Mechanically tunable photonic crystal lens

Y. Cui; V. A. Tamma; J.-B. Lee; W. Park

doi:10.1117/12.860627

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10 September 2010 Mechanically tunable photonic crystal lens

Y. Cui, V. A. Tamma, J.-B. Lee, W. Park

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Proceedings Volume 7756, Active Photonic Materials III; 77561A (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.860627
Event: SPIE NanoScience + Engineering, 2010, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

We designed, fabricated and characterized MEMS-enabled mechanically-tunable photonic crystal lens comprised of 2D photonic crystal and symmetrical electro-thermal actuators. The 2D photonic crystal was made of a honeycomb-lattice of 340 nm thick, 260 nm diameter high-index silicon rods embedded in low-index 10 μm thick SU-8 cladding. Silicon input waveguide and deflection block were also fabricated for light in-coupling and monitoring of focused spot size, respectively. When actuated, the electro-thermal actuators induced mechanical strain which changed the lattice constant of the photonic crystal and consequently modified the photonic band structure. This in turn modified the focal-length of the photonic crystal lens. The fabricated device was characterized using a tunable laser (1400~1602 nm) and an infrared camera during actuation. At the wavelength of 1450 nm, the lateral light spot size observed at the deflection block gradually decreased 40%, as applied current increased from 0 to 0.7 A, indicating changes in focal length in response to the mechanical stretching.

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Y. Cui, V. A. Tamma, J.-B. Lee, and W. Park "Mechanically tunable photonic crystal lens", Proc. SPIE 7756, Active Photonic Materials III, 77561A (10 September 2010); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.860627

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