Method of manufacturing microlens array and microlens array

Abstract

A method of manufacturing a microlens array comprising forming microlenses by dropping or injecting to a plurality of through holes formed on a substrate a liquefied lens material so as to dispose the lens material at each of the through holes, the lens material being curable and has a predetermined transmittivity and a predetermined viscosity.

1 . A microlens multilayer formed by laminating a plurality of microlens arrays produced by a method of manufacturing a microlens array according to the following steps: 
 (a) dropping or injecting a liquefied lens material into a plurality of through holes formed on a substrate so as to dispose the lens material at each of the through holes, the lens material having a predetermined transmittivity and a predetermined viscosity, and    (b) laminating the plurality of microlens arrays so that optical axes of the microlenses of each microlens array coincide with the optical axes of corresponding microlenses of another microlens array.    
     
     
         2 . A microlens array comprising a substrate in which a plurality of through holes are formed and a plurality of microlenses respectively disposed at the through holes in the substrate, wherein 
 the microlenses are fixed to the through holes of the substrate by way of adhesion or deposition of a microlens material to a substrate material.    
     
     
         3 . The microlens array according to  claim 2 , wherein the microlenses are formed of a ultraviolet ray curable resin material, a thermosetting resin material, a thermoplastic material or a glass material.  
     
     
         4 . The method of manufacturing a microlens array according to  claim 2 , wherein each of the through holes has a truncated conical shape or a step portion.  
     
     
         5 . The method of manufacturing a microlens array according to  claim 2 , wherein the microlenses are convex lenses.  
     
     
         6 . The method of manufacturing a microlens array according to  claim 2 , wherein the microlenses are concave lenses.  
     
     
         7 . The method of manufacturing a microlens array according to  claim 2 , wherein all refractive indexes and/or a transmittivities of the lens materials to be dropped or injected to the plurality of through holes are not same.  
     
     
         8 . The method of manufacturing a microlens array according to  claim 2 , wherein a whole or a part of the plurality of through holes vary in size and a whole or a part of the microlenses vary in size in accordance with the sizes of the through holes.  
     
     
         9 . The method of manufacturing a microlens array according to  claim 2 , wherein the plurality of through holes are arranged in the substrate to give a closest packed structure, each of the through holes having the shape of a hexagon of a predetermined size.  
     
     
         10 . The method of manufacturing a microlens array according to  claim 2 , wherein the substrate is formed of any one of silicone, a thermoplastic material, a glass material, a ceramic material, a fiber material and a composite material.