Microscopic Objective Cemented Lens Groups Aberration Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fluorescence microscopy objectives face challenges in achieving high numerical aperture and large field of view while minimizing aberrations, which are contradictory in design, and existing solutions are bulky and complex, making mass production difficult.
Innovation Solution
An optical system comprising a series of cemented lens groups with specific focal powers and Abbe numbers, including a diaphragm to limit luminous flux, which corrects field curvature and chromatic aberrations, allowing for a high numerical aperture of 0.8 and a field of view diameter of 1.52 mm within a flat and full field, facilitating mass production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a high numerical aperture and large field of view are designed into the microscopic objective, then the information capacity is improved, but significant aberrations occur in the edge field of view
Solution Approach 1:
The optical system is divided into multiple lens groups (first through fourth lens groups) with different functions. The first lens group handles high numerical aperture imaging, while the second and third lens groups specifically correct field curvature and lateral chromatic aberration. This segmentation allows each group to optimize for its specific function, resolving the contradiction between high information capacity and aberration control.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the optical system are assigned different optical properties. The lens groups use materials with different Abbe numbers (e.g., positive lenses with Abbe number 20-40, negative lenses with Abbe number 30-50) to provide localized correction for different types of aberrations in different parts of the optical path, enabling simultaneous achievement of high numerical aperture and aberration correction.
2Measurement precision
If a catadioptric optical structure is used to achieve high numerical aperture, large field of view, and diffraction limit, then the information capacity is improved, but the device becomes bulky and complex, making mass production difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the traditional catadioptric structure (combining mirrors and lenses) with a purely refractive optical system using only lens groups. This substitution eliminates the complexity of mirror alignment and adjustment mechanisms, making the system more suitable for mass production while maintaining high information capacity through carefully designed lens combinations with specific Abbe numbers and focal lengths.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent specifies precise parameter ranges for the lens groups, including Abbe numbers (positive lenses: 20-40, negative lenses: 30-50), focal lengths, and spacing between groups. By optimizing these parameters, the system achieves diffraction-limited performance with a simplified all-refractive structure, avoiding the need for complex catadioptric designs.
3Measurement precision
If a high magnification microscopic objective is designed, then the numerical aperture is improved, but the field of view becomes smaller
Solution Approach 1:
The patent resolves the magnification-tradoff by introducing additional optical dimensions through multiple lens groups arranged in sequence. Instead of relying on a single high-magnification element, the system uses a cascade of lens groups (first group for high NA, second and third groups for aberration correction, fourth group for field expansion) that collectively achieve both high numerical aperture and large field of view by distributing the optical function across multiple dimensional layers.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The optical system achieves the diffraction limit within a flat field and full field, providing high information capacity and ease of processing and adjustment, enabling efficient gene sequencing imaging with a compact design.
Implementation Method 1
The first lens and the second lens are bonded together to form a first cemented lens group with a positive focal power. The third lens, the fourth lens, and the fifth lens are bonded together to form a second cemented lens group with a negative focal power.
Data Source
AI summary
An optical system includes a first lens, a second lens, a third lens, a fourth lens, a fifth lens, a sixth lens, a seventh lens, an eighth lens, a ninth lens, a tenth lens, an eleventh lens, a twelfth lens, and a thirteenth lens sequentially arranged from an image side to an object side. The first and second lenses are bonded together to form a first cemented lens group having positive focal power. The third to the fifth lenses are bonded together to form a second cemented lens group having negative focal power. The sixth and seventh lenses are bonded together to form a third cemented lens group having positive focal power. The eighth and ninth lenses are bonded together to form a fourth cemented lens group having positive focal power. The tenth and eleventh lenses are bonded together to form a fifth cemented lens group having positive focal power.