Dove Prism

Dove Prism

Named for its inventor Harting Dove, dove prisms (with antireflection coatings on the ends) completely invert an image by 180 degrees. If the prism is rotated about its axis the image will rotate at twice the rate of rotation of the prism.

The Dove Prism is also called Image Rotator. The prism rotates the image without changing the direction of the input beam, which is parallel to hypotenuse. Rotation of the prisms in relation to the subject causes double rotations of the image. Dove Prism should be used in the parallel beam. A-STAR also offers Dove prisms AR coated on the hypotenuse for use in beam-folding applications. As the S1 and S2 sides are used in a total internal reflection (TIR) manner, it is extremely important to keep these two surfaces clean.

dove-prism-01dove-prism-02
90° Deflection                                                               180° Deflection
Dove Prism Specifications:

AttributeSpecification
Material:N-BK7 Grade A optical glass
Dimension Tolerance:+0.0/-0.2mm
Deviation:3 arc min.
Flatness:λ/2@632.8nm
Clear Aperture:>80%(Small Size),>95%(Large Size)
Surface Quality:60/40
Bevel:0.1-0.5
Coating:Uncoated

Note: Dimension and specification are available upon customer’s requests.

Named for its inventor Harting Dove, dove prisms (with antireflection coatings on the ends) completely invert an image by 180 degrees. If the prism is rotated about its axis the image will rotate at twice the rate of rotation of the prism. Dove prisms provide a convenient and precise method of rotating a beam. The long length and square profile makes them easy to mount in a cylindrical sleeve.

Dove prisms need to be used with collimated or near-collimated beams because of the very limited field of view. When used as an image inverting prism the hypotenuse face acts as a TIR surface and is therefore normally not coated. Therefore, it is important to keep this surface clean.

A-STAR also offers Dove prisms AR coated on the hypotenuse for use in beam-folding applications. As the S1 and S2 sides are used in a total internal reflection (TIR) manner, it is extremely important to keep these two surfaces clean.

Material: ———————————BK7 Grade A optical glass
Dimension Tolerance: ————–+0.0, -0.2 mm
Clear Aperture: ———————–>80%
Angle Tolerance: ——————–± 3 arc minutes
Flatness:——————————– l/2 @633 nm
Surface Quality:———————- 60-40 scratch and dig
Bevel: ———————————–0.2 mm to 0.5 mm
Coating:———————————Uncoated

Optical Dove Prism

Image Rotation of 180°
Left Handed Image
Ideal for Rotation or Displaced Retroreflection


Dove prisms have an unusual and very interesting characteristic — if you look through the prism and rotate it around a longitudinal axis, the image rotates through twice the angle through which the dove prism itself rotates.

Fused silica K9 BK7 dove optical prism for image rotation and beam steering 180 degrees

Description for dove optical prism

The dove optical prism is used to perform image rotation, dove optical prism can also be used to realize the beam 180 degree turn.