Photochemical figuring of optical elements

Abstract

Abstract A method and means for correcting irregularities and properly contouring optical components by coating the surface to be contoured with a layer of photopolymerizable or photodepolymerizable material and using light to selectively operate on the layer to achieve the proper contour. In the case when a polymerized coating is used, the layer is deposited on the optical surface and light or similar radiant energy is selectively directed onto the outer surface of the polymer, to photodepolymerize the outer portions in accordance with the desired figuring. The resulting depolymerization products are then removed by dissolving with a suitable solvent or are distilled away in vacuo, leaving a polymerized coating in the contour desired. In the alternate case, a layer of polymerizable material is deposited on the surface to be figured and a selective pattern of light or similar radiation is directed through the optical component, causing polymerization at the component-layer interface. The unaffected components of the layer are dissolved away with a suitable solvent, leaving the required polymerized surface on the component. The selective radiation is produced in response to digitally encoded signals obtained from a comparison of the desired contour with a contour map of the actual surface of the optical component.

Inventors

• 👤 Elliot Berman
• 👤 Gerald L Mcleod
• 👤 Charles H C Pian
• 👤 Samuel H Stein
• 👤 Juliette F Pian

Bibliographic Details