Tunable-Focus Liquid Lens through Charge Injection

Liquid lenses are the simplest and cheapest optical lenses, and various studies have been conducted to develop tunable-focus liquid lenses. In this study, a simple and easily implemented method for achieving tunable-focus liquid lenses was proposed and experimentally validated. In this method, charg...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Shizhi Qian, Wenxiang Shi, Huai Zheng, Zhaohui Liu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2020-01-01
Series:Micromachines
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2072-666X/11/1/109
Description
Summary:Liquid lenses are the simplest and cheapest optical lenses, and various studies have been conducted to develop tunable-focus liquid lenses. In this study, a simple and easily implemented method for achieving tunable-focus liquid lenses was proposed and experimentally validated. In this method, charges induced by a corona discharge in the air were injected into dielectric liquid, resulting in “electropressure” at the interface between the air and the liquid. Through a 3D-printed U-tube structure, a tunable-focus liquid lens was fabricated and tested. Depending on the voltage, the focus of the liquid lens can be adjusted in large ranges (−∞ to −9 mm and 13.11 mm to ∞). The results will inspire various new liquid-lens applications.
ISSN:2072-666X