Sol-Gel Derived Nanocomposites for Optical Applications

This paper provides a selective description of the development of nanostructured materials and the fabrication of the devices for optical applications. Examples are interference coatings, refractive and diffractive lenses, and macro- and micro-GRIN (graded refractive index) optical elements. Hybrid materials containing nano particles are of particular interest for the production of optical elements because, by exploiting the intrinsic solid state properties of the nano particles, nanocomposites can be tailored to exhibit the desired properties. A particular advantage of wet chemical processing lies in its great flexibility for depositing functional coatings.