Optical coatings are a vital part of all kinds of optical systems and products.  For example, many eyeglass lenses have clear hard optical coatings applied in order to prevent scratches to the softer core lens material.  They provide a wide range of functions and can be applied to all kinds of optical materials. 

Reflective optical coatings:  These are most commonly recognized as rmirrors in everyday life.  We all see mirrors every day and mirrors are usually just clear glass with a highly reflective layer on one surface.  The reflective layer is usually covered with  optical coatings that are protective and are meant to make sure that the reflective layer doesn't get scratched off.  Reflective optical coatings can be created from all kinds of materials.  One of the best and most reflective of all materials used is gold and it has been used in all kinds of devices from mirrors in astronomical devices to mirrors in office copying and printing machines. 

Anti-reflective optical coatings:  Many times these are used to maximize the amount of light that enters an optic.  Just as light reflects off of a window and you can see a reflection in the window, not all light passes through the lenses that it's supposed to pass through.  When the maximum transmission is needed, optical coatings are applied to the lens or other element in order to minimize that optic's reflective qualities. 

Protective optical coatings:  As mentioned, sometimes these are as simple as a clear material that is harder than the base material in order to protect the base material from scratches. 

Filter optical coatings:  Many optics are used as band pass filters meaning that the purpose of the optic is to only allow very specific wavelengths of light to pass through while all others are blocked out.  These band pass filters can be as simple as a window of glass but the number of different layers of optical coatings applied to the glass can be upwards of 50 different layers.  Each layer in the stack of optical coatings provides blockage of a certain waveband (a range of wavelengths) of light.  By correctly choosing the number and types of optical coatings that make up the band pass filter, very specific and narrow wavebands of light can be allowed to pass through the optic while all others are filtered out and reflected. 

Optical coatings are applied by several different methods.  Two of the more common methods are known as sputter coating and vacuum deposition.  In both cases, the parts that are going to receive the  layers are put on a holding device often called an "umbrella" and then are moved into the chamber.  The layer materials are then deposited onto the elements using two different mechanisms depending on whether the process is vacuum deposition or sputter coating but the end result is the same, and optic with an impressive variety of optical coatings.  Nalux has both kinds of equipment and the expertise to know how to use them.  We can design many layered optical coatings to create band pass filters or we can simply apply a basic hard coating to impart scratch resistance to the element.  Either way, Nalux is the only source you need for optical coatings.