Space radiation sensitivity of glasses: first results toward a comprehensive dose coefficients database

Radiation sensitivity of glass is a general concern for the designer of space optical instruments. It has been proposed that the effect of radiation can be described within the dose coefficient approximation. In the paper we discuss the effect of gamma and proton radiation on the transmission and the refractive index of a number of commercial optical glasses. This experimental study is intended for establishment of a data-base, which will be useful to predict the effect of space radiation on optical systems.