Best material for IR transparency in the 7.5 - 13.5 micrometer range

[MichaelkSA]

I want to build a camera gimbal dome to cover a flir Tau IR camera (7.5-13.5 micrometer band, or Long Wavelength IR) as well as a visible spectrum camera.

What would be a good polymer to use for such an application, taking factors such as impact resistance and manufacturing difficulty into account?

Thank you in advance.
Michael

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[IRstuff]

Generally, glass epoxies or carbon fiber are high on the list.

TTFN
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[MichaelkSA]

Thank you IRstuff.

Am I correct in saying that perspex is out of the question, but polycarbonate might also work?

Michael

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[CoryPad]

IRstuff,

Your recommendations are for IR only, correct? They do not seem like good ones for visible spectrum transparency.

Michael,

In general, polycarbonate would be favored in these types of applications due to its high impact resistance, while acrylic (PMMA, Perspex) has poor impact resistance.

 

[IRstuff]

Yeah, I had originally thought he was talking about the windows, but then decided he was actually talking about the gimbal housing itself, which does not need to be transparent.

So, Michael, perhaps you can clarify whether you intend to be able to see through the "dome."

If so, your cost probably grew by a couple orders of magnitude. Most polymers that are "transparent" in the LWIR are not particularly transparent in the visible. Zinc Selenide is pretty much the only crystalline material usable in the visible and LWIR, but there is some "color" to its visible transmissivity.

TTFN
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