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In optics, a thin lens is a lens with a thickness (distance along the optical axis between the two surfaces of the lens) that is negligible compared to the radii of curvature of the lens surfaces. Lenses whose thickness is not negligible are sometimes called thick lenses. The thin lens approximation ignores optical effects due to the thickness of lenses and simplifies ray tracing calculations. It is often combined with the paraxial approximation in techniques such as ray transfer matrix analysis. Focal length The focal length, f, of a lens in air is given by the lensmaker's equation: :\frac{1}{f} = (n-1) \left[ \frac{1}{R_1} - \frac{1}{R_2} + \frac{(n-1)d}{n R_1 R_2} \right], where n is the index of refraction of the lens material, and R1 and R2 are the radii of curvature of the two surfaces. For a thin lens, d is much smaller than one of the radii of curvature (either R1 or R2). In these conditions, the last term of the Lensmaker's equation becomes negligible

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Martinus Gijs, Jean-Baptiste Robert Orhan, Virendra Kumar Parashar, Abdeljalil Sayah

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Micro-replication of Optical Lenses in Glass using Sol Gel Technology

Martinus Gijs, Virendra Kumar Parashar, Abdeljalil Sayah

A new method to realize arrays of micro-lenses using a sol gel glass replication technology is presented. Polydimethyl-siloxane (PDMS) master structures are used for the replication of thin glass membranes, which, by an appropriate annealing procedure, result in converging lenses with positive meniscus. Hereby, we exploit PDMS - sol gel surface interactions and thickness dependent changes in composition of the sol gel solution. The lenses are realized on a circular and square like basis. We characterize the micro-lenses by an optical imaging system and measure their focal length as a function of lens thickness and size. Also spherical aberration effects are measured.

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