NEWS 15 December 2024
Working with LEM and FEM for mitigating thermal drift
The phenomenon of thermal drift compromises precision as a result of thermal expansion or contraction of components, caused by small variations in temperature.
Various mitigation strategies exist to minimise the effect of thermal drift on precision. Through modelling of thermal systems, the magnitude of thermal drift and the effectiveness of mitigation strategies can be predicted, using for example the lumped-element method (LEM) or the finite-element method (FEM), as described in this Mikroniek article. (Image courtesy of Demcon multiphysics)
![](https://www.dspe.nl/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/DSPE-site_Thermal_drift_Demcon_multiphysics_-_Figure_6_Lasers_mirror_block1-1024x436.png)