Abstract

In describing the laminar flow mirrors, a general comparison between laminar flow cooling and turbulent flow cooling shows that the two cooling techniques can achieve comparable mirror thermal performance. However, the cooling flow rates required for the laminar flow mirrors can be significantly reduced. The emphasis of reducing the hydraulic diameter as the primary scheme to increase the film transfer coefficient in the laminar flow cooling technique is significantly different from that employed in conventional turbulent cooling, which relies on high fluid velocity to achieve the same objective. The fabrication technology of such laminar flow mirrors is being developed.

© 1988 Optical Society of America