Photochemical Adhesion of Fused Silica Glass Lens by Silicone Oil

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe optical system that is pervious to ultraviolet light of 200nm and under in the wavelength has been developed by putting one silica glass to another with the silicone oil photo-oxidized in oxygen atmosphere.Quartz has siloxane bonds, while silicone oil (dimethyl siloxane) is composed of siloxane bonds of the main chain and methyl groups of the side chain. Therefore, the organic silicone oil has been photo-oxidized by irradiating UV rays in oxygen atmosphere to change into inorganic glass. That is, the silicone oil was poured into the thin gap between the two pieces of silica glass in oxygen atmosphere and was irradiated with the Xe2 excimer lamp while heating at temperature above 150°C. Consequently, the siloxane of the silicone oil was linked with the O atoms that had been absorbed on the glass surface to form SiO2.The UV and IR spectrum analysis was conducted on the silicone oil before and after lamp irradiation. The results revealed that as the time of lamp irradiation increased, the absorption peak of the CH3 group in the region of 2960 cm−1 decreased but the transmittance of the light in the 190nm wavelength conversely became high. The UV transmittance of the silicone oil was 50% before the lamp irradiation; which improved to 87% after the irradiation for 60 minutes. Furthermore, the tensile strength of the bonded sample was measured. It confirmed that the adhesive strength of the silicone oil was enhanced from 0 kgf/cm2 of before-irradiation to 180 kgf/cm2 of after- irradiation.