An optical element and a VCSEL device

Abstract

The present invention discloses an optical element, comprising a main lens, a connecting plate and a semiconductor component; the connecting plate is used to fixedly connect the optical element to the substrate of an external component and is fixedly connected to the main lens; the semiconductor component is connected to an external circuit through the connecting plate and is used to monitor whether the main lens is defective or detached; the bottom surface of the main lens includes a groove, the surface of the groove is a first optical interface, the upper surface of the main lens is a second optical interface, and the first optical interface and the second optical interface are free-form surfaces; the connecting plate has a through hole, and the groove, the through hole and the substrate enclose a light source cavity; the light source cavity includes a chip placement area and a light propagation area; the VCSEL chip is disposed in the chip placement area. The present invention monitors the working state of the main lens, avoiding the safety hazard of laser directly shining into the human eye. The present invention also provides a VCSEL device having the above advantages.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of optoelectronic technologies, and particularly to an optical element and a VCSEL device. Background Art

[0002] In recent years, with the development of technology, vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) and their arrays, as a new type of semiconductor lasers, have been increasingly valued both inside and outside the field. It is a major breakthrough in the integration of photonic devices. Surface emitting lasers have the advantages of in-chip detection, easy preparation of two-dimensional arrays, and low cost, and have broad application prospects in high-speed optical interconnection, intercity optical communication, 3D recognition, optical sensing, etc.

[0003] Currently, a VCSEL chip uses an engineering diffuser for beam expansion. The engineering diffuser bonds a polymer layer on the surface of a flat quartz glass, and uses micro-refraction technology (including refraction and diffraction) to diffuse light. And the engineering diffuser is placed on a Holder connected to a substrate and bonded with UV glue. However, the bonding area with the Holder is small and it is extremely easy to fall off. In addition, the above polymer layer is prone to high-temperature melting and peeling, or glue infiltration and pollutant filling, resulting in failure, allowing a laser beam with extremely high energy to directly irradiate out. There is a safety hazard that the human eye is directly irradiated by the unscattered laser during use.

[0004] Therefore, how to avoid accidental injury caused by direct laser irradiation to the human eye without the user's knowledge is an urgent problem to be solved by those skilled in the art. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide an optical element and a VCSEL device to solve the problem in the prior art that the light control module falls off, thereby causing harm to the human eye by the laser.

[0006] To solve the above technical problems, the present invention provides an optical element, including a main lens, a connecting plate, and a semiconductor component;

[0007] The connecting plate is used to fixedly connect the optical element to the substrate of an external component and is fixedly connected to the main lens;

[0008] The semiconductor component is connected to an external circuit through the connecting plate and is used to monitor whether the main lens is defective or falls off;

[0009] The bottom surface of the main lens includes a groove, the surface of the groove is a first optical interface, the upper surface of the main lens is a second optical interface, and the first optical interface and the second optical interface are free-form surfaces;

[0010] The connecting plate has a through hole, and the groove, the through hole and the substrate enclose a light source cavity;

[0011] The light source cavity includes a chip placement area and a light propagation area;

[0012] The VCSEL chip is disposed in the chip placement area, and the emitted light of the VCSEL chip enters the main lens through the light propagation area from the first optical interface, and then exits the main lens through the second optical interface to complete light control.

[0013] Optionally, in the optical element, the semiconductor component is a photosensitive diode.

[0014] Optionally, in the optical element, the semiconductor component is disposed between the connecting plate and the main lens.

[0015] Optionally, in the optical element, the connecting plate has a through hole, and the extending portion of the main lens passes through the through hole and forms an extended portion on the other side of the through hole, and the extended portion cannot pass through the through hole.

[0016] Optionally, in the optical element, the connecting plate is a metal sheet or a multilayer circuit board.

[0017] Optionally, in the optical element, the main lens includes a silica gel lens, a transparent resin lens or a molded glass lens.

[0018] Optionally, in the optical element, the silica gel lens, the transparent resin lens and the molded glass lens are all lenses formed by die molding or injection molding, and the refractive index is greater than 1.4.

[0019] Optionally, in the optical element, the connecting plate includes connection pads exposed at the bottom of the lens, and the optical element is welded to the substrate through the connection pads.

