Abstract: A Virtually Imaged Phased Array (VIPA) contains a separate, precision-machined optical surface that forms one surface of the internal etalon and a boundary of the “radiation window,” in order to more easily achieve the optical-mechanical tolerances necessary for desired performance. VIPA design known to the prior art requires that a high reflective (mirror) optical coating be applied to a portion of a face of a plate of glass with a very sharp and well controlled boundary line across the surface while the remainder has an AR coating. This is difficult under the state of the art. In the disclosed VIPA, the required sharp boundary can be the machined physical edge of a plate of material (instead of the edge of a coating), which can be very precisely cut and controlled using common optical techniques. The disclosed VIPA is more easily manufactured than those known to the state of the art, and therefore is practical for applications such as the dispersing element in a chromatic dispersion compensator.