OPTI 521 Rules of Thumb Compilation

Geometric Optics
Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Ray deviation of plane parallel plate

A tilted parallel plate causes a linear ray deviation,

y=

t ( n1 )
n

For glass at 45,

y=

t
3

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
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Light/rays incident on tilted window

Tilted windows are everywhere!
Beware small angle approximation

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Rule of thumb:

Ray deviation angle of a small angle prism in air

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
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Light/rays incident on wedged window

Wedged windows are everywhere!
Beware small angle approximation

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Rule of thumb:

Image shift due to lateral motion of lens

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
Rating:

Quick lens tolerance analysis

Easy to calculate lens sensitivity to transverse placement error
Beware small angle approximation

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Rule of thumb:

Image shift due to axial motion of lens

When used:
Why useful?
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Quick lens tolerance analysis

Easy to calculate lens sensitivity to axial placement error
Beware small angle approximation, be careful with mirrors

Name of rule:

Rotation Matrices for Small Angle Perturbations

The deviation angle of a small prism in air

Image shift due to lateral lens shift

Image shift due to lateral lens shift

= ( n1 )

x i= x l ( 1m )

z f = z l ( 1m2 )

Rule of thumb:

[
[
[

][
][
][

1
0
0
1 0 0
R x = 0 cos sin 0 1
0 sin cos
0 1

R y=

cos
0
sin

0 sin
1 0

1
0
0 1 0
0 cos 0 1

cos sin 0 1 0
R z= sin cos 0 1 0
0
0
1 0 0 1

]
]

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
Rating:

Tracing rays with mirror angular perturbations

Easier to compute
Validity of small angle approximation

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Typical Effects of Prism Rotation

For nearly all cases, prism rotation about the x, y, or z axis does
one of:
1. causes image rotation about same axis by an amount 2
2. has no effect on image about any axes
3. causes image to rotate an amount + or - about the other
two axes
Determining effect of prism rotation on image/output
Sanity check easy to make mistake in mirror matrix calculations
Watch out for exceptions!

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
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Optics Manufacturing
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When used:
Why useful?
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Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Machining Tolerances Guideline by Difficulty Level

Coarse: 1mm (0.0040)
Typical: 0.25mm (0.010)
Precision: 0.025 (0.001)
High Precision: < 0.002mm (< 0.0001)
When designing machine parts
Helps to choose appropriate tolerances when designing parts
Depends on material, fab methods, equipment, supplier, etc.

Dimensional Tolerances Guidelines for Small Lenses

Typical tolerances:
Diameter +0/-0.1mm
Thickness 0.2mm

When used:
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Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

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Small optics (10-50mm)

Baseline for tolerancing
Depends on application typical tolerances arent necessarily
appropriate

Wedge Tolerance Guideline

Typical tolerances for wedge:
5 arcmin (easy)
1 arcmin (readily achievable)
15 arcsec (difficult, req. special care)
Small optics (10-50mm)
Baseline for tolerancing
Depends on application typical tolerances arent necessarily
appropriate

Bevel Size Guideline

Typical bevel facewidths:
25mm: > 0.3mm
50mm: > 0.5mm
150mm: > 1mm
400mm: > 2mm
Designing lenses
Appropriately sized bevels protect optical surfaces from chips
Depends on application typical bevel sizes arent necessarily
appropriate

Rating:

Radius of Curvature Tolerance Guideline

Typical tolerances:
R: 0.2%
Sag: ~3m = 10 rings
Designing and tolerancing lenses
Point of reference for tolerancing lens performance in a system
Depends on application typical tolerances arent necessarily
appropriate

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New Test Plate Guideline

Test plate typical cost $1000, 2-3 wk lead time
Designing lenses
If the test plate you need isnt available, this sets expectations
Cost/lead time depends on material, size, type of surface, etc

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:

Rules of Thumb for Glass Properties ()

Parameter
Refractive index deviation from
nominal
Refractive index measurement
Dispersion deviation from nominal
Refractive index homogeneity
Stress birefringence
(depends strongly on glass)
Bubbles/inclusions (<50m)
(area of bubbles per 100cm3)
Striae (based on shadowgraph test)

