Silvering and Re-Silvering Mirrors

& How to Make Your Own One-way Mirror

Solution No. 1:

Nitrate of Silver (pure) . . . . . . . . 40 grains

Nitrate of Silver (pure) . . . . . . . . 32 grains
Distilled Water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 pint
Ammonia, 26% . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . To be used as directed.

Take one pint of distilled water, pour 4 ounces of this into a glass, and into this put 40 grains of Nitrate of Silver. Dissolve the Nitrate of Silver thoroughly
by stirring the water with glass strip (no spoon, or stick, or metal should be used). When it is all thoroughly dissolved, take your medicine dropper and
drop 26% Ammonia Water into it one drop at a time; at first it will turn dark; keep dropping the ammonia until it becomes clear again, which will generally
take about thirty drops; stopping the addition as soon as it clears.

Very often after dropping 30 drops of Ammonia, it does not clear. In that case stir the solution slowly with your left hand and continue dropping the
ammonia with the hand, one drop at a time until it does clear, which it will generally do after dropping a few more times. If after dropping seven drops
more it does not clear (which takes 37 drops in all) do not drop any more Ammonia, as you are apt to spoil the solution.

Then add 32 grains of the Nitrate of Silver, additional. Dissolve by stirring with your glass strip. When it is all dissolved, pour the mixture back into the pint
of water first measured out. Let it stand for one hour or more to allow the sediment to settle on the bottom. Then filter the solution through white blotting
paper; this blotting paper you should put into your funnel, cone-shaped so that the solution will have to pass through it before it can enter the bottle (any
druggist can show you how to fold filter paper). Put the funnel into the neck of the bottle and proceed to pour the solution into the funnel. In this way the
solution passes through the blotting paper before it gets into the bottle, which is called filtering. After the solution is filtered into the bottle it should look
like clear water. Cork bottle tightly, and keep in a cool dark place and label it No. 1 solution.

Solution No. 2:

24 grains of Rochelle Salts

25 grains of Nitrate of Silver (pure)
1 pint of Distilled Water

Take one pint of warm distilled water and pour it into a porcelain lined vessel, put it on the stove, and then put 24 grains of Rochelle Salts into it, and let
this boil strongly for about one minute, and then add 25 grains of Nitrate of Silver, and let it boil for five minutes longer, take it form the stove and let it
stand one hour or longer to allow the sediment to settle. As soon as the solution is cool it is best to pour it out of the porcelain lined vessel into some
glass vessel or other porcelain lined vessel, as the vessel that you boiled this solution in will be quite dirty. When it is allowed to settle in another vessel
the solution will be much clearer when you go to filter it. You want to bottle this solution just the same way as you do the No. 1 solution and label this one
No. 2 solution.

Note: This solution will boil away a little when preparing it, but do not add any more water to it.

HOW TO SILVER MIRRORS:

In the first place a clean room should be used for the work. Place the glass on a level surface and bank the sides to prevent the solution running off, or
place in a plating bath tube. It is not necessary that you should have a steam table in order to make good mirrors. By having your room at a temperature
of 85 to 100 degrees F and using warm distilled water to rinse and level your glass with, you can easily get your glass up to the temperature of 90 to 100
degrees F., which will cause the silver to precipitate. The glass to be silvered must be thoroughly cleaned as the least speck of dust, grease, dirt or finer
marks will show and cause you trouble. Place wooden wedges under the corners of the glass having warm distilled water on the glass and change the
wedges under it until the water lays in an even depth all over the glass; this is to warm the glass and get it even. When you have the glass warm and
level, raise one side or end level, raise one side or end and gently let all the water run off, now lay the glass gently back in the same place. Then pour No.
1 and No. 2 Silvering solutions into your traduate glass or glass pitcher in equal parts; stir them as quickly as possible with your glass strip, and then pour
them onto the glass by first starting at the center and letting them flow out, then start at one corner and keep going around in a circular way until the
entire surface of the glass is covered, and let the solution lay on it in an even layer. Let the solutions stand on the glass for about 30 minutes; then tip the
glass on one corner on end and drain off the solution - drain all that will run off; rinse the glass coating off thoroughly with distilled water, and stand glass
on one end to drain and dry. When dry apply backing paint.

