High-performance dichroic beam splitters for deuterium fluoride chemical lasers

The optical performance of dichroic beam splitters developed for deuterium fluoride (DF) laser applications as shared-aperture components is presented. These components simultaneously provide high reflectance/transmittance in the 3.8-microm DF laser output band and high transmittance/reflectance in the long-wave-length 8-14--m band. Optical evaluation of the reflecting dichroic yields absorption and transmission losses of <0.2 and 0.1%, respectively, at DF laser wavelengths and average transmittance 80% in the 8-14-microm band. The 3.8-microm transmitting dichroic yields absorptance losses of <0.4% in the DF laser band and average reflectance of >50% in the 8-14-microm region.