D4 Remanufacturing
Failure analysis of resonator and deflection mirrors
A damaged mirror is usually a symptom. Replace only the mirror and you will replace it again soon. We analyse the damage pattern and remove the cause.
What damage patterns reveal
- Contamination
- Black discoloration or whitish residue indicate water leaking from the mount or moisture in the purge gas. Unsuitable cleaning materials (tissue, acetone, ethanol) shorten coating life.
- Handling
- Improper handling of vacuum chamber parts – discharge tubes, mirrors – damages components.
- Maintenance interval
- Skipping cleaning every 3,000 to 4,000 hours leaves permanent residue on internal mirrors.
- Alignment
- Non-parallel beam hits the lens holder, beam mark not centred, mirrors misaligned.
- Beam mode
- A distorted mode concentrates energy on a small area and can destroy the mirror – usually from misalignment or beam delivery cooling problems.
Refurbishment
Alongside the analysis, we clean discharge tubes regularly with our own process. This prevents further mirror damage and maintains beam quality. Savings versus new parts are documented per job.
Other assemblies
- D3
Adaptive optics
Refurbishing contaminated AO mirrors.
- D1
Turbo blower
Keeping oil out of the gas path.