Guest Editorial Conial Optical Element Metrology

A conference on Conical Optical Element Metrology, Thomas R. Ferguson, Chairman; Marek J. Konopnicki, Co-chairman, was held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on June 24-25, 1981. The purpose of the conference was to provide a forum for presentation and discussion of work on measurement of surface properties of conical optical elements. An underlying motivation for the conference was the need for developing new techniques for metrology used in the fabrication, polishing, coating, and final testing of the conical elements designed for current and future high energy laser cylindrical resonators. The conference was organized in May and June by personnel from the Advanced Resonator/Optics Branch of the Advanced Radiation Technology Office at the Air Force Weapons Laboratory (AFWL) and was announced mainly by a hastily assembled telephone and mailing list. As a consequence, most of the papers presenting results of testing of conical optical elements arose from current Air Force programs. However, the scope of the conference included current and potentially applicable measurement methods, and many authors discussed the problems associated with adapting conventional methods to highly curved surfaces.