Product Description

An Achromatic Waveplate, AWP, is similar to a Zero-Order Waveplate, which is made from two pieces of Crystal Quartz except that the AWP is composed of one piece of Crystal Quartz and one piece of Magnesium Fluoride, MgF2. Both of these materials are birefringent, however, by proper matching of the birefringent changes in one material with those of the second, retardation changes are minimized as the wavelength changes. This phenomenon produces a Waveplate whose change in retardation is extremely small for large variations in wavelength.

For tunable sources or lasers with large spectral widths, you will want an AWP - one whose performance is nearly independent of wavelength.

Our AWPs are designed to effectively eliminate the wavelength dependence over a wide spectral range, typically several hundred nanometers. The AWPs are available for three wavelength ranges: VIS (465-610nm), NIR (700-1000nm) and IR (1200-1650nm). These AWPs operate beyond these ranges however; although the retardation change exceeds the specification. The standard versions are air-spaced. Custom assemblies, including cemented versions, are available to meet your specific requirements. Send us your drawing for a quote on a custom AWP.

Specifications

Material: Crystal Quartz & MgF2

Wavelength Ranges: 465 – 610nm, 700 – 1000nm, 1200 – 1650 nm

Retardance:/4 and /2

Retardation Tolerance: /100 over wavelength range

Clear Aperture: 11.5mm

Temp Coefficient of Retardation: </500 per °C

Transmitted Wavefront Distortion: /4@633nm

Surface Quality: 20/10 scratch dig

Beam Deviation: < 1 arc min

Parallelism: <1 arc min

AOI range for < 1% change in Retardance: +/-3°

Optical Axis: Marked on the mounting ring

Temperature Storage range: -40°C to +75°C

Damage Threshold: 2J/cm2 (8ns pulse @ 1064nm); 500KW/cm2, CW

Diameter Mounted: 25.4mm

Thickness: 8mm (mounting ring) 8 +/- 0.15

Coating: Ravg<1% at 465-610nm per surface Ravg<0.6% at 700-1000nm per surface Ravg<0.5% at 1200-1650nm per surface

Style: Cemented or special order

Pricing and ordering info

Product Description

This is the second series of Achromatic Waveplates, AWPs, from Tower Optical Corp. This series is built upon 25.4mm substrates of Crystal Quartz and Magnesium Fluoride. These substrates are cemented together. This technique helps to control costs by reducing the number of surfaces requiring AR coating while increasing the physical size, thus accommodating larger beam diameters. As with the original series of AWPs these AWPs are available in the following ranges:

VIS 465 to 610nm, NIR 700 to 1000nm, IR 1200 to 1650nm

Each is broadband AR coated for its respective range.The performance is shown graphically on the curves below.

Specifications

Material: Crystal Quartz & MgF2

Wavelength Ranges: 465 – 610nm, 700 – 1000nm, 1200 – 1650 nm

Retardance:/4 and /2

Retardation Tolerance: /100 over wavelength range

Clear Aperture: 23mm

Temp Coefficient of Retardation: </500 per °C

Transmitted Wavefront Distortion: /4@633nm

Surface Quality: 20/10 scratch dig

Beam Deviation: < 1 arc min

Parallelism: <1 arc min

AOI range for < 1% change in Retardance: +/-3°

Optical Axis: Marked on the mounting ring

Temperature Storage range: -40°C to +75°C

Damage Threshold: 2J/cm2 (8ns pulse @ 1064nm); 500KW/cm2, CW

Diameter Mounted: 30mm

Thickness: 6mm (mounting ring) 6 +/- 0.15

Coating: Ravg<1% at 465-610nm per surface Ravg<0.6% at 700-1000nm per surface Ravg<0.5% at 1200-1650nm per surface

Style: Cemented

Pricing and ordering info