M. J. Jackson, R. Handy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN; W. Ahmed, University of Ulster, Newtownabbey, United Kingdom; N. Ali, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal; J. Field, R. Telling, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom

Summary: Mechanical degradation of IR transmitting materials by high velocity water droplets can be improved by coating the substrate with a thin solid film of diamond. The paper shows how the mechanical properties of the surface of IR transmitting materials such as Ge and ZnS can be improved by adding a diamond coating using a modified chemical vapor deposition technique.