Fabrication of a hybrid optical micro-component with a thermosetting polymer and glass

Abstract

This research develops a precise hybrid optical micro-component (PHOMC) that includes polymer and glass materials. Although glass offers better anti-thermal, anti-environmental, anti-scraped, anti-corrosive, and optical properties than polymer materials do, glass materials are difficult to fabricate for microstructures. This research describes the fabrication of a PHOMC, which retains the advantages of glass materials; in addition, the cost of microstructure polymers is lower than for glass. In this study, polymers with micro sine waves can change the spot light intensity from a Gaussian distribution to a line with uniform distribution. The glass base can protect the PHOMC to avoid damage from the environment. First, the sine wave was designed using optical design software to change the light profile. A precise diamond-turning technique was used to fabricate a mold with a sine-wave profile. A glass plate was used for the base of the PHOMC. During the heating process, a thermosetting polymer was formed to match the sine-wave profile, and covered the glass base. The PHOMC is 10 mm in diameter, and a sine wave with 100 μm in amplitude and 6.283 in angular frequency was obtained. The surface profile of the PHOMC was evaluated using an ultra-precise laser confocal microscope. Processing parameters, such as the forming temperature, are discussed in this paper. The PHOMC with the sine wave that was developed in this study can generate a reference straight line for use in alignment, machine vision systems, construction, and process control.