High quality diffractive optical elements (DOEs) using SMILE imprint technique

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Drieschner ◽  
Fabian Kloiber ◽  
Marc Hennemeyer ◽  
Jan J. Klein ◽  
Manuel W. Thesen

Abstract Augmented reality (AR) enhancing the existing natural environment by overlaying a virtual world is an emerging and growing market and attracts huge commercial interest into optical devices which can be implemented into head-mounted AR equipment. Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) are considered as the most promising candidate to meet the market’s requirements such as compactness, low-cost, and reliability. Hence, they allow building alternatives to large display headsets for virtual reality (VR) by lightweight glasses. Soft lithography replication offers a pathway to the fabrication of large area DOEs with high aspect ratios, multilevel features, and critical dimensions below the diffractive optical limit down to 50 nm also in the scope of mass manufacturing. In combination with tailored UV-curable photopolymers, the fabrication time can be drastically reduced making it very appealing to industrial applications. Here, we illustrate the key features of high efficiency DOEs and how the SMILE (SUSS MicroTec Imprint Lithography Equipment) technique can be used with advanced imprint photopolymers to obtain high quality binary DOEs meeting the market’s requirements providing a very versatile tool to imprint both nano- and microstructures.

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ziqian He ◽  
Kun Yin ◽  
Shin-Tson Wu

AbstractNon-mechanical beam steerers with lightweight, compact, high-efficiency, high-precision, and/or large-angle are pivotal for light detection and ranging (LiDAR) of autonomous vehicles, eye-tracking for near-eye displays, microscopy, optical tweezers, and high-precision three-dimensional (3D) printing. However, even the most matured optical phased array can only provide quasi-continuous, efficient beam steering within a small angle range. A telescope module with an angle magnification function can be coupled to enlarge the steering range or precision. But obtaining a compact, low-cost, lightweight, high-quality telescope module with conventional optics remains challenging. Patterned liquid crystal-based planar optical elements offer great design freedom for manipulating the phase profile of light in 2D space. Owing to the advantages of high efficiency, thinness, low cost, easy processing, flexibility, and response to environmental stimuli, a plethora of high-quality optical devices have been demonstrated. Here, a miniature planar telescope mediated by liquid crystal polymers is proposed to offer angle magnification independent of incident spatial location. It consists of two cascaded liquid crystal planar optical elements, each performing a predefined mathematical transformation. By this concept, planar optical elements are fabricated using a new exposure method and assembled into planar telescopes with different magnification factors. Within the incident field range, over 84.6% optical efficiency is achieved with small wavefront distortion. Such a miniature planar telescope shows the potential of cascaded liquid crystal planar optical elements for realizing functionalities that cannot be fulfilled by single optical elements, and enables lightweight, low loss, passive optical transmitters for widespread applications.


Micromachines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 1392
Author(s):  
Filippo Amadeo ◽  
Prithviraj Mukherjee ◽  
Hua Gao ◽  
Jian Zhou ◽  
Ian Papautsky

Fabrication of microfluidic devices by soft lithography is by far the most popular approach due to its simplicity and low cost. The approach relies on casting of elastomers, such as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), on masters fabricated from photoresists on silicon substrates. These masters, however, can be expensive, complicated to fabricate, and fragile. Here we describe an optimized replica molding approach to preserve the original masters by heat molding of polycarbonate (PC) sheets on PDMS molds. The process is faster and simpler than previously reported methods and does not result in a loss of resolution or aspect ratio for the features. The generated PC masters were used to successfully replicate a wide range of microfluidic devices, including rectangular channels with aspect ratios from 0.025 to 7.3, large area spiral channels, and micropost arrays with 5 µm spacing. Moreover, fabrication of rounded features, such as semi-spherical microwells, was possible and easy. Quantitative analysis of the replicated features showed variability of <2%. The approach is low cost, does not require cleanroom setting or hazardous chemicals, and is rapid and simple. The fabricated masters are rigid and survive numerous replication cycles. Moreover, damaged or missing masters can be easily replaced by reproduction from previously cast PDMS replicas. All of these advantages make the PC masters highly desirable for long-term preservation of soft lithography masters for microfluidic devices.


