This course covers selection and processing of materials for enhanced performance in optical and instrument systems. Emphasis will be on choosing the right material for the application. The importance of various thermal and mechanical properties, and related figures of merit will be presented and they will be compared for various materials. The dependence of these properties on temperature and other variables will be discussed with respect to system design and operation. Issues such as dimensional stability, options for mirrors and structures, and athermalization will be discussed. Fabrication methods will be described for most materials. Materials covered include: glasses and glass-ceramics, silicon carbide, composites, aluminums, invars, and other metals. Specific materials problems of attendees will be discussed as time permits.

This course describes materials and their properties as used in instrument and optical systems, emphasizing sources and solutions of dimensional instability of components.It covers issues such as, options for mirrors, benches and other structures, UHV &cryo compatibility and athermalization of both refractive and reflective systems. Optical materials such as glasses, aluminum, beryllium silicon and silicon carbide will be reviewed. Structural materials covered include: aluminum alloys, steels &invars, and composites. Fabrication methods will be described for each material with emphasis on fabrication for stability.

This course describes materials for instruments and telescopes, emphasizing dimensional stability of components and covering issues such as cryo compatibility, options for large instrument benches and structures, and athermalization. Materials covered include: aluminum alloys, steels & invars, graphite/polymers and aluminum/beryllium. Refractive and reflective optical materials such as glasses, glass-ceramics, beryllium and silicon carbide will be reviewed. Fabrication methods will be described for each material. Specific materials problems of attendees will be discussed as time permits.

Many applications call for mirrors with metal, ceramic or composite materials for their mirror faceplates and/or structures. This course describes many options available for mirror, benches and structures. Materials properties, availability, and fabrication methods will be described with emphasis on processing for dimensional stability. Materials discussed include: aluminum alloys, beryllium, invars & steels, silicon carbides and metal & polymer matrix composites.