Optical Calcium Fluoride Glass

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Introduction of Optical Single Crystal Polycrystalline Calcium Fluoride Glass

single crystal calcium fluoride optical glass

Calcium Fluoride glass is a glass material made of calcium fluoride (CaF ₂), which is a colorless and transparent crystalline material with good optical properties and is often used in the preparation of optical single crystals. Optical single crystal refers to crystal materials with birefringence, commonly used in the manufacture of optical devices such as polarizers, gratings, optical windows, etc. Calcium fluoride is widely used in lasers LED、 Fields such as solar cells.

Production Process of Optical Single Crystal Polycrystalline Calcium Fluoride Glass

1. Mix the crushed material of natural fluorite or synthetic fluorite made from natural fluorite with a cleaning agent as a fluorinating agent in a certain proportion to obtain a mixture.
2. Heat the mixture to the high temperature zone and simultaneously cool it down at a certain rate, maintaining the temperature difference between the high temperature zone heater and the low temperature zone heater, so that the single crystal grows from the high temperature zone to the low temperature zone.
3. After the single crystal grows to a certain size, stop cooling and maintain a constant temperature to complete the growth of the single crystal.
The selection of crystal growth parameters is particularly important in the study of the growth of large-sized calcium fluoride single crystals. Crystal growth parameters refer to settings that can be directly controlled, such as heater power, crucible descent rate or cooling rate, crucible geometry, crystal/crucible rotation rate, airflow, magnetic field, etc. The combination of these parameters forms the external environment for crystal growth. How to form the desired crystal growth environment is a problem that the growth process model needs to solve. The growth environment of large-sized calcium fluoride crystals was digitally simulated using the imported computer simulation software CrysVUN. It is possible to accurately and quantitatively predict the continuous transport equation of heat and even matter during the crystal growth process under certain crystal growth parameters, and establish a suitable temperature field environment for the growth of large-sized calcium fluoride crystals.
The purity of calcium fluoride raw materials has been improved through raw material purification and pretreatment processes. And improved Bridgman growth technology was adopted, using a vacuum graphite crucible descent furnace as the main growth equipment. By optimizing the growth process, the growth of calcium fluoride single crystals with a diameter of up to 300mm was successfully achieved. The transmittance range of the grown calcium fluoride single crystal is 0.13-10 μ m, and the optical transmittance at 248nm is not higher than 88% (2mm thick crystal); Stress birefringence below 10nm/cm; The optical uniformity reaches 6 × 10(-6) or above.

Optical and Physical Properties of Calcium Fluoride Glass

Optical properties of single crystal calcium fluoride glass

The application of calcium fluoride in optical single crystals requires a purity requirement of 99.99% or higher Single crystal calcium fluoride exhibits high orderliness and regularity, and its crystal structure is composed of a single lattice, which endows it with unique physical properties. Single crystals have higher hardness and lower thermal conductivity, and their refractive index and dispersion characteristics are superior to poly crystals. These characteristics make single crystal calcium fluoride an ideal choice for manufacturing high-definition optical components, such as optical elements, laser windows, and high-temperature sensors.
Calcium fluoride (CaF2) crystals have a wide range of light transmission (good light transmission performance in the wavelength range of 0.13 μ m~10 μ m), low stress birefringence (no obvious intrinsic birefringence above 200nm), uniform refractive index, stable mechanical properties, non deliquescence, and strong resistance to radiation damage. It is an ideal material for making various optical windows, prisms, and lenses.

Name calcium fluoride single crystal
Molecular Formula CaF2
CAS 7789-75-5
Cleavage Plane (111)
Growth Method Bridgeman
Crystal Structure cube
Lattice Constant Å 5.46
Melting Point(℃) 1395
Density(g/cm3) 3.18
Hardness(knoop) 158.3
Thermal Expansion Coefficient(/K) 18.9×10-6
Thermal Conductivity(W/mK) 9.71
Heat Capacity(J/K) 854
Magnetic Susceptibilityχ(cm3/mol) 28.0*10-6
Light Transmission Range(nm) 130-12000
Refractive Index 1.4338
Dielectric Constant 6.76 @ 27 °C
Chemical Stability insoluble in water, insoluble in acetone, slightly soluble in acid
Color and Appearance Colorless transparent crystal
Regular Size 10*10mm,5*5mm,maximum diameter 150mm, customizable
Conventional Crystal Orientation (100)、(110)、(111)
Polishing single-sided polishing, double-sided polishing

The Difference Between Single Crystal Calcium Fluoride and Polycrystalline Calcium Fluoride

1.Structure of single crystal calcium fluoride and polycrystalline calcium fluoride.
Single crystal calcium fluoride has a high degree of orderliness and regularity, and the entire crystal is composed of a single lattice structure. In contrast, polycrystalline calcium fluoride is composed of multiple different lattice structures arranged in a complex manner in space, resulting in a higher overall disorder.
2.Physical properties of single crystal calcium fluoride and polycrystalline calcium fluoride.
Single crystal calcium fluoride typically has higher hardness and lower thermal conductivity, while polycrystalline calcium fluoride exhibits relatively lower hardness and higher thermal conductivity. In addition, the refractive index and dispersion of single crystal calcium fluoride are different from those of polycrystalline calcium fluoride.
3.Optical properties of single crystal calcium fluoride and polycrystalline calcium fluoride.
Due to its highly ordered crystal structure, single crystal calcium fluoride is better able to resist light scattering and is therefore more suitable for manufacturing high-definition optical components. In contrast, polycrystalline calcium fluoride is more prone to light scattering due to its irregular structure, which may limit its optical applications.
4.Application areas of single crystal calcium fluoride and polycrystalline calcium fluoride.
Single crystal calcium fluoride is commonly used in the manufacture of advanced optical components, laser windows, and high-temperature sensors due to its high hardness and low thermal conductivity. Polycrystalline calcium fluoride is more commonly used in the manufacture of fluorescent screens, lamps, and other applications that require high light scattering performance.

Application of Calcium Fluoride Glass

Due to its unique performance characteristics, calcium fluoride glass has been widely used in many fields.
1. Radioactive detection: Calcium fluoride glass has excellent detection performance for radioactive particles and is widely used in fields such as nuclear power plants and nuclear medicine. It has high sensitivity to gamma rays.
2. Laser devices: Calcium fluoride glass has excellent laser damage threshold and thermal conductivity, and is widely used in laser windows, output polarizers, and other components.
3. Solar cells: Calcium fluoride glass has excellent transparency and radiation resistance, and is often used as protective glass for solar panels.
In addition to the above applications, it also has certain applications in fields such as infrared optics, petrochemicals, and chemistry.
Calcium fluoride glass is a high-performance and widely used glass material. Its high transparency, low dispersion, high refractive index and other characteristics have made it widely used, playing an important role in fields such as radioactive detection, laser devices, solar cells, etc.

Processing Services

Cutting, forming, polishing, grinding, drilling, coring, chamfering, chamfering, 3D edge inspection, laser engraving and marking, single-sided polishing, double-sided polishing, ring polishing, ion beam polishing, magneto rheological polishing, lightweight, countersunking, CNC machining, slotting, vacuum coating, evaporation coating, cleaning, measurement and measurement, bonding, optical assembly.

Keyword: Calcium fluoride single crystal, calcium fluoride, calcium fluoride infrared material, Caf2 infrared material, CaF2 crystal, UV CaF2, CaF2 UV material

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