Development of a mirror mount suitable for laboratory and OEM applications

Abstract

Currently a number of manufacturers of opto-mechanical hardware offer mirror mounts that have features incorporated to reduce long term drift and reduce temperature induced mis-alignment. These designs tend to feature kinematic approaches and careful material selection to achieve improved results over prior designs. However, most of these designs still rely on springs and or other preload mechanisms and may not be suitable for harsh environments. In addition, most do not feature a common point of rotation about which the “tip” and “tilt” adjustments are made. In 2018 a mirror mount design was proposed that attempts to combine the convenience of some of the most common commercially available mounts with the long-term stability and rigidity required of a mount to be used in OEM applications. The proposed mirror mount featured a virtual pivot point, centered on the front surface of the mirror, and incorporated a novel clamping mechanism that allows the mechanism to be fully locked without disturbing the orientation relative to the base. In addition, the mount included features such as a low stress mirror mounting system and a multitude of mounting points to make the mirror mount a versatile option for use in many instances. This follow-on work explores further applications of the design, shares results and observations from prototyping efforts and discusses the logical next steps in the development of the current and derivative designs.