A novel method for fabrication of self-aligned double microlens arrays

Based on the excimer laser microdrilling and the spin coating scheme, a new fabrication method of polymeric, double microlens arrays on a thin plastic pedestal sheet is proposed in this study. On each through hole on the pedestal sheet, a double microlens pair, consisting of two microlenses with different parabolic surfaces, is sited. The two microlenses of each pair are located respectively on both ends of the through hole and arranged surface to surface and automatically share a common lens principal axis. The fabricated microlens arrays are made of PMMA that are formed on a PMMA pedestal sheet with thickness of 100 μm. The diameter and height for the microlens on one layer are of 150 μm and 28 μm, respectively, and they are correspondingly of 130 μm and 24 μm on the other layer. Experimental results demonstrate that the double microlens arrays have a better focusing property than the single-layer mircolens array. Simulation results indicate that, simply by changing the thickness of the pedestal sheet, the present fabricated double microlens arrays can serve the purposes for light collimating and diffusing. Due to its inherent simplicity in fabrication, the present method has high flexibility for making double microlens arrays with different lens configurations and various lens refractive indices. The facts that precise alignment and all processing steps are performed in ambient and at low temperature render the proposed approach a potential low-cost method for fabrication of double microlens arrays.