Vacuum coating optical materials

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This standard identifies the competences you need to carry out optical thin-film coating operations, using optical thin-film coating process machines, in accordance with approved procedures. You will be required to set up and use a range of equipment, in order to produce components that combine a mixture of processes identified for optical thin-film coating, using a selection of specified optical materials. You will be expected to produce a range of components that combine a number of different features, such as optical transmission, flatness, surface defects and transmitted wavelength.

You will be required to set up and operate the coating machine in line with safe working practices and approved procedures, and to continuously monitor the coating operations, making any necessary adjustments to ensure that the work output is to the required quality and accuracy. Meeting production targets will be an important issue, and your production records must show consistent and satisfactory performance.

Your responsibilities will require you to comply with organisational policy and procedures for the optical coating activities undertaken, and to report any problems with the coating activities, materials or equipment that you cannot personally resolve, or that are outside your permitted authority, to the relevant people. You will be expected to work with a minimum of supervision, taking personal responsibility for your own actions and for the quality and accuracy of the work that you produce.

Your underpinning knowledge will provide a good understanding of your work, and will provide an informed approach to applying optical coating procedures. You will understand the optical thin-film coating processes, and their application, and will know about the equipment, materials and consumables, in adequate depth to provide a sound basis for carrying out the activities, correcting faults and ensuring that the work output is to the required specification.

You will understand the safety precautions required when working with the machines and with the associated tools and equipment. You will be required to demonstrate safe working practices throughout, and will understand the responsibility you owe to yourself and others in the workplace.

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1. work safely at all times, complying with health and safety and other relevant regulations, directives and guidelines
2. ensure that the material surfaces to be treated are suitably prepared for the finishing operations to be carried out
3. check that the finishing equipment and treatment solutions are set up and maintained at satisfactory operating conditions and levels
4. carry out the treatment process in accordance with operating procedures and the component specification requirements
5. ensure that the treated workpiece achieves the required characteristics and meets the finishing specification
6. complete the required production documentation
7. deal promptly and effectively with problems within your control and report those that cannot be solved
8. dispose of waste and excess materials, in line with agreed organisational procedures
9. shut down the finishing equipment to a safe condition on completion of the coating activities

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1. how to work safely at all times, complying with health and safety and other relevant regulations, directives and guidelines
2. the safety mechanisms on the equipment, and the procedure for checking that they function correctly
3. the operation of the equipment controls, and how to shut down the equipment in an emergency
4. the personal protective equipment (PPE) to be worn, and were this can be obtained
5. the hazards associated with optical vacuum coating process operations, and how to minimise them and reduce any risks
6. the importance of keeping the work area clean and tidy
7. where to obtain the component drawings, specifications and/or job instructions, in order to produce the required components to be coated
8. how to extract the necessary information from the drawings and specifications, in order to apply the required coating to the optical components
9. the factors which affect the equipment set-up, in order to achieve the correct coating specification
10. preparation of the coating materials
11. how to load and unload the optical components correctly into/from jigs and fixtures
12. how to clean and store the optical components prior to the coating operations
13. how to prepare the vacuum coating plant prior to the coating process
14. how to correctly identify the optical component face to be coated
15. how to strip the coating plant after coating operations have been carried out
16. the problems that can occur with optical thin-film coating activities, and how they can be overcome
17. the quality control procedures used, inspection checks to be carried out, and the equipment used to achieve the required component specification
18. the extent of your own responsibility and to whom you should report if you have problems that you cannot resolve

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1. Carry out all of the following during the vacuum coating activities:
   1. obtain and interpret correctly the documentation for the type of lens being coated
   2. adhere to procedures or systems in place for risk assessment, personal protective equipment and other relevant safety regulations and procedures to realise a safe system of work
   3. ensure that the vacuum coating equipment safety mechanisms (such as guards, fume extraction) are in place and working at all times
   4. ensure that components are correctly handled and processed without damage or distortion
   5. set the vacuum coating equipment processing parameters to achieve the component specification
   6. adjust process settings, as required, to maintain component accuracy
   7. use safe working practices and vacuum coating process operating procedures at all times
   8. leave the equipment and work area in a safe and clean condition on completion of the vacuum coating activities
2. Set up and operate three of the following types of optical thin-film coating process machines from the following:
   1. infra-red/special material coating
   2. polycarbonate material coating
   3. visible dichroics/edge filters coating
   4. basic anti-reflection coating
   5. graded coating
   6. other coating processes
3. Carry out six of the following during the thin-film coating activities:
   1. prepare coating tooling
   2. clean the coating tooling
   3. prepare coating materials
   4. prepare components for the coating operation
   5. load components ready for coating
   6. clean components before and after coating operations
   7. unload components after coating
4. Thin-film coat four different types of component materials from the following:
   1. germanium
   2. zinc selenide prisms and flats
   3. zinc sulphide prisms and flats
   4. polycarbonate
   5. borosilicate crown
   6. barium dense flints
   7. barium crown
   8. flint/light flints
   9. lanthanum crowns
   10. dense flints
   11. anomalous dispersion flour crown
   12. optical orange filter glass
   13. optical blue filter glass
   14. optical neutral density glass
   15. other specific material
5. During production, carry out the necessary checks for accuracy, to include three of the following:
   1. transmission measurement
   2. flatness measurement
   3. coating humidity test
   4. surface defect measurement
   5. coating adhesion test
6. Produce components with dimensional accuracy, form and surface quality, to one of the following:
   1. BS, ISO or EN standards and procedures
   2. customer (contractual) standards and requirements
   3. company standards and procedures
   4. other accepted international standards

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3

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31 Mar 2028

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Current

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Original

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Enginuity

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SEMMME3160

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Engineering, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies, Engineering Technicians

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3113

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Mechanical engineering; photonics; vacuum coating; optical materials; infra-red coating; special material coating; visible dichroics; edge filters coating; graded coating; polycarbonate coating; anti-reflection coating; zinc selenide; zinc sulphide; germa

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