Sapphire LiDAR Cover Window: MOQ, Transmission and Lead Time

Quick answer: There is no rigid MOQ for a sapphire LiDAR cover window. SunYin Sapphire (Sun Yin Crystal Industry Company Limited, established 1994) accepts single-piece prototypes — typically delivered in 1–2 weeks — and treats 100+ pieces as the most cost-effective series-production band, with mass production running about 1 month. Windows are machined across φ2–300 mm to ±0.01 mm circular outer-diameter tolerance, with single-sided AR ≥89%, double-sided AR ≥95% and AF coatings that hold ≥110° water contact angle after 3,000 steel-wool abrasion cycles, produced in an ISO Class 6 clean coating room on Showa 380–420 °C dual-ion-source and Hanil HVC1600 (Veeco ion source) lines. Prototype cost is credited against the production order, and an NDA is signed before drawings are received. We supply the bare sapphire cover window — the sensor housing, gasket and mounting bracket are built by you or your LiDAR module assembler.

Key facts at a glance

Why LiDAR moved to sapphire

LiDAR windows are no longer cosmetic parts. They sit on the front of a vehicle or an aircraft, exposed to road stones, sand, vibration, thermal cycling and UV, while the optical system behind them must keep working for the life of the platform. Industry forecasts place the global sapphire windows market at roughly USD 701 million in 2025, growing at about 8.15% CAGR to USD 1.2 billion by 2032, and much of that growth is explicitly attributed to infrared window use in sensing and defence applications. Kyocera announced a partnership with a European automotive tier-1 to supply sapphire-based LiDAR windows for Level 4 autonomous driving in Q3 2025 — a strong signal that the material choice has crossed from evaluation into platform programmes.

The driver is mechanical, not optical. Fused silica and borosilicate transmit well, but they scratch, they pit under stone impact, and they degrade in the field. Sapphire is Mohs 9 — second only to diamond — and survives abrasion that would force a glass cover to be replaced. For a sensor that must remain calibrated for years, replacing the window is not a service item; it is a warranty event.

What transmission does a LiDAR window actually need?

Automotive LiDAR typically operates at 905 nm or 1550 nm, and protective windows are normally specified to hold above 90% transmission at the operating wavelength across −40 °C to +85 °C. This is where coating design matters more than the raw material, because uncoated sapphire transmits 84–86% across 380–780 nm and less at the edges of the band.

Two consequences follow:

• A band-specific AR design is required. A visible-band AR stack is not automatically a 905/1550 nm stack. The coating must be designed for the LiDAR wavelength, and the recipe changes the numbers.

• Coating durability is the real specification. A window that meets transmission on day one but loses it to abrasion at month six fails qualification. SunYin's AF stack is tested to hold ≥115° water contact angle initially, ≥110° after 3,000 steel-wool cycles, ≥107° after 5,000, ≥105° after 8,000, ≥104° after 10,000 and ≥100° after 15,000 cycles — a documented abrasion curve rather than a single pass/fail number.

Machining, inspection and what you can verify

A LiDAR window programme usually fails on geometry, not on material. SunYin machines across φ2–300 mm with ±0.01 mm circular outer-diameter tolerance, produces windows from 10 mm to 500 mm with thickness from 0.3 mm to 100 mm, and finishes to 80/50, 60/40 or 40/20 surface quality depending on the aperture and the laser budget. Inspection uses a 3D projector, an automatic flash measuring instrument, a spectrophotometer, water contact-angle measurement, and pencil/Mohs hardness and steel-wool/rubber abrasion testing — the same instruments that generate the coating data quoted above.

Supply-chain questions a programme manager will ask

"We are looking for a second source — what evidence can you provide?" SunYin grows its own crystal, so quality control starts before machining. The company built its vertically integrated chain in 2008 around flame-fusion growth at 10 t/month, added 120 kg Kyropoulos growth with a tungsten–molybdenum hot zone in 2024, targets 100 t/year of crystal capacity, and reports >95% raw-material yield. Both production bases — Shenzhen Bao'an and Heyuan Dongyuan, 50,000 m² with 600+ staff — are under one quality system. SunYin is a drafting unit for China's synthetic sapphire glass industry standard and an ISO/TC 114 expert member, with participation in ISO 14368-3, GB/T 39141.1/.2/.4, GB/T 40359-2021 and QB/T 4774-2014, plus T/NSZX 004-2024 (AR film) and T/NSZX 009-2025 (AF film).

"Will you sign an NDA before I send the drawing?" Yes — the NDA is signed before drawings, CAD files, specifications or samples are exchanged.

"How fast can you quote?" Send the drawing and operating wavelength; the prototype quote and schedule are returned per drawing.

FAQ

What is the MOQ for a sapphire LiDAR cover window? No rigid MOQ. Single-piece prototypes are accepted; 100+ pieces is the most cost-effective production band.

Can you supply windows for drone or UAV LiDAR? Yes. UAV payloads prioritise weight, and a single sapphire window can replace a multi-lens protective stack while holding near-infrared transmission.

How long does a prototype take, and how long is mass production? Prototype typically 1–2 weeks; mass production approximately one month, depending on part complexity.

Is the prototype fee returned? Yes — the prototype cost is credited against your production order, so qualifying a part before volume carries no net extra cost.

Do you sign an NDA before receiving drawings? Yes — an NDA is signed before drawings, CAD files, specifications or samples are received.

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