Base
0.001
(standard)
3e-5
(standard)
0.8%
(standard)
1e-4
(standard)
20nm/cm

Precision
0.0005
(grade 3)
1e-5
(precision)
0.5%
(grade 3)
5e-6
(H2)
10nm/cm

High Precision
0.0002
(grade 1)
0.5e-5
(extra precision)
0.2%
(grade 1)
1e-6
(H4)
4nm/cm

0.5mm2
(class B3)
Normal quality
(has fine striae)

0.1mm2
(class B1)
Grade A
(small striae in
one direction)

0.029mm2
(class B0)
Precision quality
(none detectable)

Base
100m
200m
0.5%
20m
5arcmin
1 wave
50 rms
80/50
200m

Precision
25m
50m
0.1%
1.3m
1arcmin
/4
20 rms
60/40
50m

High Precision
6m
10m
0.01% or 2m
0.5m
15arcsec
/20
5 rms
20/10
10m

6arcmin

1arcmin

15arcsec

0.2mm

0.1mm

0.02mm

Rules of Thumb for Lens Manufacture ()

Parameter
Lens diameter
Lens thickness
Radius of curvature
Surface sag
Wedge (deviation of light)
Surface irregularity
Surface finish
Scratch/dig
Dimension tolerances, complex
elements
Angular tolerances, complex
elements
Bevels (0.2-0.5mm typical)

Base: typical, no cost impact for loosening tolerances past these limits
Precision: requires special attention, but readily achievable by most shops; ~25% cost premium
High Precision: Requires special equipment/personnel, ~100% cost premium

Tolerancing Optical Designs

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Lens ETD Wedge Angle Relations

When used:
Why useful?

Rating:

Tolerancing lenses
Links optical deviation to mechanical deviation for wedged
surface
ETD measurement can be influenced by how lens is held, rotated,
etc.

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Mounting of Spherical Lenses/Mirrors

Wedge in spherical elements can be aligned out with proper

Limitations:

=tan1

( ETD
D )

= ( n1 ) cos

s= f

When used:
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optomechanical design use spherical surfaces as datums

Designing opto-mechanical components to hold spherical
elements
Can relax specification for wedge and achieve better
performance
This trick does not always work for aspherical elements, depends
on how they are specified

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Approximate Relation of Strehl Ratio to RMS Wavefront Distortion

When used:

Converting between Strehl Ratio/RMS Wavefront Distortion for

well-corrected systems
Easy calculation

Why useful?
Limitations:

SR=e(2 )

Only valid for high SR/low wavefront distortion ( / 4 )

Rating:

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Rule of thumb:

Relation of RMS Wavefront Distortion to Surface Figure Error

When used:
Why useful?
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Evaluating impact of wavefront distortion/surface figure error

Result used often
n/a

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Relation of RMS Surface Roughness and Scatter

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
Rating:

Evaluating level of scatter caused by surface roughness

Estimating stray light/light loss
n/a

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Sag Relations

When used:
Why useful?

Tolerancing lenses and opto-mechanics

Easy to remember and good approximation; exact solution is
nasty algebra
Based on small-angle approximation

Limitations:
Rating:

W = S ( n1 ) cos

scatter = 2 , where =2

sag y 2 /2 R=D2 /8 R ; sag D2 /8 R2

CAD Modeling & FEA

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Rule of thumb:

Drawing a lens in Solidworks

Draw and dimension half cross-section, then revolve about axis to

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Rule of thumb:

form lens
CAD modeling of optics/optical assemblies
Many ways to draw a lens, but this is efficient
n/a

Creating a lens assembly in Solidworks

Fix one object as reference; use concentric and coincident mates
to constrain parts together accordingly
CAD modeling of optics/optical assemblies
Many ways to build an assembly, but this is efficient
n/a

Creating properly dimensioned drawings with hidden lines in

Solidworks
Ensure "show hidden lines" is active before using Smart
Dimension tool
CAD modeling of optics/opto-mechanical parts
Easy to forget display of hidden lines on drawing
n/a

