Abstract:
A
Φ450 mm primary mirror subsystem of a space-based astronomy telescope was designed with mass, optical surface distortion and reflectivity requirement. The open-back primary mirror was made of pressure-less sintering silicon carbide, light-weighted at a ratio of approximately 70%. Three side supporting invar flexure bipods were designed to minimize the assembling stress and the thermal stress. The high reflection was obtained from the optical surface cementite. The mirror weighted 7 kg and the reflectivity was 98% after optical polishing. The mirror subsystem was precisely assembled under the strict technical condition. The optical test with interferometer show that the optical surface distortion is less than 0.02
λ RMS, which meet the critical optical requirements for the primary mirror of the space-based astronomy telescope.