If the silver coating is not heavy enough it needs a second coat, which you can do by pouring on the solutions as you did the first coat, after the first coat
has been rinsed off with distilled water and allowed to drain for a few minutes. Do not let the first coat get dry before putting on the second coat.

You will get a much heavier coating of silver by putting the bottles which contain your solutions into hot water a few minutes before you mix and use
them.

HOW TO CLEAN YOUR GLASS:

The best way to do this is by taking some polishing Rouge in powdered form, the same as jewelers use for polishing silverware, or powdered prepared
Whiting which you can get at any drug store. Take the Rouge or Whiting, and put into a bag of two or three thicknesses of bed ticking or cotton flannel
and sew this up; then put the bag into water to soak up. Make a polisher by taking a piece of wood 4 by 4 inches and about 9 inches long and bore a hole
in each end and near the top to take a broom handle, the handles should be about 4 inches long on each end of your polisher, so as to allow you a good
hold.

Then get some felt about one inch thick; if possible to get - use the felt that harness makers use for padding harness - which is about one inch thick, as it
is the best to use. Then screw the felt onto the bottom of the polisher, with brass screws. Be sure that the screws are counter-sunk, so that they will not
come in contact with your glass when you are polishing it and scratch it.

Once the felt is fastened on, put the polisher into water and let it soak. When polishing and cleansing your glass all you have to do is to take the bag from
water, and squeeze a little of the Rouge or Whiting upon the glass; then take your polisher from the water, and with both hands take the polisher by the
handles and proceed to polish the glass to the edges. This will take about 10 minutes. When glass is polished, rinse off with distilled water until it is
perfectly clean.

To make good mirrors you want to use a good grade of glass. The German or American Plate, either double or single, are the best cheaper grades to
use, as they are well polished and free form defects. If your local dealer does not handle this glass he can easily get it for you. The Pittsburg Plate Glass
Co., 622 Fort Duquesne Blvd., Pittsburgh, PA is a very good firm to do business with. They have branch offices in most all the larger cities - see classified
phone book.

HOW TO MAKE BACKING PAINT:

The very best backing paint that you can use is made by taking equal parts of White Demer Varnish and Asphaltum Varnish and mixing. If it is too heavy
to work freely, add a little turpentine. Apply this paint to the silver coating as soon as it is dry, with a camel's hair brush as lightly as possible - as the silver
coating can easily be rubbed off. One coat is enough, but if you wish to apply a second coat you can do so before the first coat gets thoroughly dry.

HOW TO REMOVE OLD BACKING PAINT AND SILVER

For removing old backing paint, take strong lye(*NOTE) and put it in a little water, and pour this on the old paint while the mirror is in a level position; and
let it stand until the paint becomes soft; then take a small mop and mop it up. Sometimes the paint is a little hard to remove, in which case you can take a
strong piece of cardboard and scrape it off by grasping the cardboard in both hands, and pushing forward with enough pressure to cause the cardboard
to go between the paint and the glass. Another way is to buy a can of Boston or other kind of paint and varnish remover, and use according to directions.
If the silver still sticks to the glass, pour undiluted nitric acid on it and let stand until the back can easily be removed with a mop or rag. Then clean your
glass as directed.

ONE-WAY OR X-RAY MIRRORS

These mirrors can be made in any one of three ways.

 1. The ordinary mirroring solution is diluted from 50% to 75% with distilled water.
2. In making the mirroring solution use 1/2 to 3/4 less Silver Nitrate and Rochelle Salts, but do not reduce the amount of water used.
3. The ordinary mirroring solution is used but let it set to deposit only half as long as you do ordinary mirroring, and pour off the balance of the
water. If a mirror is placed under the glass that is being silvered, on an angle, the reflections of the results of precipitation will be clearly shown
and you can tell when to discard the water on the glass and also note the transparency.