2018 ◽  
Vol 170 ◽  
pp. 07010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladimir D. Ryzhikov ◽  
Sergei V. Naydenov ◽  
Thierry Pochet ◽  
Gennadiy M. Onyshchenko ◽  
Leonid A. Piven ◽  
...  

We have developed and evaluated a new approach to fast neutron and neutron-gamma detection based on large-area multilayer composite heterogeneous detection media consisting of dispersed granules of small-crystalline scintillators contained in a transparent organic (plastic) matrix. Layers of the composite material are alternated with layers of transparent plastic scintillator material serving as light guides. The resulting detection medium – designated as ZEBRA – serves as both an active neutron converter and a detection scintillator which is designed to detect both neutrons and gamma-quanta. The composite layers of the ZEBRA detector consist of small heavy-oxide scintillators in the form of granules of crystalline BGO, GSO, ZWO, PWO and other materials. We have produced and tested the ZEBRA detector of sizes 100x100x41 mm and greater, and determined that they have very high efficiency of fast neutron detection (up to 49% or greater), comparable to that which can be achieved by large sized heavy-oxide single crystals of about Ø40x80 cm3 volume. We have also studied the sensitivity variation to fast neutron detection by using different types of multilayer ZEBRA detectors of 100 cm2 surface area and 41 mm thickness (with a detector weight of about 1 kg) and found it to be comparable to the sensitivity of a 3He-detector representing a total cross-section of about 2000 cm2 (with a weight of detector, including its plastic moderator, of about 120 kg). The measured count rate in response to a fast neutron source of 252Cf at 2 m for the ZEBRA-GSO detector of size 100x100x41 mm3 was 2.84 cps/ng, and this count rate can be doubled by increasing the detector height (and area) up to 200x100 mm2. In summary, the ZEBRA detectors represent a new type of high efficiency and low cost solid-state neutron detector that can be used for stationary neutron/gamma portals. They may represent an interesting alternative to expensive, bulky gas counters based on 3He or 10B neutron detection technologies.


Author(s):  
Shuzo Masui ◽  
Masaki Michihata ◽  
Kiyoshi Takamasu ◽  
Satoru Takahashi

Abstract Functional optical elements based on nano/micro-periodic structures have attracted much attention. Since the fabrication of these dual-periodic structures requires precise control of periodicity, the semiconductor process such as an electron beam lithography has been mainly employed. However, these techniques have problems with expensive and low throughput for industrial applications. Therefore, there remains a need for low cost and high throughput fabrication methods of dual-periodic structures. Then we developed a multi-exposure interference lithography (MEIL) system using rotational Lloyd’s mirror interferometer to overcome these problems. The advantages of interference lithography are a large processing area and low cost. Our developed rotational Lloyd’s mirror setup enables us to a highly precise superposition of multiple interference fringes by multi-exposure. Furthermore, we developed a measurement setup for reflective diffractive elements using a two axial rotating stage and measured the diffraction properties of the fabricated dual-periodic diffraction gratings. In this paper, as a demonstration, we succeeded in the fabrication of high-dispersion diffraction grating with an enhanced diffraction efficiency of the −3rd order light. The fabricated shapes have a periodicity of 1997 nm and 665 nm. Furthermore, it was confirmed that the intensity of the −3rd order light was enhanced by about 10 times compared to the single periodic grating.


MRS Advances ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (43) ◽  
pp. 2947-2952
Author(s):  
L. Chen ◽  
Z.-H. Lu ◽  
T.-M. Lu ◽  
I. Bhat ◽  
S.B. Zhang ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTEpitaxial Ge films are useful as a substrate for high-efficiency solar cell applications. It is possible to grow epitaxial Ge films on low cost, cube textured Ni(001) sheets using CaF2(001) as a buffer layer. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis indicates that the CaF2(001) lattice has a 45o in-plane rotation relative to the Ni(001) lattice. The in-plane epitaxy relationships are CaF2[110]//Ni[100] and CaF2[$\bar 1$10]//Ni[010]. Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) shows a sharp interface between Ge/CaF2 as well as between CaF2/Ni. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) shows that the Ge(001) film has a large grain size (∼50 μm) with small angle grain boundaries (< 8o). The epitaxial Ge thin film has the potential to be used as a substrate to grow high quality III-V and II-VI semiconductors for optoelectronic applications.


