Tower Optical Corporation Achromatic Waveplates - Air Spaced

Tower’s achromatic waveplate (AWP) is similar to a zero-order waveplate, which is made from two pieces of crystal quartz except that the AWP is composed of one piece of crystal quartz and one piece of magnesium fluoride, MgF2. Both of these materials are birefringent, however, by proper matching of the birefringent changes of the two materials, retardation changes are minimized as the wavelength changes. This phenomenon produces a waveplate whose change in retardation is extremely small for large variations in wavelength. For tunable sources or lasers with large spectral widths, you’ll want an AWP – one whose performance is nearly independent of wavelength. Tower’s AWPs are designed to effectively eliminate the wavelength dependence over a wide spectral range, typically several hundred nanometers. The AWPs are available for four wavelength ranges: 465-610 nm (VIS), 610-850 nm (VIS/NIR), 700-1000 nm(NIR), and 1200-1650 nm(IR.) These AWPs operate beyond these ranges; however the retardation change exceeds the specification. The standard versions are air-spaced. Custom AWPs are available to meet your specific requirements. Send us your drawing for a quote on a custom AWP.