Members of the IOM working group “Ion Beam-Assisted Structuring and Smoothing” visited scia Systems in Chemnitz last Thursday. The visit focused on the exchange of technical expertise and a discussion of the latest findings in the field of ion beam-assisted surface processing.

In addition, the IOM colleagues gained insights into the cleanrooms at scia Systems. A particular highlight was the tour of the RIBF1000 system, which is still under construction; it is currently being manufactured for the IOM and is scheduled to be installed at the institute in December 2026.

The system is being funded and procured as part of an infrastructure initiative by the Sächsische Aufbaubank (SAB) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). With this, the IOM is specifically expanding its research and development capabilities in the field of precision optical processing. Ion beam-assisted technologies for shaping, smoothing, and structuring optical surfaces are considered key technologies for the manufacture of high-precision optical components. In the future, the new system will be used to address both application-oriented and basic research questions related to reactive ion beam etching.

The focus includes, among other things, optical components for high-performance applications, such as anti-reflective structures or pulse compression gratings for high-power laser systems. Such components are of great importance for future technologies such as laser fusion. The new system creates the conditions for further developing machining processes with particularly high precision and for structuring optical surfaces to a new level of quality.

The visit to scia Systems thus provided an important opportunity to observe the progress of the system’s construction firsthand, discuss technical details with the system developers, and further deepen the exchange between research and industry.