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Optical coatings formed from amorphous oxide thin films have manyapplications in precision measurements. The Advanced Laser InterferometerGravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) and Advanced Virgo use coatings ofSiO$_2$ (silica) and TiO$_2$:Ta$_2$O$_5$ (titania doped tantala) andpost-deposition annealing to 500$^\circ$C to achieve low thermal noise and lowoptical absorption. Optical scattering by these coatings is a key limit to thedetectors' sensitivity. This paper describes optical scattering measurementsfor single-layer ion-beam-sputtered thin films on fused silica substrates: twosamples of Ta$_2$O$_5$ and two of TiO$_2$:Ta$_2$O$_5$. Using an imagingscatterometer at a fixed scattering angle of 12.8$^\circ$, in-situ changes inthe optical scatter of each sample were assessed during post-depositionannealing to 500$^\circ$C in vacuum. The scatter of three of the four coatedoptics was observed to decrease during the annealing process, by 25-30$\%$ fortantala and up to 74$\%$ for titania-doped tantala, while scatter from thefourth sample held constant. Angle-resolved scatter measurements performedbefore and after vacuum annealing suggests some improvement in three of foursamples. These results demonstrate that post-deposition high-temperatureannealing of single-layer tantala and titania-doped tantala thin films invacuum does not lead to an increase in scatter, and may actually improve theirscatter.

Measurements of Optical Scatter Versus Annealing Temperature for Amorphous Ta2O5 and TiO2:Ta2O5 Thin Films