Trichroic Filter Thin Film Coatings

Thin Film Coatings

Thin film coatings are extremely thin layers of materials (such as TiO2, SiO2, MgF2, gold, aluminum etc…), which can be applied to the surface of a substrate like glass, metal or germanium, to effect a change in its optical properties. Effects such as reflection, refraction, anti reflection and conductivity can be produced and modified by expert calibration of the number of layers and the respective thicknesses of the thin film coatings in relation to the incidental wavelengths of light.

Trichroic Filter Thin Film Coatings

Reynard  Corporation manufactures Trichroic filters by means of the application  of thin film coatings to the surfaces of cube or plate beam splitters.  These coatings can either be applied to the high quality optical  components and substrates that Reynard supplies, or to  customer-provided substrates. Trichroic filters are used to split  incoming light into three separate red, green and blue bands, or  alternatively to recombine such bands at a different process stage.  These are distinct from Dichroic filters, which separate incoming light  into two colors. Trichroic filters are in effect a combination of two  dichroic prisms working in tandem. Applications for Trichroic filters  include camera systems, where the three separated bands can the be  detected by three separate CCD arrays, and projectors, where instead  the Trichroic filter can recombine the red, green and blue bands.

Trichroic Filter Coating Process

Our thin film coating facility has 21 vacuum chambers, ranging from an 18” bell jar to a 54” fully automatic box coater, all in a 4000 square foot Class 1000 clean room. Processes include electron beam, ion-assisted and resistance source deposition. We have the capability to coat virtually any size and shape up to and including substrates 50” in diameter.

Available substrates include:

• Alon
• BK-7 (borosilicate crown glass)
• Calcium Fluoride (CaF2)
• Fused Silica
• Germanium (GE)
• KRS5 ( Thallium Bromo-Iodide)
• Sapphire
• Magnesium Fluoride (MgF2)
• Silicon (Si)
• Zinc Selenide (ZnSe)
• Zinc Sulfide (ZnS)
• Or as provided by the customer.

Coating materials include:

• Copper (Cu)
• Gold
• Hafnium Oxide (HfO2)
• ITO (Indium Tin Oxide)
• Magnesium Oxide (MgO)
• Nickel (Ni)
• Silicon Monoxide (SiO)
• Silver
• Titanium Dioxide (TiO2)
• Tantalum Oxide (Ta2O5)
• Zirconium Oxide (ZrO2)
• And many more…

Custom Coating Services

At  Reynard, over 80% of our business is custom. Our Trichroic filter  coatings can be engineered and customized for your particular  application, and in addition we have one of the largest and most  comprehensive selection of standard and stock precision optical  components in the world. Reynard Corporation is the leading global  supplier of optical components to the aerospace, commercial and  military markets. We take pride in meeting and exceeding our customers’  expectations in concept, design, engineering and fabrication.

Click here to request a quote.

Reynard Corporation operates per Military Specification Mil-I-45208A.