Continuous Phase Plate Structuring by Multi-Aperture Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Processing.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science and Engineering
• Optical Fabrication
• Plasma Physics

Background:

• Continuous Phase Plates (CPPs) are critical optical components requiring precise surface structuring.
• Traditional fabrication methods face challenges in achieving desired accuracy and efficiency for complex optical surfaces.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and validate a multi-aperture atmospheric pressure plasma processing (APPP) method for CPP structuring.
• To investigate the repeatability, robustness, and accuracy of the APPP method for optical fabrication.

Main Methods:

• Development and presentation of a multi-aperture APPP system.
• Removal investigation to assess process repeatability and robustness against gas flow variations.
• Establishment of a mathematical model for multi-aperture structuring and simulation analysis.
• Experimental structuring of a 30 mm × 30 mm CPP using the multi-aperture APPP technique.

Main Results:

• The APPP method demonstrated high repeatability and robustness to minor gas flow disturbances.
• Mathematical modeling and simulation confirmed the method's balance between efficiency and accuracy.
• Experimental results achieved a structuring accuracy of 163.4 nm peak-to-valley (PV) and 31.7 nm root mean square (RMS) for a 30 mm × 30 mm CPP.

Conclusions:

• The multi-aperture APPP method is a viable and accurate technique for structuring continuous phase plates.
• The demonstrated accuracy meets stringent requirements for advanced optical component fabrication.
• This plasma processing approach offers a promising alternative for efficient and precise optical surface manufacturing.