Sanity-check your FEA results

FEA deformation and modal analysis calculations are highly
sensitive to boundary conditions, meshing, and myriad other
factors. Double-check the FEA model output against handbook or
hand calculations to prevent GIGO effect (garbage-in, garbage
out).
When carrying out FEA analysis
FEA can easily spit out garbage results
None

Solidworks FEA is convenient, but avoid if possible

The built-in Solidworks FEA package is buggy and limited in
functionality; avoid its use if other more robust FEA packages are
available (ANSYS, etc)
Desigining parts that will be placed under mechanical stress
Save your sanity!
Commercial FEA packages are costly, may not be available
(I wrote this one after struggling for hours with some weird
errors)
Beware of boundary conditions when modeling kinematic
constraints in FEA
Mesh early, mesh often sanity check the results before diving

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
Rating:

into detailed mesh optimization, etc.

When modeling optics/mirror deformation in FEA
Save time, save your sanity
Its easy to get lost in the details when working with FEA
simulations

Mechanical Properties of Glass

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Stress-strain behavior of glass

Glasses do not deform plastically; deformations that do not result
in rupture will be elastic. The stress-strain curve is effectively
linear to the rupture point. The modulus of elasticity for a typical
glass is ~30Msi. The strength of glass is determined not by
intrinsic material properties, but instead by the extent of
defects/micro-fractures.
When designing or building assemblies that put glass under
stress/strain
It helps to not shatter your expensive optics
Depends on material; if approaching limits its best to check
individual material properties.

Determining effective stiffness of composite mechanical

assemblies
Stiffness K adds for elements in parallel. Compliance C adds (K
adds inversely) for elements in series.
Deflection calculations, resonant frequency calculations, etc.
Can be used to build parametric models and determine effects of
components on the performance of the system as a whole
Can be tricky to apply for elements with complicated geometries;
this is when FEA analysis software is useful.

Stress birefringence

R=Ct ( 11 22 )
R: retardation
C: stress optic coefficient (Brewsters constant)
t: thickness

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:

11

: first principal stress

22

: second principal stress

When optics are mounted under stress (or have melt-induced

stress)
Ties optical performance to opto-mechanical design; allows
calculation of OPD/aberrations due to stress.
n/a

Rating:

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Value of the stress optic coefficient

The stress optic coefficient for glasses varies from 0-4 x 10 -12/Pa,
but many glasses fall in the range of 2-3 x 10-12/Pa.
Calculating effects of stress birefringence
Allows estimation of OPD/aberrations due to stress in optical
glass
Values for the stress optic coefficient are typically given at
589.3nm and 21C, but vary as a function of wavelength and
temperature. Over the visible range this effect is small, but in
IR/UV the stress optic coefficient should be verified.

When used:
Why useful?
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Stress, Strain, etc.

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Why useful?

Design parts for stiffness

The stiffness of a beam is proportional to the cube of the
thickness of the bent dimension; it is linearly proportional to the
thickness of the parallel dimension.
Designing parts that will be placed under mechanical stress
Helps design parts that deflect less/have higher resonant
frequencies
Stiffness is only one variable in the tradeoffs done in mechanical
design

Increased stiffness of thin-layer adhesive bonds

The stiffness of a thin-layer adhesive bond is usually much
greater than the modulus of elasticity. The bulk modulus may be
used instead to calculate stiffness.
Deformation/dynamic analysis of assemblies containing thin
adhesive bonds
Stiffness of assemblies can be improved by choosing proper
adhesive thickness
Assumes the adhesive is much more compliant than the
materials it is bonded to

Condition for beam buckling under load

Pcrit =

2 EI
L2

Pcrit =

4K
L

(column)

(pin joint with restoring force K)

Determining buckling strength of components under compression

Buckling can be overlooked when designing a stressed

Limitations:
Rating:

assembly/component
n/a

Adhesives
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Rule of thumb:

When used:
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Name of rule:
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When used:
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Mechanical properties of elastomeric bonds (rubber and RTV)

Shear modulus G: ~100 psi (~1 MPa)
Young's modulus E0: ~3G = 300 psi (~3 MPa)
Bulk modulus EB: ~100000 psi (~1000 MPa)
Shear stiffness Ks = dFshear/dy = GA/t (very compliant)
Axial stiffness K1 = dFaxial/dz = E0A/L (very compliant)
Compressive stiffness K2 = dFaxial/dz = EBA/T (thin, constrained;
very stiff)
Quick calculations/estimates for elastomeric bonding
Calculating deflections, bond strength, resonant frequencies, etc
General case, ignores shape change effects. Materials will have
properties varying from these guidelines so when it matters
obtain/determine actual material parameters.

