Table VI. Properties of some reflective metals

Metal		R(^ ) 5µm	R(^ ) HeNe	n 5µm	k 5µm	Knoop Hardness	Chemical Reactivities	Comments
Aluminum	Al	0.98	0.90	8.5	46.0	~25, 40	Hg, OH-, HCl, H2SO4	easy to sputter
Beryllium	Be	0.98	0.54	2.8	21.1	~60, 125	H+, OH-	stiff, lightweight, poisonous
Chromium	Cr	0.96	0.64	3.2	16.8	935, 1800	H+, HCl	used to bond gold to glass
Copper	Cu	0.99	0.95	3.0	29.6	~40, 163	O2, HNO3, H+, OH-	used for heat dissipation
Gold	Au	0.99	0.94	2.7	30.2	30, 45	O2+Cl-, CN-	highest mid-IR reflectance
Molybdenum	Mo	0.99	0.57	3.2	29.1	~600	O2, H+
Nickel	Ni	0.95	0.64	4.7	18.0	~200, 557	HNO3, S, OH-, H+	used for optical conduit
Platinum	Pt	0.95	0.59	5.0	20.0	40, 200	Cl2, CN-, S	inert
Rhodium	Rh	0.96	0.81	6.8	25.0	~400	H2SO4, H+	very hard surface
Silver	Ag	0.99	0.98	3.5	32.0	32, 60	HNO3, CN-, O3, H2S, S	overcoat needed to avoid tarnish
Tungsten	W	0.98	0.51	2.4	22.5	~820	HNO3+HF, O2, H+

RHeNe refers to reflectivity at 0.633 µm
Reflectivities, n, and k values are at room temperature
These data were collected from a variety of sources, so this table probably contains errors. Use cautiously, and empirically verify critical values.
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