Laser Components: Autoclavable optical coatings
Laser Components has developed laser optics for medical technology with a coating that can withstand many sterilization cycles in an autoclave. This is made possible by a special coating process.
Laser Components is expanding its range for medical technology with another product: laser optics whose coating can withstand countless sterilization cycles in an autoclave over the long term. To this end, the company has developed a special coating process in collaboration with universities and other companies. Only a few manufacturers in the world are able to produce such optics.
Disinfection in an autoclave is a widely used sterilization process in medical practices and clinics. Medical instruments and laboratory utensils are exposed to a combination of high pressure, high temperatures and moisture in a pressure-tight vessel to kill microorganisms. These extreme environmental conditions cause conventional coatings to crack or detach from the substrate. Their optical properties quickly deteriorate, so that disturbing double images can occur. The optics must therefore be replaced very soon. As part of the STAR (Stable Anti-Reflective Coatings for Medical Technology) research project, Laser Components and other participants have developed a process for resistant coatings. Measurements show that the original reflectivity is retained even after several hundred autoclave cycles.