World Space Observatory Ultraviolet and Optical Coating Systems

Vacuum deposition systems are highly technical pieces of equipment that offer precision coating for aerospace components, advanced optics, medical implants, solar cells and semiconductors. These machines offer coating with hardness like that of a diamond to protect sensitive parts to high heat, high pressure environments and abrasion. Coatings produced by sputtering methods are highly recommended for a variety of fields and industries, creating an appropriate barrier from contamination and wear.

These machines have the ability for a variety of different functions. These include thermal evaporation, ion beam etching, ion beam assisted evaporation, plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD), e-beam evaporation, reactive sputtering and magnetron sputtering. Each of these procedures use different methods to achieve the same goal–to create a strong, yet lightweight and even coating for sensitive components. Without thin film deposition coatings, abrasions, melting and oxidization can occur.

Common industries that utilize vacuum machines include optics, solar, microscopy, medical, aerospace, semiconductor, and emerging technologies. In fact, just this past month, the World Space Observatory-Ultraviolet (WSO-UV) recently used optical coating systems to coat sensitive mirrors on their equipment. This joint space exploration program will be similar in scale to the Hubble Space Telescope, and it is scheduled for launch in 2016. This will allow scientists improved observation methods for understanding our solar system, extrasolar planets, stellar objects and galactic structures.

Even and thorough coating is absolutely necessary for precision objects. The carbon coating is will prevent damage due that would be difficult to repair in space. Projects like these show the wide range and types of applications that use sputtering technology. Scientists increasingly require systems and processes for optics that operate outside of the visual range. This includes both UV and IR radiation. The wide range of applications for sputtering technology shows how important vacuum deposition systems are to the scientific community.

Sputtering technology is incredibly effective. The layer of carbon is tough enough to withstand extreme conditions, yet thin enough that it is only atoms thick. Problems caused by abrasion or exposure to highly reactive elements are eliminated by coating products with thin films from deposition processes. Oxidization for example, can be a problem for medical tools and devices, which need to be absolutely spotless to be used in the human body. A scratch in a telescope or microscope can severely alter scientific studies. This is why deposition systems are so highly valuable.

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Guest post is provided by Denton Vacuum, LLC. Use our vacuum deposition systems for your next development. Contact us through www.dentonvacuum.com.