Direct Aluminum Mirror Polishing Techniques for Free-Form Surfaces

• Country: Netherlands
• Summary: Direct Aluminum Mirror Polishing Techniques for Free-Form Surfaces
• NLT Ref No: 100698534
• Deadline: 24 May 2024
• Financier: Other Funding Agencies
• Purchaser Ownership: Government
• Tender Value: Refer Document
• Notice Type: Tender
• Document Ref. No.: 1-12339
• Purchaser's Detail:
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• Description:
• Tenders are invited for Direct Aluminum Mirror Polishing Techniques for Free-Form Surfaces. Open Date: 25/04/2024 15:07 CET Closing Date: 24/05/2024 13:00 CET Price Range: 200-500 KEURO Opto-mechanical systems, which consist of only one material are extremely useful, since there are no differences with respect to the coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) within the system and thus it can maintain alignment for large temperature regimes. Additionally, if the given material is aluminium, even the thermal gradients can be efficiently reduced and system stability further increased. All-aluminium opto-mechanical structures can form the basis of compact, high-performance, cost-effective all-reflective systems such as telescopes, collimators and relays.So far, these optical systems were limited due to the achievable surface quality of the mirrors. Single point diamond turning is routinely used to produce Al mirrors, but the technology has its limitations: the achievable surface form error is around 100nm RMS and even worse for large mirrors (250mm), and surface roughness is generally not better than 4-5nm RMS. By using electroless Ni plating on Al substrate and post-polishing the Ni layer, the optical quality can be improved but the resulting mirrors will suffer from bi-metallic effects. CTE of Ni and certain Al alloys (with high silicon content) can be matched, but the technique is complex and not cost effective. Direct Al mirror polishing for flat and spherical surfaces has been done, but the technique is not developed yet for aspherical or freeform shapes. Naturally, the larger the deviation from spherical forms, while maintaining the surface shape accuracy and roughness, the more the technology can be applied to a wide variety of instruments in Earth Observation applications. This activity aims at developing direct Al mirror polishing techniques for the manufacturing of aspherical and freeform surfaces and a breadboard shall be manufactured and tested to demonstrate the technology. This activity encompasses the following tasks:- Review of Al substrates and suitable polishing techniques- Manufacturing using the selected techniques on breadboard samples- Performing wave front and roughness measurements- Evaluating the test results and recommendation of possible future improvements and applicationsThe deliverables include a review report, a breadboard that demonstrates the potential of the selected direct polishing technique and a test report including the wavefront error and roughness measurements of the manufactured samplesProcurement Policy: C(2) = A relevant participation (in terms of quality and quantity) of non-primes (incl. SMEs) is required. For additional information please go to:http://www.esa.int/About_Us/Business_with_ESA/Small_and_Medium_Sized_Enterprises/Opportunities_for_SMEs/Procurement_policy_on_fair_access_for_SMEs_-_the_C1-C4_Clauses.Read more
• Documents:

 Tender Notice