Multispectral zinc sulfide (MS-ZnS) is a gold-standard window material for applications requiring broadband transmission from the visible to the LWIR. This work investigates a vapor transport process to diffuse Ga₂S₃ into the subsurface of MS-ZnS and improve on the durability of this polycrystalline material. After solid-state diffusion, the presence of gallium in the host is confirmed by secondary ion mass spectroscopy and its concentration is quantified by x-ray diffraction. We show that, under optimized conditions, one can double the Vickers microhardness of MS-ZnS without precipitation of wurtzite and significant degradation of transmission.

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Hayat Soufiani, Alexandros Kostogiannes, Clara Rivero-Baleine, Kathleen Richardson, and Romain Gaume, "Solute strengthening of multispectral ZnS windows by vapor transport of Ga2S3," Proc. SPIE 12518, Window and Dome Technologies and Materials XVII , 1251806 (Presented at SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing: May 04, 2023; Published: 13 June 2023); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2664048.