High Strength Optical Glasses For High-Fluence Laser Applications

This paper presents an alternate approach for designing and manufacturing high strength optical glasses which will not experience tensile stresses in excess of threshold level. consequently, lenses made from these glasses will not be subjected to slow crack growth and their laser-damage threshold will be significantly higher. Furthermore, the lens thickness can be reduced by 50 to 70% thereby improving its optical performance over a wide range of wavelengths. The trade-offs between strength, lens thickness and stored elastic energy are discussed.