Cleaning Nomarski condenser prisms

pwnell · Post by **pwnell** » Fri Aug 22, 2014 9:48 pm

I found some dirt on one of my Nomarski objective prisms and tried to clean it using Eclipse fluid and a pec pad - the same stuff I use to clean my objectives after using oil, as well as my camera lenses. However, I found that it seem to have worsen the surface - it almost look scratched / soiled.

How do one clean these delicate prisms?

Sam236 · Post by **Sam236** » Fri Aug 22, 2014 11:14 pm

hi

for me, I wrap a fraction of kimwipes around a cotton swab and add a few drops of 91% isopropyl alcohol. I use this combination to clean the lens of the objectives as well as the filters. dic components rarely gets dirt because they have less contact with the enviroment, I usually clean them once about every 2 month. isopropyl, like all other cleaning chemicals does do some damage to the lens, so i don't clean the lens very frequently.

hope this helps. Sam

lothman · Post by **lothman** » Sat Aug 23, 2014 4:50 am

http://www.gletscherbruch.de/foto/senso ... aning.html

Perl · Post by **Perl** » Mon Aug 25, 2014 1:44 am

Hi
I Always use Zeiss Lens Clening kit
work perfect

http://www.fpoint.co.uk/ViewProdDetails ... name=Zeiss Lens Cleaning Kit

Regards
Pär

discomorphella · Post by **discomorphella** » Mon Aug 25, 2014 2:39 am

Olympus rep reccomends 1:1 diethyl ether / absolute ethanol. The Et2O is stable in 1:1 mixture of ethanol (DONT LET IT EVAPORATE, period. Get a very good cone seal qorpak or similar bottle). That works well for me, in a well ventilated area, with gloves (nitrile, and you want them so you don't extract oil from your fingers as well as for chemical safety) and safety glasses. I made an alternative mixture using absolute (electronic grade) isopropanol and freon degreaser from Miller Stephenson. Its a lot less volatile and much less flammable. Edmund Industrial Optics has a decent lens cleaner made of butyl cellosolve and 2-propanol that has worked well too. They also sell high quality lens tissue.
In my experience with discrete delicate optics (which is over 30 years as a spectroscopist) one is better off not regarding them as objective or camera lenses, but as more delicate optical components. The only way I clean for example 193 nm optics, is to place a sheet of clean Berkshire LensX 90 or similar high grade lens tissue over the optic, add a drop of solvent and then gently drag the lens tissue off the optic, cleaning and drying in one motion with no more than the weight of the solvent-wetted lens tissue applied. You can use reagent grade solvents if you cant find the electronic grade (ppb residue grade made for the semiconductor industry). Be sure to blow any dust off the optic first before cleaning.

David

Perl · Post by **Perl** » Mon Aug 25, 2014 3:00 am

well i Think you should avoid alcohol as much
as posible if there are any cemented lenses

to Clean only glass its no problem

I have cleaned a lost of optics with Zeiss Lens cleaning stuff

Take the advice or leave it

pwnell · Post by **pwnell** » Mon Aug 25, 2014 9:06 pm

Thanks, will see which of these methods I can attempt.