When silvered, if held up to the face, it can be looked through from the front, seeing everything in front of it clearly, but to anyone on the other side or
front of the mirror, it looks like just an ordinary mirror showing their image and they are unable to see your features at the back.

When silvering is dry, varnish with good transparent spar varnish, using a thin coat with a soft haired brush. Collodion thinned with acetone is also used
for backing. If either of these can be put on with a spray gun it will be much better and danger of scratching on the thin coat of silver is reduced or
eliminated altogether. For greater safety and durability, place a glass of the same size over the mirror back. This can be held in a frame with quarter
round or smaller stock fastened with brads or long thin screws.

This type of mirror has been and still is in use in large hotels, institutions, roadhouses, blind pigs, secret societies and lodges, night clubs, cars, by secret
police, detectives, etc. A pan of this type mirror is placed in a panel of the front door. The visitor sees only an ordinary mirror staring him in the face, but
the one on the other side of the door can see through it and tell who it is without being seen or opening the door. This way many police raids on blind
pigs, gambling dens, houses of vice, etc. have been thwarted. Usually a curtain or blind is pulled down over the glass from the inside so that patrons
won't notice it and talk out of turn.

SIMPLE METHOD OF RESILVERING DAMAGED MIRRORS

Pour upon a sheet of tin foil three drams of quicksilver to the square foot of foil. Rub smartly with a piece of buckskin until the foil becomes brilliant. Lay
the glass upon a flat table face downward, place the foil upon the damaged portion of the glass, lay a sheet of paper over the foil, and place upon it a
block of wood or a piece of marble with a perfectly flat surface, put upon it sufficient weight to press it down tight; let it remain in this position a few hours.
The foil will adhere to the glass.

NOTE: extrem cation should be use when using chemicals. Read all manufactures lables and warning before using andy chemicals
One-Way Window Glass

Caution: Chemicals and ready-to-use solutions will cause stubborn stains on hands and clothing.

Clean glass with soap and water, then rinse thoroughly, handling the glass on the edges, only. Let glass dry.

Use a small mop, or make one with cotton on a stick. Pour a little NITRIC ACID on the surface of the glass and spread it around with the mop. Flush
the surface with water, then place the glass face down in a basin of clean water, to keep it clean until you are ready to treat it.

Get five (5) clean glasses. In one make Solution A, by dissolving one ounce of SILVER NITRATE in ten ounces of DISTILLED WATER. Set aside one
ounce of this solution to use later. Then, with a medicine dropper and constant stirring with a glass rod, "ammoniate" your Solution A, by adding, drop
by drop, some strong 10% to 26% AQUA AMMONIA. At first a thick, brownish mass will appear, but as more ammonia is added this will begin to thin
out. Stop adding ammonia when the solution has become just barely cloudy, not entirely clear.

Next, in a separate container, mix one ounce of caustic potash, known as POTASSIUM HYDROXIDE, with 10 1/2 ounces of water. Note: slowly add
the caustic to the water. NEVER add water to the caustic. Pour this solution into the ammoniated silver nitrate solution and stir very thoroughly.

Then again, add strong ammonia water, drop by drop, until the solution, just clears. Now, pour the remainder of the Non-Ammoniated Silver Nitrate
solution, this is the portion originally set aside. The main solution would once again become slightly cloudy. Make a solution of 1/2 ounce of
GLUCOSE in ten ounces of Distilled Water and stir it into the main solution, which is now ready to use. This glucose is also know as dextrose, or just
plain corn sugar.

The "silvering" should be done on a level table. Remove the glass from the basin and set it on edge to dry, then support it, sterile face up, on the
corners of four upturned identical highball glasses, or the like. Place a small mirror, under the glass, at an angle (this will enable you to see the
reflection of the silvering process so that you can stop at the time).

Pour enough solution on the glass to cover it, leave it undisturbed until the desired film of silver has been deposited. By looking at the mirror which
you have placed on the table, at a slight angle, facing upwards, you are able to see the reflection of the silvering process and stop at the moment
when the degree of reflection and transparency has been achieved. This will usually be about 20 minutes.

