A wide array of diagnostic tools is available to us for use in coatings characterization. Zinc The metal-finishing staff also does process development and offers consultation services. In addition, the facility can electroform parts over mandrels. Process and component development, waste minimization and environmental process information is available, as well as consulting services. We are able to deposit vacuum-compatible materials onto substrates in thicknesses ranging from angstroms to hundreds of microns.
Facilities are available for standard coating processes using evaporation and sputtering.
We are also involved in the development and use of new coating techniques, such as cathodic arc deposition. Because many fabrication requests require unusual combinations of bulk and surface properties, the staff has experience with a wide range of materials-from elements of the periodic table to moon dust. Staff-developed computer codes allow us to optimize coating material, process variables, and source design. The Optical Vacuum Coating Lab, part of the Vacuum Processes Group, specializes in the design and fabrication of precision thin-films, grown on optical components. Coatings have been deposited onto substrates of glass, semiconductors, metals, and plastics, ranging in size from a few mils to eight inches in diameter.