Method for producing micro-optical components
AssigneeMicroFab Technologies, Inc.
InventorsDonald J. Hayes, W. Royall Cox
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for direct printing of micro-optical components (82) onto optical substrates (84) or active devices to create optical circuit elements as well as micro-optical components and systems, such as plano-convex circular, cylindrical or square lenslets, anamorphic lenslets, waveguides, couplers, mixers and switches and monolithic lenses deposited directly onto optical components such as diode lasers and optical fibers. The method provides a means for precisely depositing a wide range of materials in a wide variety of shapes for fabricating a full range of passive and active micro-optic devices.
Claims4
A method for producing micro-optical components, comprising the steps of:
- (a) maintaining an optical element forming material in a liquid state in an ejection chamber;
- (b) transferring said liquid optical element forming material from said ejection chamber to an ejection device;
- (c) maintaining said optical element forming material in a liquid state in said ejection device, said optical element forming material having a viscosity of less than 20 centipoise at a temperature of from 100.degree. to 200.degree. C. in said ejection device;
- and
- (d) ejecting drops of said liquid optical element forming material from said ejection device to a surface to be wetted.
A method for producing micro-optical components, comprising the steps of:
- (a) maintaining an optical element forming material in a liquid state in an ejection chamber;
- (b) transferring said liquid optical element forming material from said ejection chamber to an ejection device;
- and
- (c) ejecting drops of said liquid optical element forming material from said ejection device to a surface to be wetted
- wherein said surface to be wetted comprises an end of an optical fiber, wherein said optical fiber has a diameter of from 50 to 300 .mu.m and wherein multiple drops of said optical element forming material are deposited on said end of said optical fiber to produce a microlens having a radius of curvature that varies with the number of drops of said optical element forming material deposited.
A method for producing micro-optical components, comprising the steps of:
- (a) maintaining an optical element forming material in a liquid state in an ejection chamber;
- (b) transferring said liquid optical element forming material from said ejection chamber to an election device;
- and
- (c) ejecting drops of said liquid optical element forming material from said election device to a surface to be wetted, wherein said micro-optical components are plano-convex microlenses and wherein adjacent drops of said liquid optical element forming material ejected from said ejection device to said surface to be wetted coalesce into a single elliptical droplet prior to solidification to form a plano-convex hemi-elliptical microlens.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.