Then tip off the solution at one corner and thoroughly flush with running water. Set the glass on edge and let drain dry. WITHOUT touching the
delicate film. When thoroughly dry, put on a coat of clear VARNISH with a soft CAMEL-HAIR BRUSH, or better, with a spray gun. When this dries, you
may choose to further protect the silvering by taping to the transparent mirror another sheet of plain, clean glass of the same size.

In use, the light on the mirror side should be stronger than on the back, and you should be able to see everything clearly through the mirror from the
back; while anyone on the other side sees nothing but an ordinary mirror. Should you not be able to see clearly through the mirror, you have allowed
the silvering process to continue too long. In order to achieve perfection, practice with small mirrors, until you have the timing just . Such mirrors, as
small as 8"x12" have sold for as much as $12, which is of course far more than your cost to make.

Good Luck!

NOTE: It should be remembered that any chemical can be very dangerous when used or handled improperly. For this reason, the publisher of these
formulas IS NOT responsible for any mishaps associated with these formulas.
THEY ARE OFFERED AS INFORMATION ONLY!
A giant silver mirror
Topic
The Tollens’ test for aldehydes and reducing sugars. Also this is an excellent
demonstration for general interest.
Timing
About 5 min.
Level
The Tollens’ test is post-16, but the experiment will fascinate people of all ages.
Description
A solution of ammoniacal silver nitrate is reduced by glucose to silver, which forms a
silver mirror on the inside of a large flask.
Apparatus
_ One 1 dm3 flask with rubber stopper. A round bottomed flask looks most
impressive, but any shape will do.
_ One 250 cm3 beaker.
_ Measuring cylinders – 25 cm3,100 cm3 and 250 cm3.
_ Dropping pipette.
_ Glass rod.
_ Access to a fume cupboard (optional).
Chemicals
The quantities given are sufficient for three demonstrations.
_ 8.5 g of silver nitrate (AgNO3).
_ 11.2 g of potassium hydroxide (KOH).
_ 2.2 g of glucose (dextrose).
_ 800 cm3 of deionised water.
_ About 30 cm3 of 880 ammonia solution.
_ About 100 cm3 of concentrated nitric acid.
Method
Before the demonstration
Carefully clean the 1 dm3 flask. First use detergent and a brush, then rinse with water, followed by concentrated nitric acid and finally wash it out
several times with deionised water. Thorough cleaning is vital if the demonstration is to succeed. Make up the three solutions as follows:
_ Dissolve 8.5 g of silver nitrate in 500 cm3 of deionised water. This makes a 0.1 mol dm–3 solution.
_ Dissolve 11.2 g of potassium hydroxide in 250 cm3 of deionised water. This makes a 0.8 mol dm–3 solution.
_ Dissolve 2.2 g of glucose in 50 cm3 of deionised water.
The demonstration
Place 150 cm3 of the silver nitrate solution in a 250 cm3 beaker and, working in a fume cupboard if possible, add 880 ammonia using a
dropping pipette. A brown precipitate will form. Continue to add the ammonia until the precipitate re-dissolves to give a clear, colourless solution.
Less than 5 cm3 of ammonia will be needed. The solution then contains Ag(NH3)2 +(aq).
Add 75 cm3 of the potassium hydroxide solution. A dark brown precipitate will form. Add more ammonia dropwise until this precipitate
redissolves to give a clear, colourless solution. About 5 cm3 of ammonia will be needed. Pour this solution into the 1 dm3 flask and add 12 cm3
of the glucose solution. Stopper the flask and swirl the solution so that the whole of the inner surface of the flask is wetted. The solution will turn
brown. Continue swirling until a mirror forms.
This will take about 2 minutes. When a satisfactory mirror has formed, pour the solution down the sink with plenty of water. Rinse out the flask
well with water and discard the washings down
the sink. The flask can now be passed around the class.DO NOT SAVE THE SILVER SOLUTION IN A SILVER RESIDUE CONTAINER. An
alternative to plating the inside of a flask is to silver plate the outside of small glass objects which can be suspended in the plating solution by
hanging them on threads. These objects must be cleaned beforehand.
Visual tips
The demonstration can be scaled up for greater impact or scaled down for economy.
Teaching tips
This reaction is the well known Tollens’ or silver mirror test for aldehydes. The method used to be used commercially for silvering mirrors.
Theory
Aldehydes such as glucose are reducing agents and will reduce Ag+(aq) ions to metallic silver. They themselves are oxidised to carboxlyate
ions. The reaction that occurs is:
CH2OH(CHOH)4CHO(aq) + 2Ag(NH3)2 +(aq) + 3OH–(aq) 
2Ag(s) + CH2OH(CHOH)4CO2 –(aq) + 4NH3(aq) + 2H2O(l)
Extensions
Try using an ordinary aldehyde instead of glucose, and show that the reaction does not work with a ketone such as propanone.
Further details
The silver can be removed from the silvered flask with concentrated nitric acid. Work in a fume cupboard because nitrogen dioxide is formed.
There are reports of silvered flasks being kept for several years as ornaments.
Safety
Wear eye protection. There have been a few reports of alkaline ammoniacal silver nitrate solutions exploding after standing for some time. This
rare occurrence is thought to be caused
by the formation of silver nitride or silver fulminate. To avoid this risk, the ammoniacal silver nitrate solution should not be made up before the
demonstration and any silvering solution left after the demonstration should not be placed in a silver residues container but should be washed
down the sink with plenty of water. The silvered flask should be rinsed thoroughly with water and the washings washed down the sink as soon as
the silvering has finished. It is the responsibility of teachers doing this demonstration to carry out an appropriate risk assessment.
 metal coated mirror?