[0020] The present invention also provides a VCSEL device, and the VCSEL device includes the optical element as described in any one of the above.

[0021] Optionally, in the optical element, the VCSEL device includes a substrate, and the substrate is provided with positioning pads at preset positions, and the positioning pads are used for fixedly connecting the optical element so that the optical axis of the optical element coincides with the optical axis of the VCSEL chip.

[0022] The present invention provides an optical element including a main lens, a connecting plate, and a semiconductor component; the connecting plate is used to fixedly connect the optical element to a substrate of an external component and is fixedly connected to the main lens; the semiconductor component is connected to an external circuit through the connecting plate and is used to monitor whether the main lens is defective or detached; the bottom surface of the main lens includes a groove, the surface of the groove is a first optical interface, the upper surface of the main lens is a second optical interface, and the first optical interface and the second optical interface are free-form surfaces; the connecting plate has a through-hole, and the groove, the through-hole, and the substrate enclose a light source cavity; the light source cavity includes a chip placement area and a light propagation area; the VCSEL chip is disposed in the chip placement area, and the emitted light of the VCSEL chip enters the main lens through the light propagation area from the first optical interface and then exits the main lens through the second optical interface to complete light control. In the present invention, the optical element is fixed to the substrate by welding, which solves the problem that the engineering beam expander (equivalent to the optical element in the present invention) in the prior art is prone to detachment, and the working state of the main lens is monitored through the semiconductor component. Once the main lens is defective or detached, resulting in the optical element being unable to complete normal light control, the semiconductor component can send a signal to the external circuit to warn the user that the instrument is faulty and needs to be repaired, avoiding accidental injuries such as eye burns caused by the user using the laser emitter without knowing; at the same time, the present invention adjusts the direction of the incident and emitted light of the main lens through the first optical interface and the second optical interface as free-form surfaces, thereby achieving the purpose of changing the light distribution, discarding the flat glass and polymer layer in the prior art, simplifying the structure, improving the working reliability of the component, and also achieving the effect of simplifying the manufacturing process. The present invention also provides a VCSEL device having the above beneficial effects. Description of the Drawings

[0023] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the following drawings are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative efforts.

[0024] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of a specific embodiment of the optical element provided by the present invention;

[0025] Figure 2 It is an exploded schematic structural diagram of another specific embodiment of the optical element provided by the present invention;

[0026] Figure 3A top view structural schematic diagram of another specific embodiment of the optical element provided by the present invention;

[0027] Figure 4 A cross-sectional view of still another specific embodiment of the optical element provided by the present invention;

[0028] Figure 5 A partial structural schematic diagram between the main lens and the connecting plate of the optical element provided by the present invention. Specific Embodiment

[0029] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the solution of the present invention, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0030] The core of the present invention is to provide an optical element, and a structural schematic diagram of one of its specific embodiments is as Figure 1 shown, which is called Specific Embodiment 1, and includes a main lens 110, a connecting plate 120, and a semiconductor component 130;

[0031] The connecting plate 120 is used to fixedly connect the optical element to the substrate of an external element and is fixedly connected to the main lens 110;

[0032] The semiconductor component 130 is connected to an external circuit through the connecting plate 120 and is used to monitor whether the main lens 110 is defective or detached;

[0033] The bottom surface of the main lens 110 includes a groove 111, the surface of the groove 111 is a first optical interface 101, the upper surface of the main lens 110 is a second optical interface 102, and the first optical interface 101 and the second optical interface 102 are free-form surfaces;

[0034] The connecting plate 120 has a through hole 121, and the groove 111, the through hole 121, and the substrate enclose a light source cavity;

[0035] The light source cavity includes a chip placement area and a light propagation area;

[0036] The VCSEL chip is disposed in the chip placement area, and the emitted light of the VCSEL chip passes through the light propagation area, enters the main lens 110 through the first optical interface 101, and then exits the main lens 110 through the second optical interface 102 to complete light control.

[0037] Certainly, the light control described in the present invention refers to the change in the divergence direction and light output mode of light, which can diffuse, converge, or change the light output direction of the light. Among them, the diffusion or convergence can be geometric diffusion or convergence, or can be divergence or convergence in a certain direction while remaining unchanged in other directions.

