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Thread: Optima lenses

  1. #1
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    Default Optima lenses

    Is any one familiar with this company's products? They have a couple of aspheric and multi-element collimnator lenses that look promising for red diodes. I just finished comparing the power output from a LPC-815 diode with both the Aixiz glass and the plastic lenses and both reduced the raw output of the diode to 68% when inserted into the beam. The beam diameter exiting the lens was similar and matched the clear aperture of each lens and so I am assuming they are acting as aperture stops. The divergence in both cases was very good with the glass slightly better ie. 5mm at the lens and 5mm-6mm at 7M and no waist. The beam remained the same diameter over the full length. I'm just concerned with this much power loss. Any suggestions?

  2. #2
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    Yes. I have tested them and they are perfect if you want stack 4 diodes. I build a quad with the glass aspheric lens that has an FL of 4. Good quality and reasonable priced. The diameter is 6.4 mm and the beam is excellent. I send Magnus 4 and there are more members that need them so if anyone wants to do a groupbuy. Please do

  3. #3
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    A groupbuy would be cool.
    I also need some good lenses for my, 658,640 and 445nm laser diodes
    ^^
    So Pllllllleeeeeaaaassseee start one

  4. #4
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    The 405g2 lenses are the best for blue. For red without a telescope the optima are are a good choice. With a telescope i suggest a longer FL of 8 with a telescope between 3 and 4 reduction. If you go plastic fit them in a metal barrel

  5. #5
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    This sounds great! My projector build is pretty large and to generate sufficient red I am designing a 2 D heat sink in order to allow an array of 4x5 diodes in a compact package. So if these lenses are good in terms of exit diameter, divergence and efficiency then I can certainly jump start a group buy with 20 mounted sets. Note that these lenses have a 6.4mm dia. and the threaded mount (and if you want it the tap) supplied by Optima has a 0.375x64 thread which is extremely close to, but not exactly, 9mm. Is any one familiar with this thread and will a 8.5mm tap drill work in aluminum? Interestingly, in a pursuit of ever more power I have run some tests of extreme cooling of these diodes down to -45C ( hence the interest in a compact and easily insulated and thermally isolated heat sink ) and found that plastic lenses are right out with substantial image shift (probably the plastic mount) and focus drift. My concern with the 8mm Fl lens is that it might suffer like the Aixiz glass in that it might lack sufficient aperture at the 8mm spacing. Then again maybe not. Has anyone used them? Finally, in the back and forth re. exit beam size vs. telescope demagnification any adjustment of the small knife edge mounts is magnified by the telescope just as is beam divergence so at this point I am aiming at moderation in exit beam size and telescope power

  6. #6
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    are we talking about these lenses?

    http://www.optima-prec.com/molded.htm
    "its called character briggs..."

  7. #7
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    You could also use aixiz triple lenses. They have a fl of about 8 and are only 5 dollars i think. Only when using a telescope.

    Triple lenses have more losses then a single lens. There for i prefer lenses like optima. Same with the blue diodes. The 405g2 lens in combination with a prism pair is the best way to collimate the blue beam. However an O-like lens has good results but the beam at aperture is about 5x5 instead of 3x3 .

  8. #8
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    They also sell that lens as a bare glass element, you can then couple this with a bare Aixiz metal lens tube and it will screw in to Dave's and many other diode mounts; it is listed as £17 as a bare lens.
    http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/3985/laser.gif

    Doc's website

    The Health and Safety Act 1971

    Recklessly interfering with Darwin’s natural selection process, thereby extending the life cycle of dim-witted ignorami; thus perpetuating and magnifying the danger to us all, by enabling them to breed and walk amongst us, our children and loved ones.





  9. #9
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    Yes that's the lens. I like it very much. Essentially zero loss vs. raw output or seen another way 50% greater output than Aixiz lens. 2mmx3mm exit beam with 0.5mrad divergence. I use it as supplied in their 3/8 x 64 thd. mount in a custom mount so I use their supplied tap.

  10. #10
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    the only problem i see is the 200usd minimum order value they state in their website
    or is this not the case?
    "its called character briggs..."

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