Axial stiffness and shape factor for elastomeric bonds

Axial stiffness KZ = dFaxial/dz = ECA/t,
Compression modulus EC = E0 (1+S2),
Shape factor S = Aload/Abulge
Calculating deflections, etc for general geometry elastomeric
bonds
Will provide better estimate than using more general guidelines
above
For large values of S, EC blows up; use EB as maximum value for
EC

Thermal Distortion
Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:

Thermally induced shear stress on a thin adhesive bond

epoxy =

Ga T
( 1 2)
2t

G: shear modulus of epoxy

a: max dimension of bond (diameter, length)
t: thickness of bond
T: temperature change
1, 2: bonded materials' coefficients of thermal expansion
When using adhesives to bond dissimilar materials
Can use to determine approximate safety factor for adhesive
bond under temperature excursions
Neglects bending of bonded area; assumes adhesive is fully
compliant

Rating:

Name of rule:

Shear strain in mismatched, bonded materials under thermal

stress
Maximum shear strain at distance a/2 from center:

Rule of thumb:

a
( ) T
2t 1 2

Shear stress at distance a/2 from center:

=G=

Ga
( ) T
2t 1 2

For thick substrates (a/t < 100),

substrate compliance
a Gepoxy
0.1
adhesive compliance
t E substrate ,

Limitations:
Rating:

Gepoxy ~150 ksi

Estimating strain, survivability in bonds under thermal stress
Easy calculation to check if your bond will survive shipping,
operating conditions, etc
Conservative estimate, ignores compliance of substrates

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Rule of thumb:

Bending of a beam by thermal gradients

A thermal gradient across a beam will cause it to bend in an arc,

When used:
Why useful?

according to:
When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:

1
T
= =
L R
y

Rating:

Non-uniform heating of beam elements

Determine deflection or stress
Does not handle more complicated geometry or thermal
distribution

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Thermal bending of a beam with CTE gradient

When heated or cooled, a beam with non-uniform CTE thermal
will bend in an arc, according to:

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
Rating:

1 ( T )
= =
L R
y

Heating/cooling of beam elements with non-uniform CTE

Determine deflection or stress
Does not handle more complicated geometry or CTE distribution

Shock & Vibration Isolation

Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Transmissibility for a vibration-isolated system

T=

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:

Rating:
Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

isolated motion
=
base motion

1+ 2

C
n R

)(

1 2 + 2 C R
n
n

: frequency of isolated system

n: frequency of base (isolator) system
CR: system damping factor
Estimating performance of a vibration-isolated system
Useful in estimating jitter, etc
Need to know quantities , n, CR which for a complicated
system/assembly may not be straightforward; will give incorrect
results when resonance peaks are close/overlap

Miles equation

arms =

f Q PSD ISO
2 n

fn: object's natural frequency

Q: resonance amplification factor
PSDISO: PSD driving oscillation of damped system (in g2/Hz)
arms: acceleration (in g)

rms =g T ( f n )

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:

Rating:
Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Q
PSD BASE
32 3 f n3

g: acceleration of gravity
T(fn): transmissibility
PSDBASE: PSD driving oscillation acting on dampers (in g2/Hz)
rms: displacement
Estimating acceleration and displacement amplitudes of an
isolated system
Useful in estimating jitter, etc
Need to know quantities fn, Q, PSDISO which for a complicated
system/assembly may not be straightforward; will give incorrect
results when resonance peaks are close/overlap

Shock loading estimations

Simple handling results in 3g shocks
Peak acceleration for object dropped from height h:

A g=

h
sw

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:
Rating:

