Integrated Manufacturing System for Diffractive Optics

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This research effort is designed to develop an advanced system for the manufacturing of rotationally-symmetric diffractive optics with continuous profiles in photopolymer materials. The emphasis, in this work, is the integration of computer-aided optical design and a controlled manufacturing process to develop a complete manufacturing system. The manufacturing process will be based on a combination of single-point diamond turning and laser photolithographic fabrication technique. A high-precision laser writing machine will be the result, to enable the cost-effective fabrication of high-quality, diffractive optical elements. Diffractive optical elements are encountering widespread usage, primarily because of the tremendous advantages they offer over conventional refractive and reflective optical elements. Developing the ability to manufacture diffractive optical elements with a high degree of efficiency would be of significant benefit to the domestic optic industry.