OPTICAL WINDOWS

An Optical Window is a mechanically flat, sometimes optically flat, depending on resolution requirements, ) piece of transparent (for a wavelength range of interest, not necessarily for visible light) optical material that allows light into an optical instrument. A window is usually parallel and is likely to be anti-reflection coated, at least if it is designed for visible light. An optical window may be built into a piece of equipment (such as a vacuum chamber) to allow optical instruments to view inside that equipment.

Specifications

Materials	Borofloat Colored Filter Glass Fused Silica Germanium N-BK Plate Glass Sapphire Zinc Selenide
Quality	Parallel or wedged optical windows can be manufactured with laser grade surface quality and surface flatness for demanding applications.
Coating	Anti Reflection coatings (AR and HEA) to improve the transmission from UV to IR wavelength regime.
Applications	Sterling Precision Optics Optical Windows are used in many industries such as: Aerospace Military Avionics Commercial Avionics Scientific and Medical Instrumentation Academics and Research Industrial Applications Sterling also has perfected the process to make underwater camera windows. These windows need to be very strong to withstand the pressures while they also need to be flat and parallel. Sterling achieves this through a tempering and repolishing process that it has developed over the years. A typical window is made from NBK7 (Tempered) and is 4 inches in diameter with a thickness of 2 inches with one surface AR coated.

What Are Optical Windows?

Optical windows are transparent or translucent components or materials that allow the passage of light while protecting sensitive optical systems or instruments from environmental factors. These windows are typically made from various materials with specific optical and mechanical properties to meet the requirements of different applications in optics and photonics.

Common materials used for optical windows include optical glasses (e.g., BK7, fused silica), sapphire, quartz, and various optical polymers. The choice of material depends on factors such as the required optical properties, spectral range, cost constraints, and environmental conditions in the intended application. Contact us for more information.