METHOD FOR FORMING OPTICAL ELEMENT

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for forming an optical element which gives an optical element without cloudiness in press forming and contributes to the improvement in yield and the improvement in productivity.

SOLUTION: The method for forming an optical element includes a heating process which heats and softens an optical material in holding a bismuth-based optical material in a mold for an optical element which pressurizes a heated and softened optical material which is placed on the lower mold in making a pair of an upper mold and a lower mold whose opposed surfaces are made into the molding surfaces of the optical element approach mutually, a pressing process which pressurizes the softened optical material in using pressing means by the mold for an optical element and gives an optical element shape, and a cooling process which cools after the pressing process and solidifies the optical material to which the optical element shape is given, where before the press forming, by a heat-treating apparatus 1, the optical material is heat-treated by a heater 3 at a temperature at which the viscosity of optical material 50 becomes within a range of 1×107-1×1010dPa s.

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