Controlled guidance of light through a flexible optical waveguide sheet

Abstract

The controlled guidance of light rays through a mechanically flexible large area polymer optical waveguide sheet is investigated using Zemax OpticStudio software. The geometry and spatial distribution of micro-optical features patterned on the waveguide sheet determines whether the surface acts as a light concentrator or diffuser. To illustrate the concept, incident light is collected over a large center area and then transmitted to the border where it is emitted through an illumination window covered by an array of photo-cells. The efficiencies of the collector and illuminating regions of the hybrid PDMS collector-diffuser waveguide sheet are discussed. Initial analysis of the waveguide design demonstrates an ideal efficiency of over 90% for the concentrating region of the waveguide and over 80% efficiency for the diffusing region of the waveguide. The Zemax simulation of the ideal design of the hybrid concentrator-diffuser waveguide exhibited an efficiency of up to 75%. However this efficiency significantly decreased when examining the waveguide’s performance as a flexible sheet. The necessary design modifications, to mitigate these losses in efficiency, are discussed, and future work will focus on analyzing and optimizing the waveguide design for performance as a fully flexible concentrator-diffuser membrane.