Polymer Stabilized Paraboloid Liquid Crystal Microlenses with Integrated Pancharatnam–Berry Phase
Abstract
Aspheric lenses reduce aberration and provide sharper images with improved spot size compared to spherical lenses. This paper demonstrates that applying shear flow can produce plano‐concave liquid crystal (LC) lens arrays with paraboloid aspheric profiles. The focal length of individual lenses, with a 0.2 mm aperture, decreases from 0.67 to 0.45 mm as the chiral dopant increases from 0 to 6 wt%. The focal length is also sensitive to the polarization state of the incoming light. The lenses are stabilized by photopolymerizing with 6 wt% of reactive monomer added to the LC. A qualitative explanation for the flow‐induced lens formation and the optical properties of the lenses is provided. The potential tunability of the lenses in various fields and their use as paraboloid reflectors are discussed.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Nov 19, 2021
- Source ID
- 10.1002/adom.202101510
Entities
People
- Antal Jákli
- Elizabeth Mann
- Haputhanhtrige Nilanthi Padmini
- Kelum Perera
Organizations
- Kent State University
- National Science Foundation
- Office of Science
- United States Department of Energy