Diamond machining

Stephen C. Hobert

The removal of material from a substrate using a single crystal natural diamond cutting tool has been experimented with in the United States for over 4 0 years. However, the most significant advances in this technology have taken place in the last decade. Today, single point diamond turning is recognized as a well established, cost effective, and repeatable manufacturing process. A wide variety of optical components, as well as mechanical components requiring micro-inch dimensional tolerances, are produced through single point diamond turning.