Abstract
Emerging finishing trends and increasing demand have resulted in the manufacture of nanofinished optical products, such as navigation-grade inertial sensors (accelerometers and gyros), x-ray optics, laser fusion optics, and large-scale telescopic lenses. Plasma polishing is an effective technique for nanofinishing hard and brittle materials such as crystal, fused silica, quartz, sapphire, glass, etc. A non-contact plasma polishing method removes materials from the workpiece by generating reactive radicals that interact with the substrate surface atom. This chapter explores an approach to bridge the gap between micro and nanofinishing observed in the plasma polishing of components. An in-depth discussion detailing the mechanism of plasma polishing for various types of complex freeform, and aspheric optical materials, which are primarily used by optical industries, is presented. Also, Comsol simulation of the plasma polishing process is included. Further, optical polishing challenges are also highlighted.
