Alfa Chemistry uses crystalline quartz (SiO2) material to customize infrared optical components. This is a naturally occurring birefringent material with many optical properties that make it an ideal substrate for a wide variety of applications. All of our custom quartz optics are rigorously tested by skilled experts at cutting-edge metrology facilities, giving our customers the peace of mind that their needs will be met. Contact us as soon as possible for your customer service!
Our Services
Alfa Chemistry offers customization services for high quality crystal quartz optics, including windows, prisms, waveplates and beamsplitters that can be manufactured to your custom specifications. We can provide both coated and uncoated options, including broadband antireflection coatings. The table below lists our typical fabrication requirements. If your requirements fall outside of the above, please contact our technical sales team who will be able to assist you as we have many years of experience in this field.
Quartz Windows
| Diameter Range | 5 mm ~ 150 mm |
| Diameter Tolerance | ± 0.1 mm |
| Centre Thickness | up to 50 mm |
| Centre Thickness Tolerance | ± 0.05 mm |
| Clear Aperture | 90% |
| Centration Tolerance | 1 arc minute |
| Form Error | better than λ/4 (633nm) over aperture |
| Surface Radius Tolerance | 1 fringe over aperture |
| Linear Dimension | up to 80 mm |
| Linear Tolerance | ± 0.1 mm |
| Angular Tolerance | 5 arc minutes |
| Edge Finish | ground |
| Chamfer | 0.3x0.3@45° |
| Surface Quality | 20-10 scratch/ dig |
Quartz Prisms
| Length of Hypotenuse | up-to 100 ± 0.1 mm |
| Length of Sides | up-to 100 ± 0.1 mm |
| Thickness | 30 ± 0.05 mm |
| Angle Tolerance | better than 1 arc minute |
| Edge Finish | ground, blacked |
| Clear Aperture | 90% of entrance dimensions |
| Chamfer | 0.3x0.3@45° |
| Form Error | better than λ/4 (633nm) over aperture |
| Surface Quality | 20-10 scratch/dig |
Quartz Ground Blanks
| Diameter Range | less than 5 mm to 150 mm |
| Diameter Tolerance | better than ± 0.5 mm |
| Centre Thickness | up to 50 mm |
| Centre Thickness Tolerance | better than ± 0.5 mm |
| Clear Aperture | 90% |
| Linear Dimension | up to 150 mm |
| Linear Tolerance | better than ± 0.5 mm |
| Angular Tolerance | better than 10 arc minutes |
| Edge Finish | fine ground N6 |
| Chamfer | 0.3x0.3@45° |
Applications:
- Waveplates: As a result of its birefringence and low absorption, crystalline quartz is frequently employed as a low and zero order wave sheet. Due to its high damage thresholds and consistent delays that vary with temperature, quartz waveplates are appropriate for applications using laser or infrared light sources.
- Monochromators: Crystal quartz is utilized as an X-ray monochromator plate, such as lithium fluoride, due to its unique crystal structure. Its lattice gap allows Bragg diffraction to occur and the formation of intense radiation peaks (Bragg peaks).
Quartz's Optical Properties
Quartz has many advantages in optics: birefringence, high purity, high damage threshold, rotational plane polarized light, low coefficient of thermal expansion, huge operating temperature range, high temperature shock resistance, and low fluorescence. According to the spin of the linearly polarized light entering it, crystal quartz is split into 2 varieties, left- and right-handed. Quartz has refractive indices of 1.54221 (@600nm) for normal rays and 1.55333 (@600nm) for extraordinary rays, respectively.
The very good UV transparency of quartz glass for optical applications is unmatched by any other industrial glass material. Crystal quartz can be used for UV to NIR applications since it has a 90% transmission range between 0.18 and 3.5 µm. Additionally, it transmits wavelengths above 50 µm into the blackbody emission region of the terahertz spectrum (3 mm to 30 µm).
Fig 1. Optical reflectance spectra of quartz glass, asdeposited ZnO, and specimens annealed at 1000, 1100, and 1200 ℃ for 2 h. (Peng K-C, et al. 2013)
For more information on the properties of quartz materials please click here.
If you need technical advice, please contact our technical team to learn more about our high-quality services.
Reference
- Peng K-C, et al. (2013). "Annealing Effect on the Microstructure and Optical Characterization of Zn2SiO4 Thin Film Sputtered on Quartz Glass." Japanese Journal of Applied Physics 52(11S): 11NB04.