Ag: peak acceleration in g

h: drop height
sw: self-weight displacement
Estimating peak accelerations during handling, shipping,
launching, etc
Gain insight as to whether a system will break during handling,
etc
Ignores rotational energy, internal stresses when object is
suddenly accelerated

Flexures, Actuators, and Motion Control

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When used:
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When used:
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Rule of thumb:

The reduced tensile modulus figure of merit for flexure material

Yield / E is a figure of merit for a flexure material (higher value
indicates a better flexure material)
Determining materials used in flexures
Helps with trade studies when designing with flexures
Does not take into account other factors specific requirements,
cost, etc

Flexure complexity vs. performance

Simple flexures do not perfectly constrain motion, they have
cross-talk; more complicated geometry flexures can reduce or
eliminate the cross-talk motion
Designing flexures
Be aware of cross-talk when designing and adjust flexure
complexity based on requirements
Flexures are not always the best solution

Displacement of ceramic/piezo material

Lj = Sj L0 = dij Ei L0,
Lj displacement
Sj mechanical strain in direction j (dimensionless)
L0 material thickness in field direction (m)
dij piezoelectric deformation coefficienct (pm/V)
Ei electric field along direction i
Commonly used stack actuators achieve a deformation of 0.2%
http://www.piceramic.com/piezo_tutorial4.php

When used:
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Limitations:
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Determining stroke of piezo actuators

Can help to determine size/drive requirements for piezo actuators
Do not exceed piezo material electric field breakdown thresholds
~1-2 kV/mm

Mounting Distortion
Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

Round mirror self-weight deflection, horizontal mounting

Theoretical self-weight deflection with 3pt edge support,
horizontal orientation:

C sp

g
r4
E h2 ( 1 2 )

( )

: mirror deflection

Csp: geometric support constant; for a 3-point equal-spaced edge support

Csp = 1.356
g: acceleration of gravity
/E: inverse specific stiffness (density , elastic modulus E)
: Poissons ratio

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:

When estimating surface figure errors with mirrors mounted

horizontally
1) Easy calculation to estimate surface figure/wavefront
distortion errors induced by mounting
2) Nice way to compare different mounting strategies
This is an approximation; mirrors with varied geometry (strong

Rating:
Name of rule:
Rule of thumb:

curvature, asymmetry, etc) will depart from this approximation.

Not a bulletproof substitute for FEA analysis.

Round mirror self-weight deflection, vertical mounting

Theoretical self-weight deflection with 3pt edge support,
vertical orientation:

Hrms ( a 0+ a1 + a2 2 )

2 g 2
r ,
E

( )

r2
2 hR

( )

: mirror deflection

g: acceleration of gravity
/E: inverse specific stiffness (density , elastic modulus E)
R: mirror radius of curvature
For a two point support, a0 = 0.5466, a1 = 0.2786, a2 = 0.110
For a flat mirror, = 0 (R = )

When used:
Why useful?
Limitations:

Rating:

When estimating surface figure errors with mirrors mounted

vertically
1) Easy calculation to estimate surface figure/wavefront
distortion errors induced by mounting
2) Nice way to compare different mounting strategies
This is an approximation; mirrors with varied geometry (strong
curvature, asymmetry, etc) will depart from this approximation.
Not a bulletproof substitute for FEA analysis.

Properties of Common Optical Materials

()
BK7
The good:
The bad:
Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:
Fused Silica
The good:

Good optical performance, cheap, readily available, very common

Cuts out in DUV and NIR
320nm 2300nm
nd: 1.51680
vd: 64.17
2.51 g/cm3
82 GPa
7.1 ppm/K @ -30/+70C
1.114 W/m/K
Cost-effective optics

Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

SiO2
Very low CTE, depending on grade/type can have excellent transmission in
DUV (e.g. Lithosil) or NIR (e.g. Infrasil)
Transmission in IR/DUV highly dependent on melt impurities/grade; watch
out for fluorescence in UV applications. Relatively high dn/dt, ~10 ppm/C.
170nm 2230nm (Lithosil), 250nm 3500nm (Infrasil)
nd: 1.45843
vd: 67.83
2.20 g/cm3
73 GPa
0.52 ppm/K @ -30/+70C
1.30 W/m/K
ArF (193nm) lithography projection optics; resists thermal shock

