Air bearings enable smooth ‘nano-postitioning’
The A-62x PIglide Series of rotary air bearings have no rolling or sliding elements, and deliver frictionless, non-contact motion. This is said to result in negligible reversal error, and to provide greater stability over straightness, wobble, eccentricity and velocity changes. Air bearings replace mechanical contact by a thin film of air. This air layer is completely frictionless, eliminating breakaway stiction and drag friction during operation. The PIglide RM motorized rotary air bearing stages offer a complete “nano-positioning solution,” according to the company. These rotary positioners can handle speeds to 2,500 rpm, and ensure extreme precision with radial motion errors as low as±50 nm, axial runout as low as±50 nm, and tilt errors down to 0.3 arc-sec, and they require no maintenance or lubrication, says the company. — Physik Instruments (PI), Auburn, Mass.