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NANO2021-Nanoteknologi og nye materiale

New platform for the next generation optical components.

Alternative title: Slå det mennesklige øyet

Awarded: NOK 9.0 mill.

Project Manager:

Project Number:

269000

Project Period:

2017 - 2022

Organisation:

Subject Fields:

Customer interaction based on poLight simulations, prototyping and supplier discussions have shown that there are various potential business opportunities in area of big aperture tunable autofocus, polymer based optical stabilization and laser beam steering in several customer segments like mobile consumer devices, industrial automation, medical, automotive. We have been able to build prototypes of 3.5mm aperture autofocus lens and optical stabilisation/beam steering with the polymer-mirror-prism concept, including actuator. 3.5mm aperture autofocus lens prototypes and optical component prototypes for stabilization concept have been delivered to customers. Based on customer feedback we are able to tune the next round of improvement and prototypes. PoLight competence and lab have been developed to even better serve the future needs of design, build and characterization of concept demonstrators and prototypes. In the supplier field we have established cooperation with world-class manufacturers of technologies that are enablers for unique optical solutions. Majority of these are related, but not limited, to optical glass processing. A significant technical achievement has been entering new opto-mechanical systems design like non-monolithic actuator mechanism and optical feedback loop. The speed of progress on most sub-projects have been somewhat impacted by COVID19 outbreak, such that some activity had to be put on lower priority and those activities are planned to be continued as the outbreak settles.

Det er ikke hentet noe tekst knyttet til "Virkninger og effekt" siden den opprinnelige søknaden ble sendt før dette var et punkt i en søknad. Hensikten med prosjektet var å utvikle en ny produksjonsplattform for dynamiske linser lik Tlens. Vi skulle også integrere optisk bilde stabilisering (OIS). Den opprinnelige Tlens produseres ved en relativt konvensjonell MEMS process. Som det korte navnet på prosjektet, HybridMEMS, indikerer ønsket vi å kombinere flere "byggeteknikker" som også inkluderte mikromontasje. Dette har vi fått til og kan i framtiden produsere avanserte design som gjør det mulig bygge i flere dimensjoner på en silisiumskive. Framover vil vi utvikle teknologiplattformen videre og på sikt ta fram nye linsesystemer som kan anvendes i nye applikasjoner. Her er mobiltelefon og medisinske anvendelser sentrale.

poLight and at an early stage the mother company Ignis have continually developed the technology known as the TLens Technology. This development has been supported by a number soft funded project in NRC (NANOmat, NANO2021, BIA) and Innovation Norway. Now we move one step further by introducing the hybrid MEMS solution. Until know the focus has been on wafer level processing in most MEMS and MOEMS application. The driving force has been the possibility to process a large number of similar dies effectively. This is a good concept as long as the die size can be kept small or the complexity is limited in the z-dimension and wafer are made of die with the same functionality/process architecture. The hybrid MEMS solution will combine both wafers using different processing architecture and micro-assembly at die level. poLight would like to modify the title of the project to “Hybrid tunable Optic devices”. The main idea of the project was to find a different way to implement PZT actuator MEMS in a more agile, versatile and cost effective way to create new poLight products which is based on polymer and optical tunable element, a membrane or a mirror, a flat widow. Indeed, there is a clear market need to generate product with bigger useful aperture like AF for telephoto solution, OIS system and potentially laser beam steering. The current architecture is not cost effective when useful aperture needs to be bigger 3 to 4 mm size. Therefore, poLight must investigates other architecture. In addition, the current TLens architecture is costly and comes with very long lead time of development of about 2 to 6 years. This long lead time are not compatible with the timeline of the mobile market where every 6 to 12 months an innovation is needed. Development time of a new product shall fit within 1 years maximum 2 years. During the past year of this project, poLight has identified a research Laboratory that has developed bimorph PZT actuator that could potentially and theoretical cover pretty well the needs for an OIS and a 3 mm aperture AF solution. poLight has worked several months to establish a development contract with a team of Sydney University , but eventually, poLight did not sign it. The reason for not signing was that ROI (Return Of Investment) was not good. Indeed, the time required to achieve an MP level were estimated to be over 3+3 years at best case, (3 years of techno development and 3 years to transfer to industrial foundry. In addition to the long development time, the solution were still coming with the technical limitation, mainly the ratio of Force/displacement range , therefore poLight decided not to invest in such project/contract at this stage. This exercise has highlighted one more time that developing MEMS products is not easy at the current maturity of the MEMS industry and has highlighted the need for poLight to investigate in more affordable solution to generate new products. poLight team does not want to close this path completely but would like to propose to re-open to a wider range of actuator solution in order to make the better/best choice of technology to realize the set of new functionalities and products The use Voice Coil Motor VCM or Shape Memory Alloy-SMA as well as bulk Piezo actuators, which are more mature technology and already proven technology in the mobile industry. Those type of actuators give advantage in term of ROI (return on Investment) while securing the performances that is needed for each type of products/functionality that poLight could developed. In parallel, it is clear that the PZT actuators solution are still improving and company like ST are potentially working on developing platform for customers to develop new products on their new PZT actuator platform. This should short cut the path to new product development. This could potentially be an alternative that poLight will not let go if it makes sense. In conclusion, poLight would like to extend the topic of the research project to Hybrid tunable Optic devices based on polymer architecture and request the extension of the project by 1.5 years. In the new scheme, poLight will try to work in more close contact with final customers and identify the most efficient way to propose new product that fit the next 2 years customer needs. The WP description will not be very different from what was proposed by poLight initially with the extend to other type of actuators than MEMS PZT.

Funding scheme:

NANO2021-Nanoteknologi og nye materiale