Freeform optics can reduce the cost, weight, and size of advanced imaging systems,
but it is challenging to manufacture the complex rotationally asymmetric surfaces to optical
tolerances. To address the need for disruptive, high-precision sub-aperture forming and finishing
techniques for freeform optics, we investigate an alternative, non-contact polishing methodology
using femtosecond lasers, combining modeling, experiments, and demonstrations. Femtosecondlaser-
based polishing of germanium was investigated using an experimentally-validated twotemperature
model of laser/germanium interaction to guide the understanding and selection of
laser parameters to achieve near-nonthermal ablation for polishing and figuring. For the first time
to our knowledge, model-guided femtosecond laser polishing of germanium was successfully
demonstrated, achieving precision material removal while maintaining single-digit nanometer
optical surface quality. The demonstrated femtosecond-laser-based polishing technique lays the
foundation for semiconductor optics polishing/fabrication using femtosecond lasers and opens a
viable path for high-precision, complex sub-aperture optical polishing tasks on various materials.
© 2019 Optical Society of America under the terms of the OSA Open Access Publishing Agreement
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Femtosecond-laser-enabled simultaneous figuring and finishing of glass with a subnanometer optical surface
We demonstrate simultaneous figuring and surface finishing of glass using a femtosecond laser. For the first time, to the best of our knowledge, we have achieved deterministic material removal with nanometer precision and maintained sub-nanometer surface roughness without inducing any mid-spatial-frequency errors to the initial surface. A dynamic pulse propagation model is established to predict the interaction process, including plasma generation and surface temperature. The interactive modeling and the experiments enable the selection of a set of laser parameters to achieve controllable optical figuring and finishing. This demonstration shows the potential for using femtosecond lasers for advanced freeform optic forming, finishing, and reduction of detrimental mid-spatial-frequency errors, and laser-ablation-based patterning used for fabrication of integrated photonics and lasers.
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- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10429458
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Optics Letters
- Volume:
- 47
- Issue:
- 15
- ISSN:
- 0146-9592
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 3860
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1364/OL.467413
