Title :
Reconfigurable liquid micro-lens system for variable fiber coupling
Author :
Shaik, Riyaz P. ; Monch, W. ; Krause, Holger ; Zappe, Hans
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Microsyst. Eng. - IMTEK, Univ. of Freiburg, Freiburg
Abstract :
A system capable of both two-dimensional lateral positioning and focusing of a liquid micro-lens for variable fiber coupling is presented. Lateral positioning and focus adjustment is accomplished by electrowetting-on-dielectrics. The chip is fabricated on a transparent Pyrex substrate and is equipped with a two dimensional array of electrodes featuring a well-defined microstructure which allows accurate positioning of the liquid micro-lens. The system is used as a variable optical fiber coupling element, and measurements of optical power coupled to a fiber as a function of the applied voltage are presented. Applications such as adaptive wave front sensing, optical tweezers, or three- dimensional focus control for microscopy are envisaged.
Keywords :
electro-optical devices; microlenses; optical attenuators; optical fabrication; optical fibre couplers; optical focusing; optical tuning; wetting; adaptive wave front sensing application; electrowetting-on-dielectrics; focus adjustment; microscopy; optical power coupling; optical tweezers application; reconfigurable liquid microlens system; three-dimensional focus control; transparent Pyrex substrate; two dimensional electrode array; two-dimensional lateral positioning; variable fiber coupling element; variable optical attenuator; Electrodes; Microstructure; Optical coupling; Optical fibers; Optical microscopy; Optical sensors; Power measurement; Programmable control; Semiconductor device measurement; Voltage; Liquid micro-lens; electrowetting on dielectrics; fiber coupling; variable optical attenuator;
Conference_Titel :
Optical MEMs and Nanophotonics, 2008 IEEE/LEOS Internationall Conference on
Conference_Location :
Freiburg
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4244-1917-3
Electronic_ISBN :
978-1-4244-1918-0
DOI :
10.1109/OMEMS.2008.4607805
