Hard ceramic conformal windows and domes provide challenges to the optical
fabricator. The material hardness, polycrystalline nature and non-traditional shape demand
creative optical fabrication techniques to produce these types of optics cost-effectively.
VIBETM is a high-speed, high-pressure, conformal optical fabrication process that is capable
of rapidly polishing hard ceramic materials and non-traditional shapes such as toroids and
tangent ogives. This paper will overview the recent progress made to rapidly manufacture
hard ceramic conformal windows and domes as well as the challenges associated with it.
Results will show 10-50x increase in removal rates using the VIBE platform to polish hard
ceramic materials compared to conventional methods.
Optical designers have been designing ultraviolet (UV) systems at wavelengths in the UV region for many
years. With increasing demand for deep UV applications, special considerations that are not applicable to traditional
visible optics must be taken to produce the optics. Specifically as the wavelength of incident light decreases, the
importance of very smooth surfaces increases. The intent of this project is to increase the performance of UV optics
in a four-phase project. The first phase consists of characterizing sub-surface damage using destructive methods to
enable process control, the second phase (presented here) focuses on polishing methods, the third phase will include
cleaning and possible etching protocols and the fourth phase will be improving thin film coating performance.
A conventional polishing study was conducted with infrared material zinc sulfide with the goal of producing defect-free
polished surfaces in predictable amounts of time. Utilizing the measured electro-kinetic properties of the zinc sulfide
and polishing abrasives, polishing slurries were selectively altered and the resulting removal rates and surface roughness
values were measured. This paper will serve as a baseline for developing an empirical model for optimizing both
surface roughness and removal rate for two different types of abrasives and two pitch types with ZnS.
A conventional polishing study was conducted with infrared material zinc sulfide with the goal of producing defect-free
polished surfaces in predictable amounts of time. Utilizing the measured electro-kinetic properties of the zinc sulfide
and polishing abrasives, polishing slurries were selectively altered and the resulting removal rates and surface roughness
values were measured. This paper will serve as a baseline for developing an empirical model for optimizing both
surface roughness and removal rate for two different types of abrasives with ZnS.
Conference Committee Involvement (3)
Optifab 2017
16 October 2017 | Rochester, New York, United States
Optifab 2015
12 October 2015 | Rochester, New York, United States
Optifab 2013
14 October 2013 | Rochester, New York, United States
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