[0038] It should be noted that the connecting plate 120 can be semi-embedded or fully embedded in the main lens 110. The embedded structure can make the connection between the connecting plate 120 and the main lens 110 more firm. For a cross-sectional view of a specific implementation manner, please refer to Figure 4 , Figure 4 wherein the connecting plate 120 is fully embedded in the main lens 110. However, in any case, the surface of the connecting plate 120 used for connection to the substrate by welding should be reserved. The chip placement area and the light propagation area are not two structures with obvious boundaries, but refer to two functional areas. For example, Figure 4 as shown in

[0039] It should be noted that the semiconductor component 130 is disposed between the connecting plate 120 and the main lens 110. During the manufacturing process of the optical element, the semiconductor component 130 can be first disposed on the connecting plate 120, and then the main lens 110 is covered on one side of the connecting plate 120 where the semiconductor component 130 is disposed.

[0040] The connecting plate 120 has a through hole 121, and the main lens 110 can be inserted on the connecting plate 120 through the through hole 121. Certainly, other means can also be adopted according to actual situations to fixedly connect the connecting plate 120 and the main lens 110. For example, the extending portion of the main lens 110 passes through the through hole 121 and forms an extended portion on the other side of the through hole 121. The extended portion cannot pass through the through hole 121, forming a "work" - shaped buckle structure, so that the main lens 110 cannot fall off the connecting plate 120. A partial structural schematic diagram is shown in Figure 5 .

[0041] The connecting plate 120 is a metal sheet or a multilayer circuit board. Further, when the connecting plate 120 is a metal sheet, the metal sheet is a copper sheet. The copper sheet has good thermal conductivity, strong plasticity, and is simple and convenient to process.

[0042] As a preferred embodiment, the connection plate 120 includes connection pads 122 exposed at the bottom of the lens. The optical element is welded to the substrate through the connection pads 122, that is, the connection plate 120 is connected to the substrate by welding. Of course, it is also possible to directly weld without using the connection pads 122, but installing and positioning through the pads is more accurate, more efficient, and has a higher yield rate.

[0043] In addition, the semiconductor component 130 is used to monitor the working state of the main lens 110. The semiconductor component 130 is fixed on the connection plate 120 to ensure that the semiconductor component 130 will not fall off due to external force impact. Preferably, it can be connected by welding. Further, the semiconductor component 130 is a photosensitive diode. The photosensitive diode can monitor the light intensity in a preset area in real time. The positional relationship in one specific embodiment can be seen Figure 1 , Figure 1 The photosensitive diode in can receive the reflected light from the upper surface of the main lens 110 within a certain area. When the main lens 110 is damaged or falls off, the light received by the photosensitive diode will change. Different alarms can be set through software for different situations. For example, when the VCSEL chip is working properly and a decrease in the received light is detected, it is determined that the main lens 110 is damaged. If the received light disappears, it is determined that the main lens 110 has fallen off.

[0044] Figure 2 is an exploded view of a specific embodiment of the optical element of the present invention. The dotted line on the main lens 110 in the figure represents the occluded boundary. The part bulging outwards from the paper surface is the hollow part of the main lens 110, that is, the groove 111.

[0045] The present invention provides an optical element including a main lens 110, a connecting plate 120, and a semiconductor component 130; the connecting plate 120 is used to fixedly connect the optical element to a substrate of an external component and is fixedly connected to the main lens 110; the semiconductor component 130 is connected to an external circuit through the connecting plate 120 and is used to monitor whether the main lens 110 is defective or detached; the bottom surface of the main lens 110 includes a groove 111, the surface of the groove 111 is a first optical interface 101, the upper surface of the main lens 110 is a second optical interface 102, and the first optical interface 101 and the second optical interface 102 are free-form surfaces; the connecting plate 120 has a through hole 121, and the groove 111, the through hole 121, and the substrate enclose a light source cavity; the light source cavity includes a chip placement area and a light propagation area; the VCSEL chip is disposed in the chip placement area, and the emitted light of the VCSEL chip enters the main lens 110 through the light propagation area from the first optical interface 101 and then exits the main lens 110 through the second optical interface 102 to complete light control. In the present invention, the optical element is fixed to the substrate by welding, which solves the problem that the engineering beam expander (equivalent to the optical element in the present invention) in the prior art is prone to detachment, and the working state of the main lens 110 is monitored through the semiconductor component 130. Once the main lens 110 is defective or detached, resulting in the optical element being unable to complete normal light control, the semiconductor component 130 can send a signal to the external circuit to warn the user that the instrument is faulty and needs repair, avoiding accidental injuries such as eye burns caused by the user using the laser emitter without knowing. At the same time, in the present invention, the first optical interface 101 and the second optical interface 102, which are free-form surfaces, are used to adjust the direction of the incident and emitted light of the main lens 110, thereby achieving the purpose of changing the light distribution, abandoning the flat glass and polymer layer in the prior art, simplifying the structure, improving the working reliability of the component, and also achieving the effect of simplifying the manufacturing process.

