Layer thickness fluctuations in optical coatings with non-quarter-wave design

Previous research on highly reflective multilayer optical coatings has shown that varying the thickness of layers from their traditional quarter-wave values gives the potential for greater damage thresholds without sacrificing the desired optical properties. We numerically investigate the influence of unintended layer thickness fluctuations in these nontraditional designs, concluding that such fluctuations should have minimal effect on the optical properties of the coating. This result makes the prospect of producing nontraditional designs more promising.