Thin amorphous or partially crystalline lithium-containing and conducting sulfide or oxysulfide glass electrode/separator members are prepared from a layer of molten glass or of glass powder. The resulting glass films are formed to lie face-to face against a lithium metal anode or a sodium metal anode and a cathode and to provide for good transport of lithium ions between the electrodes during repeated cycling of the cell and to prevent shorting of the cell by dendrites growing from the lithium metal or sodium metal anode.

Provided is a small-diameter chalcogenide glass material having excellent weather resistance and mechanical strength and being suitable as an optical element for an infrared sensor. The chalcogenide glass material has an unpolished side surface, a pillar shape with a diameter of 15 mm or less, and a composition of, in terms of % by mole, 40 to 90% S+Se+Te and an inside of the glass material is free of stria with a length of 500 m or more.

Systems and methods according to one or more embodiments are provided for annealing a chalcogenide lens at an elevated temperature to accelerate release of internal stress within the chalcogenide lens caused during a molding process that formed the chalcogenide lens. In particular, the annealing process includes gradually heating the chalcogenide lens to a dwell temperature, maintaining the chalcogenide lens at the dwell temperature for a predetermined period of time, and gradually cooling the chalcogenide lens from the dwell temperature. The annealing process stabilizes the shape, the effective focal length, and/or the modulation transfer function of the chalcogenide lens. Associated optical assemblies and infrared imaging devices are also described.

Disclosed herein are methods for producing glass articles by hot-melt processing techniques. The methods involve the use of arsenic-free chalcogenide glasses. Despite the absence of arsenic, the chalcogenide glasses have low characteristic temperatures and are stable against crystallization. The low characteristic temperatures render the glasses capable of being hot-melt processed using conventional equipment. The glasses disclosed herein are suitable for the fabrication of optical devices, including but not limited to IR-transmitting optical devices.

A solid state electrolyte including an oxy-sulfide glass or glass ceramic, solid state electrolyte layer having a thickness in the range of ten micrometers to two hundred micrometers is provide. The composition of the electrolyte layer is the reaction product of a mixture initially including either a glass former including sulfur or a glass co-former including sulfur, and a glass modifier including Li.sub.2O or Na.sub.2O. The solid-state electrolyte layer is further characterized as having a wholly amorphous microstructure or as having small recrystallized regions separated from each other in an amorphous matrix, the recrystallized regions having a size of up to five micrometers. The solid-state electrolyte layer includes mobile lithium ions or mobile sodium ions associated with sulfur anions chemically anchored in the microstructure.

An optical fiber with multiple openings made from the steps comprising fabricating an extrusion die using at least one additive manufacturing technique such that the extrusion die has a first set of plurality of channels that combine inside the die into a second set of plurality of channels with a different set of shapes and sizes, extruding a glass through the extrusion die, forming a fiber optic preform having a plurality of longitudinal openings that run the entire length of the fiber optic preform, attaching a barrier layer to the fiber optic preform to form a series of channels to which pressure can be applied by a gas, wherein each channel has a pressure that is independently controlled, and stretching the fiber optic preform at an elevated temperature into an optical fiber with multiple openings.

This application relates generally to an optical fiber for the delivery of infrared light where the polarization state of the light entering the fiber is preserved upon exiting the fiber and the related methods for making thereof. The optical fiber has a wavelength between about 0.9 m and 15 m, comprises at least one infrared-transmitting glass, and has a polarization-maintaining (PM) transverse cross-sectional structure. The infrared-transmitting, polarization-maintaining (IR-PM) optical fiber has a birefringence greater than 10.sup.5 and has applications in dual-use technologies including laser power delivery, sensing and imaging.

The current disclosure relates to highly homogeneous glass sputter targets with a large aspect ratio and a high relative density. The glass sputter targets have properties that are desirable for forming thin films by physical vapor deposition processes such as sputtering.

In a unit gravity environment, a glass preform is encased in a material to generate an encased glass preform. The material remains solid at the glass preform's crystal melting temperature and is inert with respect to the glass preform. The encased glass preform is placed in a microgravity environment and heated to a temperature above the crystal melting temperature until the glass preform melts and is free of crystals, wherein a crystallite-free glass preform is encased within the material. The crystallite-free glass preform is then cooled in the microgravity environment to generate a solid crystallite-free glass preform encased within the material. While still in the microgravity environment, the material encasing the solid crystallite-free glass preform is removed in the microgravity environment and the solid crystallite-free glass preform is polished. A glass optical fiber is then drawn from the solid crystallite-free glass preform in the microgravity environment.

A method of making an optical fiber with multiple openings comprising the steps of fabricating an extrusion die using additive manufacturing such that the extrusion die has a plurality of channels that combine inside the die into another set of channels, extruding a glass, forming a fiber optic preform having a plurality of longitudinal openings that run the entire length, attaching a barrier layer for pressure application, and stretching the preform into an optical fiber with multiple openings. An extrusion die comprising an additive manufactured material, having a proximal side having openings and having a distal side having openings, wherein the openings of the proximal side are of feed channels, wherein the openings of the distal side are of forming channels, and wherein in side the body of the die, two of the feed channels combine the forming channels.