Optical element, metal mold for producing optical element and production method for optical element

An optical element including a substrate made of an optical material and a lens supported on said substrate, characterized in that:

• said substrate is formed by a transparent material of a first refractive index,
• said lens is formed as a lens obtained by filling a concave portion formed in one surface of said substrate with a transparent material having a second refractive index different from said transparent material,
• a surface of said substrate on said lens side is formed with floating use rails integral with said substrate, and
• the surface of said substrate on said lens side is coated with a protective film made of a transparent material having a higher hardness than said transparent material forming said substrate and containing carbon as a principle component.

An optical element including a substrate made of an optical material and a lens supported on said substrate, characterized in that:

• said substrate includes first and second substrates formed by transparent materials,
• said lens is formed as a lens obtained by filling a concave portion having a first curvature formed in one surface of said first substrate with a transparent material having a second refractive index different from the refractive index of the transparent material forming said first substrate,
• said second substrate is made of a transparent material having a higher hardness than said transparent material for forming said first substrate,
• the surface is arranged so as to face the surface of said first substrate on said lens side and closely adhere with said first substrate,
• floating use rails are formed on the surface of said second substrate on an opposite side to said first substrate integrally with said second substrate, and
• the surface of said second substrate on said floating rail side is coated with a transparent protective film having a higher hardness than said transparent material forming said second substrate and containing carbon as a principal component.

A production use mold of an optical element made of an optical material, characterized by comprising:

• a cavity to be filled with said optical material in a molten state or a softened state,
• a first pin forming a convex portion or a concave portion with respect to said optical material in said cavity, and
• a second pin for forming a positioning use mark at said optical material in said cavity, wherein
• said first pin penetrates through a wall of said cavity from the outside,
• a front end of said first pin has a concave shape sunken with a first curvature at its center, and
• said second pin penetrates through the wall of said cavity from the outside.

A method of producing an optical element using a disk-like first substrate formed with a plurality of first lenses and a plurality of positioning use first marks and made of an optical material and a disk-like second substrate formed with a plurality of second lenses corresponding to said plurality of first lenses and a plurality of positioning use second marks corresponding to said plurality of positioning use first marks and made of an optical material to produce an optical element,

• said method for producing an optical element characterized in that:
• an arrangement of center positions of said plurality of first lenses and the positions of said plurality of first marks on the surface of said disk-like first substrate coincides with the arrangement of center positions of said corresponding plurality of second lenses and the positions of said plurality of second marks on the surface of said disk-like second substrate and in that
• the method includes:
• a step of bonding said first and second substrates so that said first and second marks are superimposed and
• a step of separating said bonded first and second substrates into individual optical elements comprised by said first and second lenses.

A method of producing an optical element including a substrate made of an optical material and a lens supported on said substrate,

• said method for producing an optical element characterized by including the steps:
• preparing a transparent substrate having a lens formed by filling a concave portion of one surface with a transparent material,
• forming a photoresist film on the surface of said substrate at said lens side,
• patterning said lens portion and said photoresist film to the shape of a support by photolithography,
• dry etching said surface of said substrate using said photoresist film as a mask to form grooves,
• removing said photoresist film to obtain said optical element, and
• coating the surface of said lens side of said substrate with a protective film having a higher hardness than said transparent material forming said substrate and containing carbon as a principle component.

A method of producing an optical element including a substrate made of an optical material and a lens supported on said substrate,

• said method for producing an optical element characterized by including the steps of:
• preparing a transparent first substrate having a lens formed by filling a concave portion of one surface with a transparent material,
• depositing on the surface on said lens side of said first substrate a transparent material having a higher hardness than said first substrate to obtain a second substrate closely adhered to said first substrate,
• forming a photoresist film on the surface of said second substrate at the side opposite to said first substrate,
• patterning said photoresist film to the shape of floating use rails by photolithography,
• dry etching said surface of said second substrate using said photoresist mask as a mask to form grooves in said surface of said second substrate,
• then removing said photoresist film to obtain said optical element.

A method of producing an optical element including a substrate made of an optical material and a lens supported on said substrate,

• said method for producing an optical element characterized in that:
• said optical element is formed by bonding with a transparent first substrate having a lens formed by filling a concave portion of one surface with a transparent material a second substrate made of a transparent material having a higher hardness than said first substrate while making its surface face the surface on said lens side of said first substrate and in that it comprises the steps of:
• forming a photoresist film on the surface of said second substrate on the opposite side to said first substrate before bonding said second substrate to said first substrate or after bonding said second substrate to said first substrate,
• patterning said photoresist film to the shape of floating use rails by photolithography,
• dry etching said surf ace of said second substrate using said photoresist mask as a mask to form grooves in said surface of said second substrate,
• then removing said photoresist film to obtain said optical element.