Patent Application
20240222928
The present invention relates to an optical module, an optical engine for image projection, a glass display, a sample testing device, and a method for manufacturing an optical module.
Priority is claimed on Japanese Patent Application No. 2023-000175 filed Jan. 4, 2023, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Augmented reality (AR) glasses and virtual reality (VR) glasses are expected to be used as small wearable devices. In such devices, a light emitting element that emits full-color visible light is one of the main elements for rendering high-quality images. In such a device, a light emitting element independently and rapidly modulates the intensity of each of the three colors of RGB representing visible light, for example, to express a moving image in desired colors.
As such a light emitting element, Patent Document 1 discloses a light emitting element that emits a color moving image by causing a visible light laser to be incident on a waveguide and controlling the emission intensity of a laser chip of each color using an electric current. Furthermore, Patent Document 2 disclosures a modulator that causes laser light to be incident into an external modulator having a waveguide formed on a substrate having an electro-optic effect via an optical fiber and modulates the intensity of each of the three colors of RGB independently by an external modulator.
In wearable devices such as AR glasses and VR glasses, the key to their widespread use is to miniaturize the light emitting module so that each function fits within a size of a normal eyeglass. A miniaturized light emitting module that can be applied to such wearable devices is considered to have a structure in which laser light emitted from a light emitting element is directly reflected toward a display surface by a mirror without going through a waveguide or the like. For example, Patent Document 3 discloses an optical module in which a laser light emitting element and a mirror are mounted on one common substrate.
However, since the optical module disclosed in Patent Document 3 has a configuration in which each of the laser light emitting element, the lens, and the mirror are fixed on one common substrate, it has not been possible to adjust an optical axis position of the laser light incident on the lens after the optical module is manufactured. Therefore, when the optical module is mounted on a device, there has been a problem in that adjustment of a mounting position of the optical module in order to emit laser light to a predetermined position on a display surface becomes complicated.
The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an optical module, an optical engine for image projection using the optical module, a glass display, a sample testing device, and a method for manufacturing an optical module, in which a laser light emitting element, an optical lens, and a mirror are each mounted on a substrate, and then optical axis adjustment can be performed.
In order to solve the above problem, the following means are provided.
According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an optical module, an optical engine for image projection using the optical module, a glass display, a sample testing device, and a method for manufacturing an optical module, in which a laser light emitting element, an optical lens, and a mirror are each mounted on a substrate, and then optical axis adjustment can be performed.
An optical module according to an embodiment of the present invention, an optical engine for image projection, a glass display, a sample testing device, and a method for manufacturing the optical module which use the same will be described below with reference to the drawings. The embodiments shown below are specifically described in order to allow better understanding of the gist of the invention, and unless otherwise specified, the embodiments are not intended to limit the invention. In addition, in the drawings used in the following description, in order to make features of the present invention easier to understand, main portions may be shown enlarged for convenience, and dimensional ratios of each component are not necessarily the same as in reality.
The optical module 10 of this embodiment includes a laser light source part 11, a mirror part 12, a lens part 13, and a metal bonding layer 14.
The laser light source part 11 includes a first substrate (a subcarrier) 21 and a laser light emitting element 23 formed on one main surface 21a of the first substrate 21.
The first substrate 21 is configured of a silicon (Si) substrate, an aluminum oxide (Al2O3) substrate, an aluminum nitride (AlN) substrate, a quartz (SiO2) substrate, or the like. The first substrate 21 may be made of the same material as a second substrate 22 constituting the mirror part 12, or may be made of a different material from the second substrate 22.
The laser light emitting element 23 is configured of an element capable of emitting laser light L, for example, an LED. The laser light emitting element 23 may be able to emit laser light L of any wavelength according to an object on which the laser light L is incident.
For example, as the laser light emitting element 23, a visible light LED element capable of emitting laser light in a visible light range, such as red laser light, green laser light, or blue laser light with a wavelength range of 380 nm or more and less than 800 nm can be used. Further, for example, as the laser light emitting element 23, an infrared LED element capable of emitting laser light in a near-infrared region with a wavelength range of 800 nm or more and less than 1800 nm can be used.
The laser light emitting element 23 is bonded to the first substrate 21 via, for example, a metal layer 27. The metal layer 27 may be configured of two metal layers including, for example, a first metal layer 27a and a second metal layer 27b. Such a metal layer 27 can be formed by a known method such as sputtering, vapor deposition, or application of a metal paste.
The first metal layer 27a may be made of, for example, an alloy of gold (Au) and tin (Sn), an alloy of tin (Sn) and copper (Cu), an alloy of indium (In) and bismuth (Bi), a tin (Sn)-silver (Ag)-copper (Cu) based solder alloy (SAC), or the like. The second metal layer 27b may be made of, for example, gold (Au), platinum (Pt), silver (Ag), lead (Pb), indium (In), nickel (Ni), or the like.
