Freeform optics have the ability to be used in design to reduce optical system size and improve performance for asymmetric systems, but present new challenges for manufacturing, testing, and assembly compared to spherical or aspheric systems. We investigated the effects of alignment errors on freeform surfaces on both a surface and system level. We will show how different levels of departure, from mild to wild, can affect the magnitude of these errors, as well as discuss different ways to mitigate these errors in the manufacturing, testing, and assembly processes.
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