[0046] On the basis of the first specific embodiment, the material of the optical element is further defined to obtain the second specific embodiment. Its structural schematic diagram is the same as that of the above specific embodiment, including a main lens 110 and a connecting plate 120;

[0047] The connecting plate 120 is used to fixedly connect the optical element to a substrate of an external component and is fixedly connected to the main lens 110;

[0048] The bottom surface of the main lens 110 includes a groove 111, the surface of the groove 111 is a first optical interface 101, the upper surface of the main lens 110 is a second optical interface 102, and the first optical interface 101 and the second optical interface 102 are free-form surfaces;

[0049] The connecting plate 120 has a through hole 121, and the groove 111, the through hole 121 and the substrate enclose a light source cavity;

[0050] The light source cavity includes a chip placement area and a light propagation area;

[0051] The VCSEL chip is disposed in the chip placement area, and the emitted light of the VCSEL chip passes through the light propagation area, enters the main lens 110 through the first optical interface 101, and then exits the main lens 110 through the second optical interface 102 to complete light control;

[0052] The optical element further includes a semiconductor component 130;

[0053] The semiconductor component 130 is disposed on the connecting plate 120 and is used to monitor whether the main lens 110 is defective or detached;

[0054] The main lens 110 includes a silica gel lens, a transparent resin lens or a molded glass lens.

[0055] The difference between this specific embodiment and the above specific embodiment is that in this specific embodiment, the material of the main lens 110 is defined, and the rest of the structure is the same as the above specific embodiment, and will not be elaborated here.

[0056] In this specific embodiment, the material of the main lens 110 is defined, including a polymer material lens. The polymer material has good thermoplasticity and is easy to process. When making a free-form surface, it only needs to be hot-pressed into shape through a preset mold, and the process flow is simple. In addition, the polymer material has good viscosity before curing, which can strengthen the connection strength between the main lens 110 and the connecting plate 120, and further improve the working reliability of the optical element. Further, the silica gel lens, the transparent resin lens and the molded glass lens are all lenses formed by mold pressing or injection molding, and the refractive index is greater than 1.4. The injection molding or mold pressing speed is fast, the process is simple, and the production cost is low. Of course, corresponding changes can also be made according to the actual situation.

[0057] The present invention also provides a VCSEL device, which includes any one of the above optical elements. The VCSEL device provided by the present invention includes a main lens 110, a connecting plate 120, and a semiconductor component 130; the connecting plate 120 is used to fixedly connect the optical element to the substrate of an external component and is fixedly connected to the main lens 110; the semiconductor component 130 is connected to an external circuit through the connecting plate 120 and is used to monitor whether the main lens 110 is defective or detached; the bottom surface of the main lens 110 includes a groove 111, the surface of the groove 111 is a first optical interface 101, the upper surface of the main lens 110 is a second optical interface 102, and the first optical interface 101 and the second optical interface 102 are free-form surfaces; the connecting plate 120 has a through hole 121, and the groove 111, the through hole 121, and the substrate enclose a light source cavity; the light source cavity includes a chip placement area and a light propagation area; the VCSEL chip is disposed in the chip placement area, and the emitted light of the VCSEL chip enters the main lens 110 through the light propagation area from the first optical interface 101 and then exits the main lens 110 through the second optical interface 102 to complete light control. In the present invention, the optical element is fixed on the substrate by welding, solving the problem that the engineering beam expander (equivalent to the optical element in the present invention) in the prior art is prone to detachment, and the working state of the main lens 110 is monitored through the semiconductor component 130. Once the main lens 110 is defective or detached, resulting in the optical element being unable to complete normal light control, the semiconductor component 130 can send a signal to the external circuit to warn the user that the instrument is faulty and needs to be repaired, avoiding accidental injuries such as eye burns caused by the user using the laser emitter without knowing; at the same time, in the present invention, the direction of the emitted light entering and exiting the main lens 110 is adjusted through the first optical interface 101 and the second optical interface 102 which are free-form surfaces, thereby achieving the purpose of changing the light distribution, discarding the flat glass and polymer layer in the prior art, simplifying the structure, improving the working reliability of the component, and also achieving the effect of simplifying the manufacturing process.

