A high-transparency self-adapting focusing liquid crystal lens structure supporting high-molecular nanometer transmission and a standardized preparation method thereof

Abstract

This invention discloses a high-transmittance adaptive focusing liquid crystal lens structure and standardized preparation method supporting polymer nanotransmission, belonging to the field of intelligent wearable optical devices and nanomaterial transmission technology. The lens adopts a four-layer integrated stacked structure consisting of a wear-resistant and anti-fouling blue light blocking protective layer, a polarization-independent gradient refractive index liquid crystal focusing layer, a nano-metasurface polarization conversion layer, and a high-transmittance substrate layer. A carbon nanotube-graphene-polyimide composite polymer nanotransmission interface is integrated at the edge. Through a precise 45°±0.3° angle between the metasurface layer and the liquid crystal molecule director and a bipolar polarizer composite liquid crystal design, it achieves a transmittance ≥82%, polarization independence ΔT ≤3.2%, focusing response ≤180ms, steady-state error ≤±0.10D, and nanotransmission loss ≤3% under polarizer-free conditions. It can be adapted to -10.00D to +6.00D myopia / hyperopia and ±6.00D astigmatism correction. This invention features a standardized six-step mass production process, with a single-piece manufacturing time of ≤90 minutes and a yield of ≥95%, completely solving common industry pain points such as low light transmittance, polarization dependence, high transmission loss, inconsistent processes, and difficulty in large-scale mass production of traditional liquid crystal lenses. This invention boasts an original structure, novel process, and performance comprehensively superior to similar international technologies, possessing extremely high patent licensing value and industrial mass production value.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the fields of intelligent wearable optical devices, liquid crystal optics, nano-conductive materials, adaptive refractive correction, and standardized micro-nano fabrication. Specifically, it relates to an adaptive focusing liquid crystal lens that integrates a polymer nano-transmission structure and has both polarization independence and high light transmittance characteristics, as well as a standardized method for mass production. It is particularly suitable for adaptive focusing smart glasses, medical eye health devices, AR / VR optical systems, and portable optical imaging devices. Background Technology

