Researchers from the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) and Kansas State University have demonstrated a spray-on
mixture of carbon nanotubes and ceramic that has unprecedented ability to
resist damage while absorbing laser light.
Coatings that absorb as much of the energy of high-powered
lasers as possible without breaking down are essential for optical power
detectors that measure the output of such lasers, which are used, for example,
in military equipment for defusing unexploded mines. The new material improves
on NIST's earlier version of a spray-on nanotube coating for optical power
detectors** and has already attracted industry interest.