High-throughput plastic microlenses fabricated using microinjection molding techniques

Sreeram Appasamy; Weizhuo Li; Se Hwan Lee; Joseph T. Boyd; Chong Hyuk Ahn

doi:10.1117/1.2149350

1 December 2005 High-throughput plastic microlenses fabricated using microinjection molding techniques

Sreeram Appasamy, Weizhuo Li, Se Hwan Lee, Joseph T. Boyd, Chong Hyuk Ahn

Author Affiliations +

Optical Engineering, Vol. 44, Issue 12, 123401 (December 2005). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.2149350

Abstract

A novel fabrication scheme to develop high-throughput plastic microlenses using injection-molding techniques is realized. The initial microlens mold is fabricated using the well-known reflow technique. The reflow process is optimized to obtain reliable and repeatable microlens patterns. The master mold insert for the injection-molding process is fabricated using metal electroforming. The electroplating process is optimized for obtaining a low stress electroform. Two new plastic materials, cyclo olefin copolymer (COC) and Poly IR 2 are introduced in this work for fabricating microlenses. The plastic microlenses have been characterized for their focal lengths that range from 200 µm to 1.9 mm. This technique enables high-volume production of plastic microlenses with cycle times for a single chip being of the order of 60 s.

©(2005) Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)

Citation Download Citation

Sreeram Appasamy, Weizhuo Li, Se Hwan Lee, Joseph T. Boyd, and Chong Hyuk Ahn "High-throughput plastic microlenses fabricated using microinjection molding techniques," Optical Engineering 44(12), 123401 (1 December 2005). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.2149350

Published: 1 December 2005

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