Design and mounting of prisms and small mirrors in optical instruments This Tutorial Text examines the various ways in which prisms and small mirrors typically are designed and mounted in optical instruments. It provides analytical tools for evaluating different designs and discusses advantages and disadvantages of various techniques. The book in part is an outgrowth of SPIE short courses taught by the author and is a companion to his 1995 volume Mounting Lenses in Optical Instruments (SPIE PRESS Vol. TT21). The book is intended for engineers designers technicians and other practitioners in the fields of optical engineering and optomechanical design Preface 1. Introduction 2. Attributes of the successful lens to mount interface 3. Prism design 4. Prism mounting techniques 5. Estimation of contact stresses in prisms 6. Small mirror design 7. Small mirror mounting techniques 8. Estimation of contact stresses in small mirrors 9. Descriptions of hardware examples Appendix A. Pertinent unit conversion factors Appendix B1. Extreme service environments Appendix B2. Vibration power spectral densities Appendix C. Selected mechanical properties of materials References Index