Transparent optical device element
The present invention relates to transparent optical device elements comprising a deformable lens body and to a method for changing the refractive index (RI) of a deformable lens body. The deformable lens body of the invention has an improved mechanical stability, a high refractive index, an optimal degree of stiffness and sheer modulus for use as optical lens.
1. A transparent optical device element comprising:
at least one deformable lens body;
a bendable transparent cover member attached to a surface of said at least one deformable lens body thereby providing mechanical stability to said at least one deformable lens body;
actuators for shaping said bendable transparent cover member into a desired shape, said actuators located on a top surface of said bendable transparent cover member, said desired shape defined by a disposition pattern of said actuators and by a magnitude of respective applied voltages onto said disposition pattern of actuators, wherein said at least one deformable lens body comprises:
(a) an elastic modulus larger than 300 Pa, thereby avoiding deformation due to gravitational forces in normal operation of said transparent optical device element;
(b) a refractive index is above 1.35;
(c) an absorbance in the visible range that is less than 10% per millimeter thickness of said deformable lens body;
and said deformable lens body comprises a polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers; and further comprises a miscible oil or combination of oils, thereby increasing the refractive index of said polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers.
2. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein said polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers is a polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polysiloxanes.
3. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein said oil or combination of oils have a molecular weight lower than 1000 g/mol.
4. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein said at least one deformable lens body has a shear modulus of less than 100 KPa.
5. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein the refractive index ratio between said transparent polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers and said oil or combination of oils is between 0.8 and 1.
6. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein the difference in refractive index ratio between said transparent polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers and said oil or combination of oils is between 0.01 and 0.30.
7. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein said oil or combination of oils has a refractive index, which is at least 0.02 units higher than the refractive index of said transparent polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers.
8. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein said transparent polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers and said oil or combination of oils are in the same liquid phase.
9. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein said oil or combination of oils is contained in said transparent polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers.
10. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein the amount of said oil or combination of oils is in a range between 0.1 to 90% vol/vol of said transparent polymer network of cross-linked or partly cross-linked polymers.
11. The transparent optical device element according to according to claim 1 , wherein said oil or combination of oils have a boiling point above 200° C. at atmospheric pressure at sea level.
12. The transparent optical device element according to claim 1 , wherein said oil or combination of oils is selected from the group consisting of oligomeric siloxanes and polymeric siloxanes.