| dc.description.abstract | This study investigates large-aperture liquid crystal (LC) lenses using multi-zone and three-dimensional electrode structures. The study is primarily divided into three main parts, including design and simulation, fabrication of LC lens, and experimental measurement and analysis. First, the simulation targets for refractive power, aperture size, and liquid crystal layer thickness were designed through theoretical calculation. The theoretical phase distribution of the lens was calculated using the concept of a gradient-index (GRIN) lens. By applying the principle of Fresnel lens segmentation, the phase at different radial positions was divided into integer multiples of the wavelength, resulting in the design of an LC lens with 18-zone and three-dimensional electrodes.
The LC optical simulation software TechWiz LCD 3D (SANAYI) was then employed to simulate the phase distribution of the designed LC lens, and the corresponding functions for each of the 18-zone and 3D electrode zones were matched. Based on the matched results, a mold with a 3D structure was fabricated, and the structures were transferred onto a glass substrate using NBA107 polymer material. An ITO electrode film was uniformly sputtered onto the structure to form the 3D electrodes. NBA107 was then used again to fill the concave areas of the electrodes to flatten the surface. After rubbing alignment, the substrate with the prepared structures was assembled with another glass substrate coated with an ITO electrode film, and nematic LC E7 was then injected into the cell to complete the LC lens. Finally, the performance of the LC lens was evaluated through various experiments and measurements. These included observing the alignment of LC molecules under a polarizing optical microscope, measuring actual focal length, examining the actual focusing effect of the LC lens, measuring response times, observing concentric rings, and discussing on the change of polarization state of emitted light. By analyzing the experimental results, this study validates that we can adjust the LC lens’s optical power by applying different voltages. At an applied voltage of 5 Vpp, it achieves an optical power of 2.63 D. Additionally. the optical power decreases with the increase of the applied voltage, conforming to the focusing theory of LC lenses. | en_US |