[0058] As a preferred embodiment, the VCSEL device includes a substrate, and the substrate is provided with positioning pads at preset positions, and the positioning pads are used for fixedly connecting the optical element so that the optical axis of the optical element coincides with the optical axis of the VCSEL chip. The coincidence here includes two cases: partial coincidence and complete coincidence of the optical axis of the optical element and the optical axis of the VCSEL chip, and specific adjustments can be made according to the required light control effect in actual operation.

[0059] The various embodiments in this specification are described in a progressive manner. Each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments. For the same or similar parts among the embodiments, reference can be made to each other. For the devices disclosed in the embodiments, since they correspond to the methods disclosed in the embodiments, the description is relatively simple. For the relevant parts, reference can be made to the description in the method section.

[0060] It should be noted that in this specification, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are only used to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Moreover, the term "comprising", "including" or any other variant thereof is intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device comprising a series of elements not only includes those elements, but also includes other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. Without further limitation, an element defined by the statement "comprising a..." does not exclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article or device comprising the element.

[0061] The above has introduced in detail the optical elements and VCSEL devices provided by the present invention. Specific examples are used herein to elaborate on the principles and implementation manners of the present invention. The description of the above embodiments is only used to help understand the method and its core idea of the present invention. It should be pointed out that for those of ordinary skill in the art, without departing from the principle of the present invention, several improvements and modifications can be made to the present invention, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the protection scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. An optical element, characterized in that, It includes a main lens, a connecting plate and a semiconductor component; The connecting plate is used to fixedly connect the optical element to the substrate of an external element and is fixedly connected to the main lens; The semiconductor component is connected to an external circuit through the connecting plate and is used to monitor whether the main lens is defective or detached; The bottom surface of the main lens includes a groove, the surface of the groove is a first optical interface, the upper surface of the main lens is a second optical interface, and the first optical interface and the second optical interface are free-form surfaces; The connecting plate has a chip through-hole, and the groove, the chip through-hole and the substrate enclose a light source cavity; The light source cavity includes a chip placement area and a light propagation area; The VCSEL chip is disposed in the chip placement area, and the emitted light of the VCSEL chip enters the main lens through the light propagation area from the first optical interface, and then exits the main lens through the second optical interface to complete light control; The connecting plate is semi-embedded or fully embedded in the main lens.

2. The optical element according to claim 1, wherein The semiconductor component is a photosensitive diode.

3. The optical element according to claim 1, wherein The semiconductor component is disposed between the connecting plate and the main lens.

4. The optical element according to claim 1, wherein The connecting plate has a through-hole, an extension portion of the main lens passes through the through-hole, and an extension portion is formed on the other side of the through-hole, and the extension portion cannot pass through the through-hole.

5. The optical element according to claim 1, characterized in that, The connecting plate is a metal sheet or a multilayer circuit board.

6. The optical element according to claim 1, characterized in that, The main lens includes a silicone lens, a transparent resin lens or a molded glass lens.

7. The optical element according to claim 6, characterized in that, The silicone lens, the transparent resin lens and the molded glass lens are all lenses formed by die molding or injection molding, and the refractive index is greater than 1.

4.

8. The optical element according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The connecting plate includes connection pads exposed at the bottom of the lens, and the optical element is welded to the substrate through the connection pads.

9. A VCSEL device, characterized in that, The VCSEL device includes the optical element according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. The optical element according to claim 9, characterized in that, The VCSEL device includes a substrate, and positioning pads are provided at preset positions on the substrate for fixedly connecting the optical element so that the optical axis of the optical element coincides with the optical axis of the VCSEL chip.

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