Check out Erin’s old KBA about how to do this before the composite surface:
Tolerancing surface irregularity using a phase surface – Knowledgebase (zemax.com)
If you’re stuck with Z13, then you’ll need to use a combination of Python and the DDE to implement this; https://github.com/xzos/PyZDDE might be helpful for connecting Python to Zemax but keep in mind that DDE isn’t supported anymore (i.e., no support or probably even forum help) and this code won’t work with the current version if you upgrade.
Hello @MichaelH ,
Just for my curiosity, How feasible is it to manufacture the above off-axis mirrors, which seem to have a high off-axis distance? Particularly convex off axis mirror.
Thankyou.
It depends on the manufacturing technique, the size of the parts, the final surface quality and how much you’re willing to pay, but with advancements in both manufacturing & metrology, there are very few optical parts which cannot be manufactured.
I could imagine something like this could be either diamond turned or sub-aperture polished on a 5 axis CNC machine and then ion beam figured for final surface quality. The concavity shouldn’t matter too much, but the greater the aspheric departure the more difficult the metrology will be.