In the past mercury or silver was used. Mercury is highly toxic so I would suggest the Silver process (often called Tollens).

A dilute solution (5% will work) of Silver nitrate is treated drop-wise with dilute Sodium hydroxide until a light brown precipitate of Silver oxide is formed.
Dilute Ammonium hydroxide solution is added until this solid is redissolved. This solution need to be made fresh as it does not store well.

The surface of the mirror needs to be very clean with no finger prints or dirt. Place it in a suitable glass or plastic container. Cover it with the Silver solution
just prepared and then add a small amount of aqueous Glucose solution. Mix well, rocking the solution over the surface of the mirror.

Detailed method for making metal coated mirror is given here:

Raw Materials
Glass, the main component of mirrors, is a poor reflector. It reflects only about 4 percent of the light which strikes it. It does, however, possess the property of
uniformity, particularly when polished. This means that the glass contains very few pits after polishing and will form an effective base for a reflective layer of
metal. When the metal layer is deposited, the surface is very even, with no bumps or wells. Glass is also considered a good material for mirrors because it can
be molded into various shapes for specialty mirrors. Glass sheets are made from silica, which can be mined or refined from sand. Glass made from natural
crystals of silica is known as fused quartz. There are also synthetic glasses, which are referred to as synthetic fused silica. The silica, or quartz, is melted to
high temperatures, and poured or rolled out into sheets.
A few other types of glass are used for high-quality scientific grade mirrors. These usually contain some other chemical component to strengthen the glass or
make it resistant to certain environmental extremes. Pyrex, for example, is a borosilicate glass—a glass composed of silica and boron—that is used when
mirrors must withstand high temperatures.
In some cases, a plastic substrate will do as well as a glass one. In particular, mirrors on children's toys are often made this way, so they don't break as easily.
Plastic polymers are manufactured from petroleum and other organic chemicals. They can be injection molded into any desired shape, including flat sheets
and circles, and can be opaque or transparent as the design requires.
These base materials must be coated to make a mirror. Metallic coatings are the most common. A variety of metals, such as silver, gold, and chrome, are
appropriate for this application. Silver was the most popular mirror backing one hundred years ago, leading to the coinage of the term "silvering." Old silver-
backed mirrors often have dark lines behind the glass, however, because the material was coated very thinly and unevenly, causing it to flake off, scratch or
tarnish. More recently, before 1940, mirror manufacturers used mercury because it spread evenly over the surface of the glass and did not tarnish. This
practice was also eventually abandoned, for it posed the problem of sealing in the toxic liquid. Today, aluminum is the most commonly used metallic coating for
mirrors.
Scientific grade mirrors are sometimes coated with other materials, like silicon oxides and silicon nitrides, in up to hundreds of layers of, each a 10,000th of an
inch thick. These types of coatings, referred to as dielectric coatings, are used both by themselves as reflectors, and as protective finishes on metallic
coatings. They are more scratch resistant than metal. Scientific mirrors also use silver coatings, and sometimes gold coatings as well, to reflect light of a
particular color of light more or less well.