Calcium Fluoride
The good:
The bad:
Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

CaF2
Very wide transmission band from VUV to MIR
Fragile, expensive; UV transmission highly dependent on grade
130nm 10m
nd: 1.43384
vd: 95.23
3.18 g/cm3
76 GPa
18.41 ppm/K @ -30/+70C
9.71 W/m/K
ArF (193nm) lithography projection optics, broadband transmitting windows

P-PK53
The good:
The bad:
Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Low Tg, good for molding

Terrible transmission in UV
365nm 1970nm
nd: 1.52690
vd: 66.22
2.83 g/cm3
59 GPa
13.3 ppm/K @ -30/+70C
0.640 W/m/K
Precision molded optics

The bad:

Acrylic (PMMA)
The good:
The bad:
Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:
Sapphire
The good:
The bad:
Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Zinc Selenide
The good:
The bad:

Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Zinc Sulfide
The good:

The bad:

Wavelength range:
Refractive index:

Good transmission in visible, well suited for injection molding (cheap in

mass quantities)
Intolerant of high temperatures, poor UV and IR transmission, poor thermal
properties
360nm 1150nm
nd: 1.4914
vd: 52.60
1.18 g/cm3
3.3 GPa
50-100 ppm/K
0.050 W/m/K
Precision molded optics, used in photoresists
Al2O3
Transmits deep into UV; very hard material; resists scratching, pressure,
thermal shock; high refractive index; excellent chemical resistance
Slightly birefringent, difficult to polish, expensive
150nm 5.5m
nd: no 1.76817, ne 1.76009
vd: vo 72.31, ve 72.99
3.97 g/cm3
335 GPa
5.6 ppm/K (para), 5.0 ppm/K (perp)
27.21 W/m/K
Wide bandwidth windows, durable optics (eg. watch glass), efficient ball
lenses (fiber coupling)
ZnSe
Excellent transmission from visible (yellow) into MIR; very high refractive
index; low absorption
Expensive; substrate thickness limited to ~30mm by CVD process; highly
toxic dust (forms hydrogen selenide when ingested); does not transmit
shorter wavelength visible (green and beyond); high Fresnel losses without
AR coating
600nm 16m
2.4028 @ 10.6m
vd: 84.45
5.27 g/cm3
70 GPa
7.1 ppm/K
18.0 W/m/K
Favored for high power IR laser optics (Nd:YAG, CO2, etc), especially when
some visible transmission required

ZnS
Standard grade is relatively cheap compared to ZnSe; multi-spectral grade
offers good transmission from VIS to MIR (otherwise VIS T very low); very
high refractive index; hard and tough material
Substrate thickness limited to ~30mm by CVD process; high Fresnel losses
without AR coating, does not transmit in visible (~0% T @ 500nm); multispectral grade is expensive; dust is toxic (forms H2S when ingested)
370nm 13.5nm (multi-spectral), 2m 14m (laser grade CVD)
2.20084 @ 10m

Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

vd: ~19.9
4.09 g/cm3
85.5 GPa
6.5 ppm/K
27 W/m/K
Standard ZnS: Lower-cost MIR laser optics (Nd:YAG, CO2, etc) when no
visible transmission is required
Multi-Spectral ZnS: For applications requiring VIS through MIR transmission

Germanium
The good:
The bad:

Ge
Good thermal conductivity, good strength and hardness; useful in MIR
Extremely high dn/dt (408 ppm/K) and runaway thermal absorption; not
suitable for high power IR laser optics, high Fresnel losses without AR
coating
2m 12m
4.0031 @ 10m
n/a
5.32 g/cm3
100 GPa
5.7 ppm/K
59 W/m/K
Imaging optics for 2-12m spectral region

Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:
Magnesium
Fluoride
The good:
The bad:
Wavelength range:
Refractive index:
Abbe number:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

