Alpha Quartz vs. Barium Fluoride
Both alpha quartz and barium fluoride are non-glass optical ceramics.
For each property being compared, the top bar is alpha quartz and the bottom bar is barium fluoride.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
| Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 91 | |
| 60 |
| Knoop Hardness | 740 | |
| 80 |
| Poisson's Ratio | 0.13 | |
| 0.32 |
| Shear Modulus, GPa | 31 | |
| 25 |
Thermal Properties
| Melting Onset (Solidus), °C | 1590 | |
| 1370 |
| Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K | 720 | |
| 420 |
| Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 8.5 | |
| 9.0 |
| Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 9.5 | |
| 18 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
| Density, g/cm3 | 2.7 | |
| 4.9 |
| Light Transmission Range, µm | 0.13 to 3.4 | |
| 0.15 to 13 |
| Refractive Index | 1.6 | |
| 1.6 |
Common Calculations
| Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 19 | |
| 6.8 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 57 | |
| 27 |
| Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s | 4.4 | |
| 4.4 |