Corning Incorporated

Corning Glass Works

Roger J Araujo

Nicholas Francis Borrelli

David W Morgan

Charlene Marie Smith

Thomas P Seward, Iii

David L Morse

George Bigelow Hares

Josef C Lapp

Christine L Hoaglin

Paul A Tick

Nadja Teresia Lönnroth

Thomas Philip Seward, Iii

John D Crow

Gerald S Meiling

Jan B Chodak

David J Kerko

Daniel Raymond Sempolinski

Donald M Trotter, Jr

Dennis W Smith

Alain R Carre

Walter F Love

Francis P Fehlner

Robert E McLay

Donald M Trotter

Serge A Renault

Norbert J Binkowski

A photochromic glass that includes a base glass and a photochromic agent is described. The base glass is a modified boroaluminosilicate glass and the photochromic agent is a nanocrystalline cuprous halide phase. The photochromic glass exhibits a sharp cutoff in the UV or short wavelength visible portion of the spectrum along with an absorption band at longer wavelengths in the visible. The nanocrystalline cuprous halide phase includes Cu, which provides states within the bandgap of the cuprous halide that permit the glass to absorb visible light. Absorption of visible light drives a photochromic transition without compromising the sharp cutoff. The nanocrystalline cuprous halide phase may optionally include Ag.

Photochromic glass with sharp cutoff

The invention relates to a melt-formed, high-silver, alkali-free, borosilicate glass that can be used for fabricating optical devices. For gradient index lenses, the glass can be subjected to an ion exchange process in order to introduce a less polarizable ion onto the glass surface having a higher refractive index on the surface relative to the center of the glass. The glass is unique in that the silver ions are not introduced by ion exchange. Rather, the high silver content of the glass is achieved during melting. As melted, the transparent alkali-free, borosilicate glass produced by the inventive method contains a high concentration of silver, exhibits a high refractive index and negligible attenuation at wavelengths longer than about 400 nm, making it particularly suitable for high performance fiber optic components such as gradient index or so-called GRIN lenses.

High silver borosilicate glasses

An optical member includes a fused silica glass having a concentration of &equiv;SiH moiety below detection limit as measured by Raman spectroscopy and a concentration of molecular hydrogen of at least 1&times;10 molecules/cm . The fused silica glass exhibits an induced absorption level which quickly attains an initial peak upon exposure to irradiation and rapidly decays to a low value. The induced absorption level after decaying to the low value remains substantially unchanged by further irradiation.

Fused silica with constant induced absorption

Strong UV absorbing glass

Method of making a UV absorbing liquid

The invention relates to the production of high purity fused silica glass which is highly resistant to 248 nm excimer laser-induced optical damage. In particular, this invention relates to a fused silica optical member or blank.

Method of reducing laser-induced optical damage in silica

A method of strengthening a glass article by developing compressive stress in a surface layer on the article through an exchange of alkali metal ions in the surface layer at an elevated temperature below the glass strain point, the step of minimizing stress relaxation by carrying out the ion exchange in a glass essentially free from non-bridging oxygen atoms. Glasses having particular utility contain alumina in their compositions in such amount that the number of aluminum atoms in a glass are at least equal to the number of alkali metal ions, or contain both alumina and boric oxide in such amounts that the formula ##EQU1## is satisfied.

Strengthening glass by ion exchange

The invention relates to the production of high purity fused silica glass which is highly resistant to optical damage by ultraviolet radiation in the laser wavelength of about 300 nm or shorter. In particular, this invention relates to a fused silica optical member or blank which exhibits substantially no optical damage up to 10.sup.7 pulses (350 mJ/cm.sup.2) at the KrF laser wavelength region of about 248 nm, and at the ArF laser wavelength region of about 193 nm.

High purity fused silica having high resistance to optical damage

An ophthalmic lens of photochromic glass having an R.sub.2 O-Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 -B.sub.2 O.sub.3 -SiO.sub.2 base glass composition and a method of producing the lens. The lens contains precipitated cuprous halide crystals that are elongated and oriented, whereby the lens is capable of polarizing light when the lens is in the darkened state. If at least a portion of the crystals in at least a surface layer on the lens are reduced to copper metal, the lens exhibits a permanent dichroic behavior. The lens provides effective polarization of radiation across the entire visible wavelength region of the spectrum, has a sharp spectral cutoff for radiation below the 400 nm wavelength, thereby eliminating UV transmission, and has a transmittance not over about 40% in the darkened state.

Ophthalmic lens

High purity fused silica glass which is highly resistant to optical damage by ultraviolet radiation in the laser wavelength of about 300 nm or shorter is produced. In particular, a fused silica optical member or blank exhibits substantially no optical damage up to 10.sup.7 pulses (350 mJ/cm.sup.2) at the KrF laser wavelength region of about 248 nm, and at the ArF laser wavelength region of about 193 nm.

Method of forming high purity fused silica having high resistance to

A materials system comprising a glass containing alkali metal ions capable of migrating and a silica, alumina, or tantala film deposited on the glass surface, the glass also containing high field strength ions that can change coordination. The direction of alkali metal ion flow depends on the film selected and the glass composition.

Alkali metal ion migration control

A non-photochromic colored glass containing crystals of precipitated cuprous oxide in a matrix of glass, the matrix glass consisting essentially of, in cation percent, 35-75% SiO.sub.2, 15-45% B.sub.2 O.sub.3, 0-12% Al.sub.2 O.sub.3, the Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 being less than 10% when the SiO.sub.2 is over 55%, 0-5% ZrO.sub.2, 0-12% Li.sub.2 O, 0-20% Na.sub.2 O, 0-12% K.sub.2 O, the sum Li.sub.2 O+Na.sub.2 O+K.sub.2 O being 5-20%, 0-5% CaO+BaO+SrO, 0.4-1.75% Cu.sub.2 O, 0-2% As.sub.2 O.sub.3, 0-2% Sb.sub.2 O.sub.3, 0-1% SnO.sub.2, the sum As.sub.2 O.sub.3 +Sb.sub.2 O.sub.3 +SnO.sub.2 being 0.5-2%, characterized by 0.075.ltoreq.R-value .ltoreq.0.65, where R-value= ##EQU1##

Method of making a color filter by precipitation of Cu.sub.2 O from a

A glass article that is effective in polarizing radiation in the range of 400-700 nm and method of making, the glass having an R.sub.2 O--Al.sub.2 O.sub.3 --B.sub.2 O.sub.3 --SiO.sub.2 base glass composition, a precipitated crystal phase consisting of a halide selected from the group composed of cuprous, cadmium and mixed cuprous-cadmium halides, the crystals in the crystal phase being elongated, and a portion of the crystals near the surface of the article being at least partially reduced to colloidal copper, whereby the article exhibits permanent dichroic behavior and has a polarization efficiency across the entire wavelength range of 400-700 nm of at least 0.80.

Glass polarizer for visible light

A UV-absorbing, polarizing glass article and method of making, the glass having an R.sub.2 O-B.sub.2 O.sub.3 -SiO.sub.2 base glass composition, a sharp spectral cut-off at about 400 nm, a precipitated crystal phase consisting of a halide selected from the group composed of cuprous, cadmium and mixed cuprous-cadmium halides, the crystallites in the crystal phase being elongated, and a portion of the crystallites near the surface of the article being at least partially reduced to colloidal copper, whereby the article exhibits permanent dichroic behavior.

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Horseheads, NY, United States of America

Roger J Araujo