Rare-earth-doped fibers with single-crystal cores have the potential for 10x higher TMI threshold than their glass counterparts and are a promising candidate for use as gain media in high-power laser systems. Their utility has been limited by parasitic optical losses and difficulty in fabrication. This paper explores methods to reduce the losses in these fibers in the core, in the cladding and at the core-cladding interface and an overview of the work done at NRL in this area.
NRL is developing new materials that transmit across wide wavelength ranges. MILTRAN is a new rugged optical ceramic that transmits visible through LWIR and is 3.5 times harder than ZnS. With a negative dn/dT, it is well suited as an internal lens element. NRL-series moldable glasses transmit SWIR through LWIR and may be bonded to each other in an adhesive-free thermal process. NRL-200-series glasses transmit visible through MWIR and expand the glass map for multispectral lens designs. These new materials enable greater flexibility for designers of lenses for advanced defense applications and potentially reduce the size, weight and cost of next-generation optics. This paper will discuss new optical materials, their properties and the advantages of using NRL materials in optics designs.
Recent progress on the procurement, purification, and sintering of a variety of high temperature transparent ceramics is presented. There are numerous applications operating in very harsh environments that require rugged windows. Oxide materials such as Y2O3 and non-oxides such as cubic β-SiC are prime candidates for these applications due to high mechanical strength, good transmission range, and isotropic structure. To fabricate a high transparency window, phase and chemically pure powder precursors must be obtained. Higher purity β-SiC powders are becoming commercially available and multiple sources are analyzed, purified, and sintered to optimize transmission. Both oxide and non-oxide materials are sintered via spark plasma sintering (SPS) and the optical and physical properties are discussed.
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