Transition of AlGaP Durable Coating Technology to Production for Development of Affordable Multispectral Windows

The overall objective of this program is to develop the foundation to commercially produce durable, and hence affordable, large area AlGaP coated windows for multispectral sensor array Systems. This coating has been shown by Hughes Danbury optical Systems to increase the useful life of test windows under sand abrasion test conditions by a factor of at least 3-6x. The technical objectives of Phase I include: 1) modification of Epitronics' chemical vapor deposition (CVD) system for growth of AlGaP coatings on large area substrates; 2) transfer process from Hughes' laboratory system to Epitronics' production reactor; 3) begin optimization of growth conditions for the commercial reactor; 4) demonstration of deposition of suitable window coatings on a 3 e and 5) evaluation of optical performance and durability of a coated window. In Phase I we will transfer this process to a commercial deposition system and demonstrate a 3 ty will be characterized at Epitronics and Hughes. Partnering with Hughes, which designs and fabricates windows and sensor systems, creates a team that is uniquely suited to develop and commercialize these windows. BENEFITS: The production applications outlet tor this research is Hughes Danbury optical Systems which is a major manufacturer of sensor array window subsystems for air and missile combat elements. No other method of extending the life of these windows and consequent potential for reducing the overall systems cost by such a large factor for programs such as LRAS-3 has been demonstrated.