Design
Surface regularity is probably the most important design characteristic of mirrors. Mirrors for household use must meet roughly the same specifications as
window panes and picture frame glass. The glass sheets used must be reasonably flat and durable. The designer need only specify the thickness required; for
example, thicker mirrors are more durable, but they are also heavier. Scientific mirrors usually have specially designed surfaces. These surfaces must be
uniformly smooth within several lOOOths of an inch, and can be designed with a specific curvature, just like eyeglass lenses. The design principle for these
mirrors is the same as that of eyewear: a mirror may be intended to focus light as well as reflect it.
The mirror design will also specify the type of coating to be used. Coating material is chosen based on required durability and reflectivity and, depending on
the intended purpose of the mirror, it may be applied on the front or back surface of the mirror. Any subsequent layers of protective coatings must also be
specified at this stage. For most common mirrors, the reflective coating will be applied on the back surface of the glass because it is less likely to be harmed
there. The back side is then frequently mounted in a plastic or metal frame so as to entirely seal the coating from the air and sharp objects.
For scientific use, the color, or wavelength of light, which the mirror will reflect must be considered. For standard visible light or ultraviolet light mirrors,
aluminum coatings are common. If the mirror is to be used with infrared light, a silver or gold coating is best. Dielectric coatings are also good in the infrared
range. Ultimately, however, the choice of coating will depend on durability as well as wavelength range, and some reflectivity may be sacrificed for resilience. A
dielectric coating, for example, is much more scratch resistant than a metallic coating and, despite the additional cost, these coatings are often added on top of
metal to protect it. Coatings on scientific grade mirrors are usually applied on the front surface of the glass, because light which travels through glass will
always distort to a small degree. This is undesirable in most scientific applications.

The Manufacturing
Process
Cutting and shaping the glass
The first step in manufacturing any mirror is cutting the outline of the glass "blank" to suit the application. If the mirror is for an automobile, for example, the
glass will be cut out to fit in the mirror mount on the car. Although some mirror manufacturers cut their own glass, others receive glass that has already been
cut into blanks. Regardless of who cuts the glass, very hard, finely pointed blades are used to do the cutting. Diamond scribes or saws—sharp metal points or
saws with diamond dust embedded in them—are often used because the diamond will wear down the glass before the glass wears down the diamond. The
cutting method used depends entirely on the final shape the mirror will take. In one method, the blades or scribes may be used to cut partway through the
glass; pressure can then be used to break the glass along the score line. In another method, a machine uses a diamond saw to cut all the way through the
glass by drawing the blade back and forth or up and down multiple times, like an automated bandsaw. Cutting is usually done before the metal coating is
applied, because the coating may flake off the glass as a result of the cut. An alternative to cutting the glass to form blanks is to mold the glass in its molten
state.
Blanks are then placed in optical grinding machines. These machines consist of large base plates full of depressions that hold the blanks. The blank-filled base
is placed against another metal plate with the desired surface shape: flat, convex, or concave. A grinding compound—a gritty liquid—is spread over the glass
blanks as they are rubbed or rolled against the curved surface. The action is similar to grinding spices with a mortar and pestle. The grit in the compound
gradually wears away the glass surface until it assumes the same shape as the grinding plate. Finer and finer grits are used until the surface is very smooth
and even.
Hand grinding techniques exist as well, but they are extremely time-consuming and difficult to control. They are only used in cases where mechanical grinding
would be impossible, as is the case with very large or unusually shaped surfaces. A commercial optical grinder can accommodate 50 to 200 blanks, which are
all polished simultaneously. This is much more efficient than hand grinding. Even specialty optics can be made mechanically in adjustable equipment.

