Broadband transmission filters from the 2013 Optical Interference Coatings manufacturing problem contest [invited]

A broadband transmission filter from 400 to 1100 nm was selected for the manufacturing problem contest. The purpose of the contest is to test the state of the art of current optical thin film manufacturing capabilities. A total of 37 people from 15 teams participated in the contest and submitted 17 samples. Diverse approaches were taken by participants to tackle the problem. A range of different solutions was obtained where the number of layers varied from 22 to 608, and the total layer thickness ranged from 1.859 to 23.099 μm. Two independent laboratories performed sample evaluation measurements. Three teams shared the best result with the lowest average measured merit function.