Chinese scientists develop world's largest SiC optical mirror

After 15 years of exploration and nine years of research, scientists at Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences successfully developed the world's largest aspherical silicon carbide (SiC) optical mirror - a high-precision SiC aspherical mirror with a diameter of 4.03 meters, Chinanews.com reported.

China owns all intellectual property rights of the core manufacturing equipment and techniques of the mirror, and it can be widely used in fields such as astronomical telescopes and spacecrafts, marking that China currently has the world-leading state-of-the-art technologies of large-diameter SiC aspherical optical mirrors.

Europe and US have long held monopoly in the manufacturing technology of large diameter SiC optical mirrors, so China had to develop the techniques independently, said Zhang Xuejun, deputy director at the institute, also the person in charge of the project.

Experts said the successful development of the integrated manufacturing system of the mirror and the independent ability of R&D will be gradually applied to various types of large optical equipment.

In this way, China will leapfrog in the manufacturing technology of large-caliber optical mirrors and greatly improve the development of large high-performance optical instruments in the nation.

Zhang said four-meter SiC aspherical reflectors will be used in major national engineering projects. At the same time, the project will continue to be applied to a number of national major basic research and engineering projects, such as the multi-functional optical facility of China's space station, and other key national R&D programs.