Sapphire and ruby processing

• Chracteristic
• Processing
• Examples of use

Chracteristic

Sapphire and ruby are very difficult to process because they are hard and brittle. However, on the other hand, it is possible to form smooth surfaces and sharp edges peculiar to single crystal materials, and it has various excellent material properties.

Sapphire is colorless and transparent when polished and has excellent optical properties, and is used as a variety of observation windows and sensor window materials. Ruby has almost the same physical properties as sapphire, and is colored red when a certain proportion of chromium oxide is mixed. If visual confirmation is required for use, ruby is more suitable than sapphire.

Composition	Al2O3
Structure	Hexagonal crystal
Mechanical property (reference value)	Tensile strength: 0.5GPa Flexural strength: 0.5~0.7GPa Compressive strength: 3.0~3.4GPa Young’s modulus: 350~470GPa Hardness:~HK1,500~2,000
Features	High hardness and excellent wear and abrasion resistance. Chemically stable with excellent chemical resistance and tolerance of a strong acid like hydrofluoric acid. Excellent in heat resistance. Excellent insulating property. Excellent abrasion resistance property. Excellent optical property.

Processing

Sapphire

Ruby

Examples of uses