MgF2
Transmission from VUV to MIR (7m), low refractive index
Slightly birefringent; painfully expensive
120nm 7m
d: no 1.37774, ne 1.38956
d: vo 106.22, ve 104.86
3.18 g/cm3
138 GPa
13.7 ppm/K (para), 8.9 ppm/K (perp)
21 W/m/K (para), 33.6 W/m/K (perp)
Widely used as broadband AR coating material; employed in UV optics and
excimer lasers

Properties of Common Structural Materials

()
Steel, 1010 mild
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Good machinability, weldability, formability; relatively inexpensive

Relatively weak steel alloy
7.8 g/cm3
200 GPa
12.2 ppm/K
49.8 W/m/K
Cold headed fasteners

Stainless steel, 174 CRES

The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

High strength, good corrosion resistance, good mechanical properties

Difficult to machine and weld
7.8 g/cm3
197 GPa
12.2 ppm/K
49.8 W/m/K
Nuclear waste casks, food industry, aerospace (turbine blades, etc)

Aluminum, 6061-T6
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Good machinability, weldability, formability, thermal conductivity, electrical

conductivity; cheap
High CTE
2.7 g/cm3
68.9 GPa
23.6 ppm/K
167 W/m/K
General all-purpose aluminum alloy

Aluminum, 7075-T6
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Super high strength Al alloy

High CTE
2.81 g/cm3
71.7 GPa
23.6 ppm/K
130 W/m/K
Aircraft fittings

Aluminum, 5083H321
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Highest strength of non-heat treable Al alloys, excellent corrosion

resistance
High CTE
2.66 g/cm3
70.3 GPa
23.8 ppm/K
117 W/m/K
Boat hulls

Beryllium
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

High ductility, stiffness-to-weight ratio, thermal conductivity

Soft, brittle
1.84 g/cm3
303 GPa
11.5 ppm/K
216 W/m/K
X-ray tube windows, lightweight structural components, satellite mirrors

Titanium
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Highest strength-to-weight ratio of any metal, ductile, corrosion resistance

Expensive, difficult to machine, poor thermal conductivity
4.51 g/cm3
116 GPa
8.6 ppm/K
21.9 W/m/K
Used in medical implants, bone fracture repair, flexures

Copper
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Excellent thermal and electrical conductivity, ductile

Soft metal, heavy
8.96 g/cm3
110-128 GPa
16.5 ppm/K
401 W/m/K
Mirrors in high-power CO2 laser delivery systems, electrical wire, heat sinks

Invar 36
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Excellent thermal stability (near zero CTE)

Difficult to machine, expensive, heavy, tendency to creep over time;
expensive
8.05 g/cm3
141 GPa
0.6-1.2 ppm/K
10 W/m/K
Mirrors in high-power CO2 laser delivery systems, electrical wire, heat sinks

Graphite epoxy
(CFRP)
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Very strong and light

Expensive, must be custom molded for application
1.60 g/cm3
70 GPa
~1 ppm/K
W/m/K
Frames on race vehicles

Silicon Carbide
The good:

Extremely hard; high stiffness to mass, low CTE

The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Sintering process is difficult

3.21 g/cm3
450 GPa
2.77 ppm/K
3.6-4.9 W/m/K
Grinding tools, lightweight mirrors

Magnesium
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Strong, lightweight
Flammable, corrosion
1.74 g/cm3
45 GPa
24.8 ppm/K
156 W/m/K
Lightweight racing wheels, aerospace, mobile/portable electronics (cases)

Teflon
The good:
The bad:
Density:
Modulus of elasticity:
CTE:
Thermal conductivity:
Notable application:

Chemical resistance (inert), low friction

Soft, flows over time
2.16 g/cm3
0.55 GPa
75 ppm/K
0.25 W/m/K
Non-stick frying pans

Solid Mechanics Summary

()
Normal Stress and Strain
Normal stress results from axial loads on a member (perpendicular to the cross section).
The average normal stress is determined by the ratio of internal force to cross sectional
area:

avg =

force P
=
area A

Normal stress may be compressive or tensile; by definition tensile stresses are positive
and compressive stresses are negative.
The units of normal stress are the same as for pressure:
psi
Pa = N/m2
MPa = N/mm2
1 psi 7000 Pa
Normal strain is the normalized elongation caused by a normal stress, defined as

L
L

, where L is the change in length due to strain and L is the unstrained length.