2011 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 195-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuele Gardin ◽  
Gioia Della Giustina ◽  
Giovanna Brusatin ◽  
Raffaella Signorini

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong Cheng ◽  
Longjun Xu ◽  
Chenglun Liu ◽  
Zao Jiang ◽  
Qiyuan Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract In this work, red mud was used as raw material to extract Al and Fe with hydrochloric acid. The high-efficiency polyaluminum iron chloride (PAFC) flocculant was prepared via adjusting the pH of the leaching solution, the molar ratio of aluminum and iron, and the polymerization temperature. The effect of synthesis and flocculation conditions on the flocculation performance of aged landfill leachate was investigated. The results confirmed that the PAFC prepared at the polymerization pH of 2.5, the Al/Fe molar ratio of 8, and the polymerization temperature of 70 °C had the optimum flocculation effect. The flocculation consequences of PAFC and commercial polyaluminum iron chloride flocculant (CPAFC) under different flocculation conditions were compared. The chemical oxygen demand (COD), UV254, chroma and settlement height of PAFC at flocculant concentration of 60 g/L and solution pH of 6 were 72.2%, 79.2%, 82.9% and 9.5 cm (within 90 min), respectively. PAFC has excellent flocculation performance and can be used as a simple, potentially low-cost wastewater treatment agent in industrial applications.


2018 ◽  
Vol 176 ◽  
pp. 01011
Author(s):  
YE Xin ◽  
JI Qian

The shared economy has been developing rapidly with low cost, low consumption and high environmental efficiency features under the background of internet waves. The shared economy model has emerged in housing, catering, and travel. As people look forward to high quality of life and their social interaction need, the shared kitchen platform arises at the right moment. This paper takes the shared kitchen as an example, focusing on the patients and their caregivers, the existing shared kitchens and its service platform as well as the space system design and human-computer interaction of the shared kitchen have been investigated and analysized. Taking the "high efficiency, the intelligence and the humanization" as the design principles, we are committed to exploring new directions for modular kitchen design under the background of shared economy.


2002 ◽  
Vol 715 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atsushi Masuda ◽  
Akira Izumi ◽  
Hironobu Umemoto ◽  
Hideki Matsumura

AbstractRapid progresses are achieved in catalytic CVD (Cat-CVD), often called hot-wire CVD, in the past 3-years NEDO national project in Japan. Cat-CVD technology presents many advantages in thin-film formation processes; high-efficiency of gas use, large-area deposition, no ion bombardment and low-temperature deposition even below 200°C. All of the elemental techniques for the industrially applicable Cat-CVD apparatuses, such as the suppression of the metal contamination, the precise control of the substrate temperature, the life extension of the catalyzer, 1-m size uniform deposition and the chamber cleaning, have been completely developed. Sophisticatedly designed substrate holder with electrostatic chuck and showerhead equipped with catalyzers are both key technologies for these achievements. High reproducibility for film properties is also obtained by controlling the reaction between high-density radicals and chamber walls. Prototype mass-production apparatus for SiNx passivation films in GaAs devices has been already developed and this will be probably the first application of Cat-CVD in industry. These recent movements appear to promise the drastic revolution in semiconductor and flat-panel display industries by introducing Cat-CVD in very near future.


2005 ◽  
Vol 498-499 ◽  
pp. 676-680 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.A. Fernandes ◽  
E.U.C. Frajndlich ◽  
Humberto Gracher Riella

The high pure synthetic zeolite have a large application in industry and agriculture, being nowadays in majority imported in Brazil. The biomass like rice hull ash (RHA), a rice industry waste, can be real advantageous in manufacture of different materials, since that is produced in large scale in the country. The silica extraction from RHA by alkaline leaching is a low energetic coast process and high efficiency, obtaining high pure silica with high reactive amorphous structure, very interesting for zeolite production. In this work was developed a economically feasible route for the production of high purity and crystallinity ZSM-5 zeolite, free of expensive template, starting from a low value intake, a industrial waste, producing a high value materials. The extracted silica from RHA in sodium silicate form is precipitated in the proper zeolite formation reactional mixture. The ZSM-5 have a lot of industrial applications due your high selectivity in catalytic reactions and high thermal and acid stability.


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