Applying the reflective material

When the glass surfaces are shaped appropriately and polished to a smooth finish, they are coated with whatever reflective material the designer has chosen.
Regardless of the coating material, it is applied in an apparatus called an evaporator. The evaporator is a large vacuum chamber with an upper plate for
supporting the blank mirrors, and a lower crucible for melting the coating metal. It is so called because metal is heated in the crucible to the point that it
evaporates into the vacuum, depositing a coating on the surface of the glass much like hot breath will steam a cold window. Blanks are centered over holes in
the upper plate that allow the metal vapor to reach the surface of the glass. Metals can be heated to several hundreds or thousands of degrees (depending on
the boiling point of the metal), before they vaporize. The temperature and timing for this procedure are controlled very precisely to achieve exactly the right
thickness of metal. This method of coating creates very uniform and highly reflective surfaces.
The shape of the holes in the upper plate will be transferred to the glass in metal, like paint through a stencil. This effect is often used to intentionally pattern
the mirror. Metal stencils, or masks, can be applied to the surface of the glass to create one or more patterns.
Dielectric coatings—either as reflective layers or as protective layers over metal ones—are applied in much the same way, except that gases are used instead
of metal chunks. Silicon oxides and silicon nitrides are typically used as dielectric coatings. When these gases combine in extreme heat, they react to form a
solid substance. This reaction product forms a coating just like metal does.
Several evaporation steps may be combined to make a multiple-layer coating. Clear dielectric materials may be evaporated on top of metal or other dielectrics
to change the reflective or mechanical properties of a surface. Mirrors with silvering on the back of the glass, for instance, often have an opaque dielectric layer
applied to improve the reflectivity and keep the metal from scratching. One-way mirrors are the exception to this procedure, in which case great care must be
taken not to damage the thin metal coating.
Finally, when the proper coatings have been applied, the finished mirror is mounted in a base or packed carefully in a shock resistant package for shipping.
Quality Control
How good does a mirror have to be? Is it sufficient to have 80 percent of the light bounce off? Does all 80 percent have to bounce in exactly the same
direction? The answer is dependent on the application. A purse mirror might only be 80 or 90 percent reflective, and might have some slight irregularity in the
thickness of the glass (like ripples on the surface of a pond). The image would be slightly distorted in this case, but the distortion would be barely visible to the
naked eye. If, however, a mirror is to be used for a scientific application, for example in a telescope, the shape of the surface and the reflectivity of the coating
must be known to a very specific degree, to insure the reflected light goes exactly where the telescope designer wants it, and at the right intensity. The
tolerances on the mirror will affect the cost and ease with which it can be manufactured.
Batch mirror uniformity is the first and fore-most job of quality assurance. Mirrors on the edge of a grinding plate or evaporator chamber may not have the
same surface or coating as those in the center of the apparatus. If there is a wide range of metal thicknesses or surface flatnesses in a single batch of mirrors,
the process must be adjusted to improve uniformity.
Several methods are employed to test the integrity of a mirror. The surface quality is examined first visually for scratches, unevenness, pits, or ripples. This can
be done with the unaided eye, with a microscope, or with an infrared photographic process designed to show differences in metal thicknesses.
For more stringent surface control, a profile of the mirror can be measured by running a stylus along the surface. The position of the stylus is recorded as it is
dragged across the mirror. This is similar to the way a record player works. Like the record player, the drawback to a mechanical stylus is that it can damage
the surface it is detecting. Mirror manufacturers have come to the same solution as the recording industry: use a laser. The laser can be used for non-
destructive testing in the same way a compact disc player reads the music from a disc without altering its surface.
In addition to these mechanical tests, mirrors may be exposed to a variety of environmental conditions. Car mirrors, for example, are taken through extremes
of cold and heat to insure that they will withstand weather conditions, while bathroom mirrors are tested for water resistance.