98%,单面平均剩余反射率不超过0.5%;在3.6~4.8μm波长范围内,双面镀膜后的平均透过率至少可达到85%,单面平均剩余反射率不超过1.5%。     

Resonant cavity based antireflection structures for surface plasmon waveguides

The concept of antireflection coating in the theory of multilayer films is introduced to the two-dimensional metal–insulator–metal (MIM) structures to realize total transmission of optical energy at the waveguide discontinuities. The antireflection structure consists of a resonant cavity which is constructed by changing the insulator width of the waveguide. A numerical method is used to achieve the optimal design directly. A T-splitter with zero reflection is proposed, utilizing a cavity structure in the input waveguide. A transformer with enhanced transmission between different waveguides is presented for further validating the efficiency and generality of these cavity based antireflection structures. The simulation results show that such a structure can realize a perfect antireflection function.     

基于氧化物的0.8~1.7μm和3.7~4.8μm硬质宽带红外增透膜研制

从实际应用出发,在0°入射的条件下,在ZnS基底上针对0.8~1.7 μm和3.7~4.8 μm两个红外波段,设计并制备了双波段红外增透膜。论述了材料选择、膜系设计和制备方法,最终使用等离子辅助沉积技术在ZnS窗口上制备出双波段红外增透膜,透过率及环境测试结果表明：在0.8~1.7 μm波段双面平均透过率大于95%,在3.7~4.8 μm波段双面平均透过率大于96%。膜层结合牢固并有良好的耐摩擦性能。     

亚波长结构对10.6 μm的抗反射表面的研制

运用等效媒质理论对亚波长结构的抗反射表面进行了分析,设计出了一种抗反射表面结构,并利用二元光学制作工艺技术,对这种表面进行了实验制备。测试结果表明,这种表面结构就像单层抗反射膜一样,具有很好的增透效果,表面结构的等效折射率相当于镀层材料折射率,而刻蚀深度则相当于镀层的四分之一波长的厚度。     

Antireflection fianite and ZrO<Subscript>2</Subscript> coatings for solar cells

Fianite is a promising multipurpose material for new electronic technologies owing to its unique combination of physical and chemical properties. It can be used in virtually all of the main technological stages of the production of micro-, opto-, and SHF-electronics; in particular, as a bulk dielectric substrate and a material for buffer layers in heteroepitaxy; as a material for insulating, antireflection, and protective layers in device elements; and as a gate dielectric [1–3]. In this work, we consider the possibilities for using fianite and ZrO₂ as an antireflection coating for silicon solar cells (SCs) and SCs based on InGaAsP heterostructures.     

Ge1-xCx double-layer antireflection and protection coatings

The antireflection Germanium carbide (Ge_1-xC_x) coating, deposited using RF reactive sputtering, on both sides of ZnS substrate wafer has been developed. The infrared (IR) transmittance spectra show that the IR transmittance in the wavelength region between 8 and 12 μm for the designed system Ge_1-xC_x/ZnS/Ge_1-xC_x is greatly enhanced compared to that for ZnS substrate. In addition, the double-layer coated ZnS substrate is approximately four times as hard as uncoated ZnS substrate. This investigation indicates that a double-layer Ge_1-xC_x coating can be used as an effective antireflection and protection coating on ZnS infrared window.     

Fabrication of broadband antireflection coatings using broadband optical monitoring mixed with time monitoring

Multi-layer optical coatings with complex spectrum requirements, such as multi-band pass filters, notch filters, and ultra-broadband antireflection coating, which usually contain very thin layers and sensitive layers, are difficult to be fabricated using a quartz crystal monitoring method or a single wavelength optical monitoring system(SWLOMS). In this paper, a broadband antireflection(AR) coating applied in the wavelength range from 800 nm to 1800 nm was designed and deposited by ion beam sputtering(IBS). Ta_2O_5 and Si O_2 were chosen as high and low refractive index coating materials,respectively. The optimized coating structure contains 9 non-quarter-wave(QW) layers totally with ultra-thin layers and sensitive layers in this coating stack. In order to obtain high transmittance, it is very important to realize the thickness accurate control on these thin layers and sensitive layers. A broadband optical monitoring mixed with time monitoring strategy was successfully used to control the layer thickness during the deposition process. At last, the measured transmittance of AR coating is quite close to the theoretical value. A 0.6% variation in short wavelength edge across the central 180 mm diameter is demonstrated. A spectrum shift of less than 0.5% for 2 continuous runs is also presented.     

Antireflection coating on germanium for dual channel (3–5 and 7.5–10.6 μm) thermal imagers

The dual channel thermal imager, operating in the 3–5 and 7.5–10.6 μm wavelength bands, is one of the latest achievements in instrumentation for target recognition and acquisition. While the 3–5 μm band is utilised for detecting hot objects such as engine exhausts of vehicles and fighter planes, the 7.5–10.6 μm band is employed for human bodies and objects at ambient temperatures. Many substrates are available which transmit in both these wavelength bands and their transmission can be enhanced by providing a suitable antireflection coating. In this paper, a broad band antireflection coating on germanium substrate is reported. The design approach involves achieving a continuously varying refractive index from that of the incident medium to the substrate. The continuously varying refractive index profile may be generated by using a sequence of thin layers of high and low refractive index materials. In this design a continuous refractive index profile is approximated by using a 13-layer stack of thorium fluoride and germanium as low and high index coating materials respectively. This coating conforms to environmental stability standards and shows an average transmission of 91% in 3–5 μm band and 94.5% in 7.5–10.6 μm band with a peak of 97% at 9 μm on 10 mm thick germanium substrate. Polycrystalline germanium has 2.5% absorption for a 10 mm thick substrate.     

在有机玻璃上射频溅射ITO组合薄膜

利用射频磁控溅射技术在有机玻璃表面上一次完成表面活化、ITO膜制备、SiO2 减反射膜制备过程。利用低能等离子体对有机玻璃表面进行改性以提高ITO膜的附着力。研究了氧分压等工艺参数对ITO膜导电性能及光学性能的影响。     

可见光波段及1064nm波长处用于Glan-Taylor棱镜减反射膜

为了提高Glan-Taylor棱镜的透射率,研究了Glan-Taylor棱镜在可见光波段及1064nm波长处减反射膜膜的设计和制备．为提高薄膜和冰洲石晶体的附着力,采用沉积Al2O3为过渡层,ZrO2作缓冲层的方法,用单纯形优化的方法进行膜系优化设计．用电子束沉积和离子柬辅助沉积的方法制备了多层减反射膜,并采用石英晶体振荡法监控膜厚和沉积速率．测量结果表明,在可见光波段及1064nm波长处的剩余反射率均小于0．5％经测试薄膜与冰洲石晶体的附着力性能良好．