Normal strain is a dimensionless quantity.

For small deflections in homogeneous material, the normal strain is proportional to the
normal stress:

E= , where E is Youngs modulus or the modulus of elasticity. Youngs

modulus has units equivalent to pressure.

Shear Stress and Strain

Shear stress results from parallel loads on a member spread over an area. It is defined
as

V
A , where V is shear force and the A is the area over which force is applied. The

units of shear stress are equivalent to pressure.

Shear strain is the angular deformation of a shape resulting from a shear stress, defined
as

G , where G is the shear modulus or modulus of rigidity. Shear strain is a

dimensionless quantity (radians); the shear modulus has units equivalent to pressure.
Poisson Ratio

The Poisson ratio is defined as the negative of the ratio of transverse strain
strain

to axial

x :

z=

L
L

x=

w
w

z
x

Bulk Modulus
The bulk modulus is a material property that indicates compressibility. It is defined as

EB =

P
V /V

for an element in uniform hydrostatic pressure P with normalized volume

change V/V.
The bulk modulus is related to Youngs modulus and also to the shear modulus. For
isotropic materials,

EB =

E
3 ( 12 ) . For linear isotropic materials,

G=

E
2 (1+ ) .

Strain-Stress Curve for a Typical Metal

Image taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deformation_(engineering)

Yield Strength and Precision Elastic Limit

Yield strength

YS

is defined as the maximum stress a material can withstand without

undergoing plastic deformation. For materials without a clear yield point in the strainstress curve, yield strength is typically defined as the stress that results in 0.2%
permanent strain.

The precision elastic limit

PEL , or micro-yield strength, is defined as the stress that

results in 0.0001% (1 ppm) permanent strain.

GD&T Symbols Quick Reference

()

Fastener Thread & Tap Drill Reference

()
American Standard Thread Size
Thread
0-80
1-64
1-72
2-56
2-64
3-48
3-56
4-40
4-48
5-40
5-44
6-32
6-40
8-32
8-36
10-24
10-32
12-24
12-28
1/4-20
1/4-28
5/16-18
5/16-24
3/8-16
3/8-24
7/16-14

Tap Drill
(in.)
3/64
53
53
51
50
5/64
46
43
42
39
37
36
33
29
29
25
21
17
15
7
3
F
I
5/16
Q
U

ISO Metric Thread Size

Thread
M1 x 0.25
M1.1 x 0.25
M1.2 x 0.25
M1.4 x 0.3
M1.6 x 0.35
M1.8 x 0.35
M2 x 0.4
M2.2 x 0.45
M2.5 x 0.45
M3 x 0.5
M3.5 x 0.6
M4 x 0.7
M4.5 x 0.75
M5 x 0.8
M6 x 1
M7 x 1
M8 x 1.25
M9 x 1.25
M10 x 1.5
M11 x 1.5
M12 x 1.75
M14 x 2
M16 x 2
M18 x 2.5
M20 x 2.5
M22 x 2.5

Tap Drill
(mm)
0.75
0.85
0.95
1.10
1.25
1.45
1.60
1.75
2.05
2.50
2.90
3.30
3.70
4.20
5.00
6.00
6.80
7.80
8.50
9.50
10.20
12.00
14.00
15.50
17.50
19.50

7/16-20
1/2-13
1/2-20
9/16-12
9/16-18
5/8-11
5/8-18
3/4-10
3/4-16
7/8-9
7/8-14
1"-8
1"-14

W
27/64
29/64
31/64
33/64
17/32
37/64
21/32
11/16
49/64
13/16
7/8
15/16

M24 x 3
M27 x 3
M30 x 3.5
M33 x 3.5
M36 x 4
M39 x 4
M42 x 4.5
M45 x 4.5
M48 x 5
M52 x 5
M56 x 5.5
M60 x 5.5
M64 x 6
M68 x 6

21.00
24.00
26.50
29.50
32.00
35.00
37.50
40.50
43.00
47.00
50.50
54.50
58.00
62.00