Annular folded electrowetting liquid lens

Abstract

We report an annular folded electrowetting liquid lens. The front surface of the lens is coated with a circular reflection film, while the back surface of the lens is coated with a ring-shaped reflection film. This approach allows the lens to get optical power from the liquid-liquid interface three times so that the optical power is tripled. An analysis of the properties of the annular folded electrowetting liquid lens is presented along with the design, fabrication, and testing of a prototype. Our results show that the optical power of the proposed liquid lens can be enhanced from ∼20.1 to ∼50.2 m(-1) in comparison with that of the conventional liquid lens (aperture ∼3.9 mm). It can reduce the operating voltage by ∼10 V to reach the same diopter as a conventional liquid lens. Our liquid lens has the advantages of compact structure, light weight, and improved optical resolution.