Glass manufacturing – Processes – With chemically reactive treatment of glass preform
Patent
1998-10-29
2000-05-09
Silverman, Stanley S.
Glass manufacturing
Processes
With chemically reactive treatment of glass preform
65 3011, 65 3014, 65 332, 65392, 65425, C03C 1500, C03B 27012, C03B 3200, C03B 37018, C03B 3701
Patent
active
060587393
ABSTRACT:
The present invention provides a process for substantially extending the useful life of fused silica elements used in high energy ultraviolet optical systems. The fused silica bulk material is pre-compacted by illuminating it with radiation prior to final mechanical fabrication and polishing to the required final surface figure. When the optical element is subsequently used in a high energy ultraviolet environment, it will continue to be compacted but at a lower effective rate. As a result, the useful life of fused silica optical elements can be increased substantially.
In preferred embodiments the fused silica material is precompacted with multiple passes of short-pulse ultraviolet radiation. Multiple passes can reduce precompaction time. In one example useful life of the fused silica is increased from about 150 days to 3.8 years by about 5 days of precompaction.
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patent: 5908482 (1999-06-01), Komine et al.
Borrelli, N.F., Smith, Charlene,Allan,Douglas C., and Seward,III, T. P., "Densification of fused silica under 193-nm excitation",J. Opt. Soc. Am B, vol. 14, No. 7, Jul. 1997, pp. 1606-1615.
Morton Richard G.
Partlo William N.
Sandstrom Richard L.
Cymer Inc.
Ross John R.
Ruller Jacqueline A
Silverman Stanley S.
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