Optical Surfaces has announced a new technical datasheet describing its range of standard and customer specified off axis paraboloids. Off-axis paraboloids (OAPs) provide an unobstructed aperture allowing complete access to the focal region as well as reducing the size and minimising the weight of a design.  They are especially suitable for broadband or multiple wavelength applications due to their completely achromatic performance.  All together these advantages produce a cost-effective solution for many optical design problems with no compromise in performance.

Production approved to ISO 9001-2008 the quality of OAPs from Optical Surfaces Ltd. is ensured using a range of interferometric and surface test measurements on all optics leaving the factory. Benefiting from over 50 years experience in producing the most demanding high precision optics and optical systems - Optical Surfaces OAPs are used by many leading research establishments and companies around the world.

Typical applications for off axis paraboloids include high power laser focusing, focusing upon astronomical objects, collimating reference wavefronts, beam expansion, MTF measurement, MRTD testing and bore sight alignment for missile guidance systems.

Optical Surfaces Ltd's highly experienced and skilled team of engineers and craftsmen can typically produce off-axis parabolic mirrors up to 600 mm in diameter with surface accuracy's to lambda/20 p-v depending upon off-axis angles.  With proprietary polishing techniques Optical Surfaces can, depending on the surface accuracy required, achieve the natural limit to the off-axis angle of around 25-30 degrees and surface micro-roughness on aspherics of ~ 1 nm rms.  A range of coatings is available for standard and custom components from metallic with or without protective overcoat to multilayer dielectrics and ultra hard coatings.

For further information, visit http://www.optisurf.com/