[0002] According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO 2023), the global population with refractive errors has exceeded 4.5 billion, making adaptive intelligent optical correction devices a core development direction in the field of optometry. Liquid crystal focusing lenses, due to their small size, low power consumption, and high tunability, have become the mainstream technology. However, current technology faces five major industry-wide bottlenecks that cannot be overcome: 1) Reliance on polarizers, extremely low light transmittance: Traditional LCD lenses need to be used with polarizers, and the light transmittance is generally <50%**. The visual effect is poor in low light environment, and it is easy to get tired after wearing them for a long time. 2) Severe polarization dependence: Changes in the polarization state of the incident light can cause a sharp drop in focusing accuracy, with focusing errors reaching over 0.5D, resulting in significant image distortion; 3) High transmission loss and poor anti-interference: The frame and lens are connected by metal wires or ordinary wireless transmission, with a transmission loss of ≥10% and a delay of ≥50ms. It is susceptible to electromagnetic interference and has poor control stability. 4) Non-standardized manufacturing process: Relying on manual or semi-automated processes, resulting in poor consistency and low yield, which cannot meet the needs of large-scale industrial mass production; 5) Functions cannot be integrated: It is difficult to simultaneously achieve high light transmittance, polarization independence, fast focusing, low loss transmission, environmental adaptability, and standardized mass production. 6) Global Comparison of Existing Technologies University of California, Berkeley: Metasurface liquid crystal lens, polarization independent but with only 60% transmittance, focusing response ≥600ms, and no nanoscale transmission structure; Zeiss (Germany): Polarization-independent optimized lens, ΔT=6.8%, still shows significant polarization dependence, lacks nanometer transmission and standardized mass production process; Finland's IXI Focus Pro: Eye-tracking focusing lens, polarization dependent, transmission loss ≥12%, response <500ms, no high light transmittance design; Apple Inc. (US11454897B2): Fluid chamber focusing structure, high power consumption, non-polarization independent and nano-transmission integration; Sony Japan (JP2023021567A): Traditional wire transmission suffers from high loss, limited functionality, and lacks standardized manufacturing processes; Domestic universities / enterprises: have only achieved single-function optimization, and have not formed an integrated technology system of nano-transmission + high light transmittance + polarization independence + standardized preparation. 7) In summary, existing technologies cannot simultaneously meet the full range of requirements for high light transmittance, polarization independence, low-loss transmission, fast and high-precision focusing, and large-scale mass production, which has become the core technical challenge restricting the development of the adaptive smart glasses industry. Summary of the Invention Purpose of the invention To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, this invention provides a high-transmittance adaptive focusing liquid crystal lens structure and standardized preparation method that supports polymer nanotransmission. This achieves a polarization-independent, high-transmittance, low-loss transmission, fast and high-precision focusing, all-scenario adaptation, and standardized mass production integrated solution, filling a global industry technology gap. Technical solution 1) Four-layer stacked integrated structure (from top to bottom): Wear-resistant, stain-resistant, and blue light-blocking protective layer: 7H wear-resistant, oil-resistant, and blue light blocking ≥35%; Polarization-independent gradient refractive index liquid crystal focusing layer: bipolar polarizer composite liquid crystal, thickness 4.5μm, refractive index adjustable to 0.35; Nanoscale metasurface polarization conversion layer: 0.01 mm thick, angle 45°±0.3°, eliminating polarization dependence; High-transmittance substrate layer: 0.45mm high-transmittance optical glass with a transmittance of ≥96%. 2) Core innovative structure: The lens edge integrates a polymer nano-transmission interface to achieve bidirectional low-loss synchronous transmission of signals and energy between the frame and the lens. 3) Substrate pretreatment: polishing → cleaning → plasma activation to improve surface adhesion; Metasurface deposition: electron beam evaporation, temperature 120±5℃, angle precisely controlled at 45°±0.3°; Photo-alignment preparation: Coating an alignment layer → UV light alignment to ensure uniform arrangement of liquid crystal molecules; Liquid crystal infusion curing: Wash-refill process → Curing at 80±3℃, with a uniform thickness of 4.5μm; Nano-interface molding: photolithography → etching → material filling, with a precision of 0.001 mm; Protective layer molding: coating → curing, forming an integrated wear-resistant, stain-resistant, and blue light-blocking layer. 4) Innovation Points A world first: integrating polymer nano-transmission structures into liquid crystal focusing lenses to achieve low-loss integrated signal and energy transmission; Unique principle: a precise angle of 45°±0.3° on the metasurface + a bipolar liquid crystal composite design, achieving polarization independence and high light transmittance without a polarizer; Technological innovation: A complete six-step standardized mass production process has been developed, solving the problems of poor industry consistency and difficulty in mass production; Comprehensive performance: It simultaneously achieves high light transmittance, fast response, high precision, low loss, long lifespan, and adaptability to all scenarios; System compatibility: It can be directly connected to the entire smart glasses system to form a closed loop of perception-decision-transmission-execution. 5) Beneficial effects Without polarizing film, light transmittance ≥82%, clear visibility in low light environment; Polarization independent ΔT≤3.2%, stable focusing without distortion under arbitrary polarization state; Nanoscale transmission loss ≤3%, latency ≤10ms, and anti-interference improvement of 80%; Focusing response ≤180ms, error ≤±0.10D, correction range -10.00D~+6.00D; Standardized process ≤90 minutes / piece, yield ≥95%, suitable for large-scale mass production; 7H wear-resistant, oil-resistant, blue light blocking ≥35%, long service life, and comfortable to wear. Attached Figure Description Figure 1. Schematic diagram of the four-layer structure of a liquid crystal lens (see attached figure in the abstract) Figure 2. Schematic diagram of polymer nanotransport interface structure Figure 3. Flowchart of standardized preparation process (See attached diagrams: 301 Wear-resistant and anti-fouling blue light blocking protective layer; 302 Polarization-independent gradient refractive index liquid crystal focusing layer; 303 Nanoscale metasurface polarization conversion layer; 304 High light transmittance substrate layer; 305 Polymer nano-transmission interface) Detailed Implementation 1) Example 1: Basic type of myopia correction liquid crystal lens Substrate: 0.45mm high-transmittance optical glass; Metasurface layer: electron beam evaporation, thickness 0.01 mm, angle 45.0°; Liquid crystal layer: bipolar composite liquid crystal, 4.5μm thick; Nano-interface: Carbon nanotube: Graphene: Polyimide = 15:8:77; Protective layer: 7H wear-resistant and stain-resistant coating + blue light blocking coating. Test performance: transmittance 82.3%; ΔT=3.1%; focus response 165ms; error 0.07D; transmission loss 2.7%; yield 96.2%. 2) Example 2: All-Scene Adaptive Presbyopic Correction Liquid Crystal Lens Based on Example 1, the liquid crystal ratio was optimized to enhance near-distance reading adaptability and improve glare suppression capability. Performance testing: Refraction matching accuracy ≥98.8%; Glare suppression ≥85%; Continuous focusing life ≥120,000 cycles; Low light transmittance 81.7%. 3) Example 3: Ultra-thin AR / VR dedicated liquid crystal lens The substrate thickness has been reduced to 0.3mm, and the nano-interface layout has been optimized to meet the requirements for thinner and lighter AR / VR optical modules. Test performance: Total thickness ≤ 0.8mm; light transmittance 82.0%; focus response 155ms; transmission loss 2.6%. Experimental data index This invention Berkeley Zeiss Finland IXI apple industry average Light transmittance (%) ≥82 60 70.2 68 75 <50 Polarization-independent ΔT (%) ≤3.2 5.5 6.8 8.2 7.5 ≥8.9 Focusing response (ms) ≤180 ≥600 ≥400 <500 ≥600 ≥500 Focusing error (D) ±0.10 ±0.40 ±0.25 ±0.50 ±0.30 ±0.50 Nanoparticle transport loss (%) ≤3 — — ≥12 ≥15 ≥10 Process standardization support Not supported Not supported Not supported Not supported Not supported Mass production yield (%) ≥95 <70 <85 <80 <75 <70 Is it a polarizing film? No need No need need need need need Originality: This invention is the first in the world in three core directions: polymer nano-transmission integration, polarization-independent high light transmittance integration, and standardized mass production process. It is novel, creative, and practical.

