Near Net Shape Forming of AlON or Spinel

Within the next three years, the Joint Common Missile will be transitioned to full-scale production. Total U.S. procurements are anticipated to be in excess of 60,000 units over several years, requiring production of the specialized optical/RF seeker dome components at rates of 200 per week. Currently, the cost of finished seeker domes in quantity is projected to be over $15,000 each, which is a substantial part of the cost of the overall seeker system cost. Near net-shape AlON dome blanks of optical quality are needed to reduce the cost of the seeker domes in time for JCM production. The primary aim of this proposed work is to develop and demonstrate a cost-effective, near net shape process for manufacturing high quality aluminum oxynitride (AlON) domes for JCM and other high performance optical window applications. Phase I has successfully demonstrated two near-net shape molding processes capable of producing AlON domes. Phase II will scale up the Phase I process to produce full size domes with the required optical properties; demonstrate reduced cost for finished domes and prepare a production plan for Joint Common Missile dome manufacturing under Phase III.