Diffractive optics in adverse environments

Abstract

An investigation at the Army Research Laboratory is in progress to characterize DOE performance in mil-spec environments. One of the most significant environmental influences is temperature. An analysis of a diffractive lens is presented in which optical performance is described as a function of temperature. In particular, we review the thermal dependence of focal length and diffraction efficiency. It is shown that the change in these parameters is independent of lens shape and relates only to material properties. Thermalized hybrid refractive/diffractive designs are discussed.