Q&A Lens surface treatments
Our team is designing a lens that must withstand military extremes such as salt spray, fog, humidity and temperature. The coating must be abrasion-resistant and anti-reflective – what is the best treatment?
This is a great question — and a multi-step process. Assuming your lens is a polymer lens like polycarbonate or CR-39, currently there is no single surface treatment for both anti-abrasion and anti-reflective (AR) properties. Instead, one would apply the anti-abrasion coating first, followed by the AR process, which is done in a vacuum for a uniform and consistent result.
Your abrasion-resistant coating options include:
A) Polyurethane – This usually is the most economical coating, which is applied by either sprayed or dip method. This is a popular treatment for end user ophthalmics, but also has the least durability and longevity.
B) DLC (Diamond-like coating) – An extremely hard, durable coating, that is relatively expensive, but most effective for high-end users. DLC ensures high-performance and impact-resistance as the resulting surface is very close to the hardness of diamond.
Our team can help you explore your best solution.
Tags: polyurethane, surface coating, Surface Modification, surface technology
