Polishing Large NaCl Windows on a Continuous Polisher

摘要

The Helios and Antares CO sub 2 fusion laser systems incorporate numerous large sodium chloride windows. These must be refinished periodically, making necessary a consistent and predictable polishing capability. A continuous polisher (or annular lap) which might at Kirtland's Developmental Optical Facility. Large NaCl windows had not been polished on this type of machine. The machine has proven itself capable of producing lambda/16 figures at 633 nm (HeNe) with extremely smooth surfaces on glass. Since then, we have been working exclusively on NaCl optics. Due to different polishing parameters between NaCl and glass, and the slight solubility of the pitch in the slurry, this phase presents new problems. The work on glass will be reviewed. Results on NaCl to date will be reported. The potential of this type of machine relative to prisms, thin and irregularly shaped optics will be discussed. (ERA citation 04:053961)