P. Belleville et al., Room-temperature mirror preparation using sol-gel chemistry and laminar-flow coating technique, J SOL-GEL S, 19(1-3), 2000, pp. 223-226
The CEA/DAM megajoule-class pulsed Nd:glass laser devoted to Inertial Confi
nement Fusion (ICF) research will require 240 cavity-end mirrors. The appro
ved laser design necessitates 42-cm x 46-cm x 9-cm highly-reflective (HR)-c
oated substrates representing more than 50 m(2) of coated area. Prototypes
of these dielectric mirrors were prepared with interference quaterwave stac
ks of SiO2 and ZrO2-PVP (PolyVinylPyrrolidone) thin films starting from sol
-gel colloidal suspensions (sols). Low refractive index material was based
on nanosized silica particles and high refractive index coating solution wa
s made of a composite system. The colloidal/polymeric ratio in the composit
e system has been optimized regarding refractive index value, laser damage
threshold and chemical interactions have been studied using FT-IR spectrosc
opy. A deposition technique so-called "Laminar Flow Coating" (LFC) has been
associated to sol-gel chemistry for HR laser damage-resistant sol-gel coat
ing development. This novel coating method confirmed its main advantages co
mpared to dipping or spinning processes: coating large flat square substrat
es at room temperature with small solution consumption, good thickness unif
ormity, weak edge-effects, induced stress-free coating, good optical proper
ties and laser damage resistance fulfilling.