Abstract

In the design of optical coatings the desired performance is continuously compared with the calculated values.

When the comparison between two curves is made over a wide wavelength range an immediate evaluation of how much the calculated curve approaches the desired one can be obtained simply overlappping the two graphs and looking at them. That means the eye makes its own total evaluation that in most cases represents the best judgement. In general the similarity of two curves is evaluated by a merit function that compares them in a number of chosen points (wavelengths) where the difference between the two values is calculated. The choice of these points and of their number is often very critical and requires a great experience.

© 1992 Optical Society of America