Fabrication of curved aspheric compound eye microlens array with high surface quality by precision glass molding

Abstract

The curved compound eye microlens array (CEMLA) glass optical element is widely used in optoelectronic detectors because it affords a high image quality and a large field of view. However, fabrication of high-precision glass optical elements with a small cell size and many arrays on hard and brittle glass materials is challenging. Here, we report a fabrication method to address molding challenges for high quality CEMLA glass optical elements at molding temperatures up to 500 °C. First, an Ni-P with good turning performance and low adhesion to glass is chosen as the plating material, the CuNi is selected as the mold substrate for their close CTEs. To prevent the diffusion of P to the surface of optical elements and to improve the hardness and wear resistance of mold, a Ti-Ta-C coating is deposited on the Ni-P mold. By single-point diamond turning on the Ni-P surface using a fast tool servo, an aspherical CEMLA mold with a form accuracy PV less than 0.4 μm and surface roughness Sa less than 4 nm was machined. Finally, based on the creep testing of microdeformation compression, an accurate viscoelastic constitutive model of glass was established. Optimization of the molding process and accurate prediction of molding profile deviation were simulated. The aspheric CEMLA glass optical element with a form accuracy PV less than 0.5 μm and surface roughness Sa less than 4.5 nm was obtained by precision glass molding (PGM).