MRF applications: on the road to making large-aperture ultraviolet laser resistant continuous phase plates for high-power lasers

Over the past two years we have developed MRF tools and procedures to manufacture large-aperture (430 X 430 mm) continuous phase plates (CPPs) that are capable of operating in the infrared portion (1053 nm) of high-power laser systems. This is accomplished by polishing prescribed patterns of continuously varying topographical features onto finished plano optics using MRF imprinting techniques. We have been successful in making, testing, and using large-aperture CPPs whose topography possesses spatial periods as low as 4 mm and surface peak-to-valleys as high as 8.6 microns. Combining this application of MRF technology with advanced MRF finishing techniques that focus on ultraviolet laser damage resistance makes it potentially feasible to manufacture large-aperture CPPs that can operate in the ultraviolet (351 nm) without sustaining laser-induced damage. In this paper, we will discuss the CPP manufacturing process and the results of 351-nm/3-nsec equivalent laser performance experiments conducted on large-aperture CPPs manufactured using advanced MRF protocols.

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