A device includes a ceramic substrate formed of a first material, a polishable layer formed of a different material, and an interface between the ceramic substrate and the polishable layer. The interface is formed by infiltration of molten elemental silicon, and bonds the ceramic substrate and the polishable layer together. The device may include an optical device such as, for example, mirror or a beam dump. A method of making a device from a green-state structure and a polishable layer is also disclosed. The method includes infiltrating elemental silicon into and through the green-state structure, to form a substrate of a multi-phase ceramic material from the green-state structure, and to reactively bond the substrate and the polishable layer together.

A sintered polycrystalline cubic boron nitride (PCBN) body includes between 40 and 85 vol % of cubic boron nitride (cBN) particles and between 15 and 60 vol % of a binder phase. The binder phase has at least one metal oxide and at least one metal nitride. The metal oxide includes between 20 and 100 vol % of zirconium oxide (ZrO.sub.2) and up to 80 vol % of alumina (Al.sub.2O.sub.3) counted as a volume percentage of the total metal oxide content of the binder phase. The metal nitride includes aluminium nitride (AlN) and at least one metal nitride selected from the group consisting of vanadium nitride (VN), niobium nitride (NbN) and hafnium nitride (HfN). The content of the selected metal nitride selected is at least 10 vol % of the total binder phase, and the content of the metal oxide is at least 10 vol % of the total binder phase.

A mixed gas containing a precursor gas, an additive gas and a carrier gas is supplied to a preform stored in an electric furnace, and silicon carbide is deposited by chemical vapor deposition or chemical vapor phase impregnation to form a film. The preform includes multiple fiber bundles, and the fiber bundles include multiple fibers. This heat-resistant composite material includes a ceramic fiber preform impregnated with silicon carbide, and producing the composite material involves a step in which silicon carbide is deposited between the fibers to integrate the fibers which configure the fiber bundles, and a step in which silicon carbide is deposited between the fiber bundles to integrate the fiber bundles. Hereby, uniformity of embedding and growth rate of the silicon carbide film are both attained.

A process for conducting vapor phase deposition is disclosed. The process separates a series of reactions through a sequence of reaction reservoirs. The reactor includes a reactive precursor reservoir beneath a powder reservoir separated by valve means. A reactive precursor is charged into the reactive precursor reservoir and a powder is charged into the powder reservoir. The pressures are adjusted so that the pressure in the reactive precursor reservoir is higher than that of the powder reservoir. The valve means is opened, and the vapor phase reactant fluidized the powder and coats its surface. The powder falls into the reactive precursor reservoir. The apparatus permits vapor phase deposition processes to be performed semi-continuously.

A process for conducting vapor phase deposition is disclosed. The process separates a series of reactions through a sequence of reaction reservoirs. The reactor includes a reactive precursor reservoir beneath a powder reservoir separated by valve means. A reactive precursor is charged into the reactive precursor reservoir and a powder is charged into the powder reservoir. The pressures are adjusted so that the pressure in the reactive precursor reservoir is higher than that of the powder reservoir. The valve means is opened, and the vapor phase reactant fluidized the powder and coats its surface. The powder falls into the reactive precursor reservoir. The apparatus permits vapor phase deposition processes to be performed semi-continuously.

An optical system includes a housing, an imaging device housed within the housing, and a window in the housing providing an optical path through the housing to the imaging device. The window includes a transparent substrate and a coating over the transparent substrate. The coating is made of an electrically conductive semiconductor. The imaging device is sensitive to and the coating is transparent to at least one of MWIR and/or LWIR wavelengths.

An optical system includes a housing, an imaging device housed within the housing, and a window in the housing providing an optical path through the housing to the imaging device. The window includes a transparent substrate and a coating over the transparent substrate. The coating is made of an electrically conductive semiconductor. The imaging device is sensitive to and the coating is transparent to at least one of MWIR and/or LWIR wavelengths.

An optical component according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a translucent substrate, one or more intermediate layers stacked on at least one of an incident surface and an exit surface of the substrate, and a surface layer stacked on an outermost layer of the one or more intermediate layers, the surface layer containing diamond-like carbon as a main component. At least one intermediate layer among the one or more intermediate layers contains silicon as a main component, and the intermediate layer containing silicon as a main component has an oxygen content of 10 atomic % or less.

An optical component according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a translucent substrate, one or more intermediate layers stacked on at least one of an incident surface and an exit surface of the substrate, and a surface layer stacked on an outermost layer of the one or more intermediate layers, the surface layer containing diamond-like carbon as a main component. At least one intermediate layer among the one or more intermediate layers contains silicon as a main component, and the intermediate layer containing silicon as a main component has an oxygen content of 10 atomic % or less.

An example method for forming a high temperature coating includes depositing a carbon layer on to a surface of a composite article using chemical vapor deposition. The composite substrate includes a composite substrate including a carbon matrix. The surface of the composite article includes one or more surface voids. The method further includes applying a metal slurry to the surface of the composite article following the deposition of the carbon layer and reacting a metal of the metal slurry with carbon of the carbon layer to form an antioxidant layer of a metal carbide on the composite article.