Adaptive liquid lens actuated by photo-polymer.

An adaptive liquid lens actuated by a photo-polymer is demonstrated. The lens cell consists of a top glass substrate and a bottom plastic slab with two holes: reservoir hole and lens hole, which are sealed with elastic membranes. A photo-sensitive polymer is attached to the membrane of the reservoir hole. Under blue light irradiation, the polymer is bent which exerts a pressure to regulate the curvature of the membrane on the lens hole and then change the focal length of the plano-convex lens. The focal length is tunable from infinity to 21.2 mm in seconds. Non-mechanical driving, easy integration with other optical components and compact system are the key features of this lens.

Dielectric liquid microlens with well-shaped electrode.

A dielectric liquid microlens with a well-shaped electrode is demonstrated. The bottom well-shaped electrode and the top planar electrode induce an inhomogeneous electric field when a voltage is applied, which causes the focal length to change. Adaptive microlenses and microlens arrays with well-shaped electrode are fabricated and their performance is evaluated. The bi-convex structure introduces a larger optical power. Compared with common planar-electrodes liquid lenses, this well-shaped electrode not only inhibits drifting of the liquid but also reduces the operating voltage.

Broadband and polarization-independent beam steering using dielectrophoresis-tilted prism.

A broadband beam steering device using the dielectrophoresis-tilted prism of liquids is demonstrated. Dielectric force is utilized to slant the interface to imitate the refractive behavior of a prism. The steering angle increases as the applied voltage increases. Two dimensional beam steering is also successfully achieved by stacking two devices in orthogonal positions. The broadband feature is demonstrated using two collinear green and red laser beams.