Beam-splitter

Beamsplitters are used to split or combine beams of light. Plates are used for most laser applications as they exhibit low absorption. Cubes are a convenient, protected form for low power applications. The performance of a beamsplitter is mainly dependent on the coating specifications. 
 

 

 
Beamsplitter
Spectrum
Properties
Beamsplitter plate
Broadband Wavelength
Beamsplitter plates can be used with high power lasers. When using beamsplitter plates, it is important to bear in mind that the two partial beams travel different optical paths. The optical paths depend on the incident angle and the thickness of the plates.
Single Wavelength
Beamsplitter  Cube
Broadband Wavelength
Compare with beamsplitter plates, beamsplitter cubes have the following advantages:
-Identical path lengths for both the reflected and the transmitted beams
-The transmitted beam is neither display nor deflected
-Stable and compact
-Easy operation
-Easy to mount / align
Single Wavelength
Polarizering Beamsplitter cube
Broadband Wavelength
The prism can be used as polarizers, beamsplitters, or beam combiners. The output beam, which is parallel to the input beam, is called a p-polarized beam while the orthoganal output beam is defined as the s-polarized beam.
Single Wavelength

Beamsplitter Plates Capability

Attribute
Commercial
High precision
Material
BK7
BK7
Dimension Tolerance
±0.1mm
±0.02mm
Thickness Tolerance
±0.1mm
±0.02mm
Flatness
Per 25.4mm λ/4 @ 632.8nm
Per 25.4mm λ/10 @ 632.8nm
Surface Quality
60-40 scratch and dig
10-5 scratch and dig
Parallelism
<20 arc seconds
<5 arc seconds
T/R
T=(Ts+Tp)/2,R=(Rs+Rp)/2
T/R=50/50, 80/20, 70/30, 90/10, 60/40
±5% @ λ c or λ b
T=(Ts+Tp)/2,R=(Rs+Rp)/2
T/R=50/50, 80/20, 70/30, 90/10, 60/40
±3% @ λ c or λ b
Coating
λ c: Single wavelength, λ b: Broadband wavelength