Claims

1. A high-transmittance adaptive focusing liquid crystal lens structure supporting polymer nanotransmission, characterized in that, It includes, from top to bottom, the following layers: a wear-resistant and anti-fouling blue light blocking protective layer, a polarization-independent gradient refractive index liquid crystal focusing layer, a nano-metasurface polarization conversion layer, and a high-transmittance substrate layer; the lens edge integrates a polymer nano-transmission interface, which adopts a carbon nanotube-graphene-polyimide composite nanomaterial.

2. The liquid crystal lens structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The thickness of the nano-metasurface layer is 0.01 mm, and the angle between its major axis and the projection of the liquid crystal molecule's direction vector onto the light propagation surface is 45°±0.3°.

3. The liquid crystal lens structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The liquid crystal focusing layer has a thickness of 4.5 μm, uses bipolar polarizer composite liquid crystal material, has a refractive index adjustment range of 0.35, and supports refractive correction of -10.00D to +6.00D and astigmatism correction of ±6.00D.

4. The liquid crystal lens structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The mass ratio of the polymer nanotransmission interface material is: carbon nanotube: graphene: polyimide = 15:8:77, with transmission loss ≤3%, transmission delay ≤10ms, and electromagnetic interference resistance improved by ≥80%.

5. The liquid crystal lens structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The protective layer has 7H wear resistance, oil resistance, a 415nm~455nm harmful blue light blocking rate of ≥35%, and a surface water contact angle of ≥110°.

6. A standardized preparation method for a liquid crystal lens according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Step 1: Substrate polishing, cleaning, and plasma activation; Step 2: Electron beam evaporation deposition of nano-metasurface layers; Step 3: Preparation of photo-alignment layer and UV photo-alignment curing; Step 4: Bidirectional liquid crystal filling and washing-refilling molding; Step 5: Photolithography forming of polymer nano-transmission interface at the lens edge; Step 6: Apply and cure the wear-resistant, stain-resistant, and blue light-blocking protective layer.

7. The standardized preparation method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The metasurface deposition temperature is 120±5℃, and the deposition rate is 0.1nm / s; the liquid crystal curing temperature is 80±3℃, and the curing time is 20-30min; the nano-interface processing accuracy is 0.001mm.

8. The standardized preparation method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The overall manufacturing time for a single lens is ≤90 minutes, the yield rate for mass production is ≥95%, and the lens thickness consistency error is ≤±0.02mm.

9. The liquid crystal lens structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lens has an overall light transmittance of ≥82%, polarization independence ΔT ≤3.2%, focusing response time ≤180ms, steady-state focusing error ≤±0.10D, and continuous focusing life ≥120,000 cycles.

10. The liquid crystal lens structure according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lens can be directly integrated into the adaptive smart glasses system, and achieves low-loss bidirectional connection with the AI ​​control module, multimodal sensing module and power module through a nanometer transmission interface, supporting synchronous transmission of signals and energy.

Images