Transfer of optical element patterns on a same side of a substrate already having a feature thereon
A passive optical element is transferred into a substrate already having features with a vertical dimension thereon. The features may be another passive optical element, an active optical element, a dichroic layer, a dielectric layer, alignment features, metal portions. A protective layer is provided over the feature during the transfer of the optical element. One or more of these processes may be performed on a wafer level.
Latest DIGITAL OPTICS CORPORATION Patents:
The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/330,504 entitled “Transfer of Optical Element Patterns on a Same Side of a Substrate Already Having a Feature Thereon” filed Oct. 23, 2001, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention is directed to formation of optical elements etched into a same side of a substrate having a feature thereon, more particularly using patterning, masking and/or reflow techniques.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONFabrication of both refractive and diffractive optical elements on the same side of a wafer is desirable for numerous applications. However, known wafer level creation techniques do not allow for high fidelity patterning of both refractive and diffractive optical elements on the same side of the wafer.
For example, if the diffractive optical element is created first, the creation of the refractive optical element will degrade the fidelity of the diffractive optical element. This degradation is due to the etching of the diffractive optical element further into the substrate that occurs during the etching of the refractive optical element.
If the refractive optical element is created first, then the high fidelity diffractive optical elements are severely degraded. Also, the topology of the refractive optical element will not allow a high quality thin photoresist layer to be spun onto the substrate. Such a high quality, i.e., uniform, thin photoresist layer is also needed to insure the creation of high fidelity diffractive optical elements. One possible solution is the use of spray coating and projection patterning, but this is not as practical as spinning the photoresist.
Thus, current lithographic techniques do not permit high fidelity patterning of both refractive and diffractive optical elements when both are to be provided on the same side of the wafer.
More generally, the above problem arises when a pattern is to be etched into a same surface already containing features which would be affected by the etch process. The larger, i.e., deeper, the feature to be etched, the more likely the etch process will effect the other features already present.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention is therefore directed to providing a method of forming an optical element pattern to be etched on a surface having features already thereon, and the structures formed thereby, which substantially overcomes at least one of the above disadvantages.
It is an object of the present invention to create both refractive and diffractive optical elements in the same side of the substrate.
It is another object of the present invention to preserve features, e.g., alignment features, metallization features, active optical elements, passive optical elements, already on a surface while etching an optical element into the surface.
These and other objects of the present invention will become more readily apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSThe foregoing and other objects, aspects and advantages will be described with reference to the drawings, in which:
In the following description, for purposes of explanation and not limitation, specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced in other embodiments that depart from these specific details. In other instances, detailed descriptions of well-known devices and methods are omitted so as not to obscure the description of the present invention with unnecessary details. As used herein, the term “wafer” is to mean any substrate on which a plurality of components are formed which are to be separated to some degree, either individually or as arrays, prior to final use.
The method for forming an optical element on a surface already having features thereon is shown in the flow chart of
A specific example of the method is shown in
In the specific example shown here, a lift-off photoresist layer 24 is patterned to be on the non-diffractive optical element portion of the substrate 20, as shown in
Refractive structures 27 which are to be transferred into the substrate 20 are then formed on the substrate 20 as shown in
The protection of the features already present on the surface at step 14 may be realized in a number of manners, depending upon the pattern to be etched, the etching to be performed, and the features to be protected. For example, if the feature is below or a flat layer on the surface to be etched, a protective material that is resistant to the etch process, but may be removed from the surface without affecting the underlying structure, may be bonded over the features to be protected. In the example shown in
Alternatively, the protection may be provided by patterning a protective material, e.g., photoresist, over the features. This protective layer may be the same photoresist layer to be used in the formation of the optical element, as shown in
However, when the protective photoresist 48 covering the feature 45 is larger, i.e., wider, than the pattern 46 for the refractive optical element while having the same thickness, reflow may result in a lower profile for the protective photoresist 48 over the feature 45 than that for the refractive optical element 46. Then, when etched, the protective photoresist 48 over the feature 45 is removed before the etch of the refractive optical element is complete. Thus, the feature 45 may still be damaged during the transfer. One solution to this problem would be to use a gray scale mask or other technique to leave a thicker photoresist over the feature, so that after reflow, sufficient height remains that the feature is protected during etch. However, using a reflowed protective photoresist also can result in undesired etching around the outer regions of the protective photoresist.
A solution to this is shown in
Another solution to this problem is shown in
Another solution is shown in
Yet another solution is shown in
At least one of the above steps in the process, e.g., the formation of the pattern, the provision of protection, and the transfer of the pattern, is performed on a wafer level. The wafer may then be diced to form individual systems.
It will be obvious that the invention may be varied in a plurality of ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the scope of the invention. All such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.
Claims
1. An optical element comprising:
- a refractive optical element in a first surface of a substrate;
- a diffractive optical element in the first surface of the substrate, the diffractive optical element in a separate portion of the substrate than the refractive optical element, the refractive and the diffractive optical elements having been transferred into the first surface of the substrate.
2-35. (canceled)
36. The optical element as claimed in claim 1, further comprising alignment features on the first surface.
37. The optical element as claimed in claim 1, further comprising electro-optical elements on the first surface.
38. The optical element as claimed in claim 1, further comprising metal portions on the first surface.
39. The optical element as claimed in claim 1, further comprising one of dichroic portions and dielectric portions on the first surface.
40. The optical element as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a protective portion over the diffractive optical element.
41. The optical element as claimed in claim 40, wherein the protective portion is made of a same material as a refractive optical element pattern used to transfer the refractive optical element to the substrate.
42. The optical element as claimed in claim 40, wherein the protective portion is made of a same class of material as the refractive optical element, but of a different specific material.
43. The optical element as claimed in claim 42, wherein the protective portion is made of a first photoresist and a refractive optical element pattern used to transfer the refractive optical element to the substrate is made of a second photoresist, the first and second photoresist being different.
44. The optical element as claimed in claim 43, wherein the first photoresist does not reflow under conditions for reflowing the second photoresist.
45. The optical element as claimed in claim 43, wherein the first photoresist is resistant to removal under conditions for removing the second photoresist.
Type: Application
Filed: Dec 7, 2004
Publication Date: May 5, 2005
Applicant: DIGITAL OPTICS CORPORATION (Charlotte, NC)
Inventors: Thomas Suleski (Charlotte, NC), Robert Boye (Charlotte, NC), William Delaney (Charlotte, NC), Harris Miller (Charlotte, NC), James Morris (Charlotte, NC), Hongtao Han (Mooresville, NC), Jay Mathews (Huntersville, NC)
Application Number: 11/004,963