A first wiring layer 25 of which one end side is connected to the laser light emitting element 23 is formed on the one main surface 21a of the first substrate 21. The first wiring layer 25 is an electric wiring for supplying a driving current to the laser light emitting element 23, and may be a pattern wiring formed by forming a metal thin film made of gold, silver, aluminum, or the like in a predetermined pattern, for example. A first electrode (an electrode pad) 28 may be formed on the other end side of the first wiring layer 25. The first electrode (the electrode pad) 28 is connected to, for example, an external drive power source or a control integrated circuit.
The mirror part 12 includes a second substrate (a subcarrier) 22 and an optical scanning mirror element 24 formed on one main surface 22a of the second substrate 22.
The second substrate 22 is configured of a silicon (Si) substrate, an aluminum oxide (Al2O3) substrate, an aluminum nitride (AlN) substrate, a quartz (SiO2) substrate, or the like. The second substrate 22 has an inclined part 22S having an inclined surface 22b inclined at a predetermined angle, for example, 45 degrees, with respect to the one main surface 22a.
The inclined part 22S of the inclined part 22S is formed so that a part of the inclined surface 22b extends to a deeper position in a thickness direction than the one main surface 22a. The optical scanning mirror element 24 is placed on the inclined surface 22b of the inclined part 22S. An angle of inclination of the inclined surface 22b with respect to the one main surface 22a may be within a range of, for example, 10° to 70°.
The optical scanning mirror element (a MEMS mirror) 24 is, for example, a micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) device obtained by finely processing a silicon wafer. The optical scanning mirror element 24 of this embodiment includes a mirror surface portion 24b having a circular shape and disposed at the center of a base body 24a, a beam portion 24c that supports the mirror surface portion 24b, and an application electrode (not shown) that bends the beam portion 24c. A surface (a reflection surface) of the mirror surface portion 24b is, for example, formed in a planar shape. Although the mirror surface portion 24b is formed in a circular shape in this embodiment, it is not limited to a circular shape, and may be formed in any shape, such as a rectangular or polygonal shape.
Such an optical scanning mirror element 24 generates an electrostatic force by applying a predetermined voltage to the application electrode. Then, the beam portion 24c is locally bent according to a position at which the electrostatic force is generated, thereby changing an angle of the mirror surface portion 24b supported by the beam portion 24c two-dimensionally (a horizontal direction (an X direction) and a vertical direction (a Y direction)). A reflection angle of the laser light L reflected by the mirror surface portion 24b is changed by changing the angle of the mirror surface portion 24b. That is, due to the laser light L being scanned from the mirror surface portion 24b, arbitrary characters or figures can be displayed on the display surface by the laser light L.
A second wiring layer 26 of which one end side is connected to the optical scanning mirror element 24 is formed on the one main surface 22a of the second substrate 22. The second wiring layer 26 is an electric wiring for supplying a drive current that changes an angle of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24, and may be a pattern wiring formed by forming a metal thin film made of gold, silver, aluminum, or the like in a predetermined pattern, for example. A second electrode (an electrode pad) 29 may be formed on the other end side of the second wiring layer 26. The second electrode (the electrode pad) 29 is connected to, for example, an external drive power source or a control integrated circuit.
The lens part 13 includes a third substrate (a subcarrier) 15, an optical lens 16 formed on one main surface 15a of the third substrate 15, and a lens holder 17 that supports the optical lens 16.
The third substrate 15 is configured of a silicon (Si) substrate, an aluminum oxide (Al2O3) substrate, an aluminum nitride (AlN) substrate, a quartz (SiO2) substrate, or the like. The first substrate 21 may be made of the same material as the first substrate 21 constituting the laser light source part 11 and the second substrate 22 constituting the mirror part 12, and may be made of a different material from the first substrate 21 and the second substrate 22.
The optical lens 16 may be, for example, a convex lens that narrows the laser light L emitted from the laser light emitting element 23 to further improve directivity. Further, the lens holder 17 is made entirely of silicon, for example, and comes into contact with a peripheral edge of the optical lens 16 to support the optical lens 16.
The laser light source part 11, the lens part 13, and the mirror part 12 that constitute the optical module 10 are disposed in a straight line. The first substrate 21 that constitutes the laser light source part 11 and the third substrate 15 that constitutes the lens part 13, and the third substrate 15 and the second substrate 22 constituting the mirror part 12 are respectively directly bonded to each other via the metal bonding layer 14. That is, the laser light source part 11 and the mirror part 12 are integrated by the metal bonding layer 14 with the lens part 13 interposed therebetween, and constitute the optical module 10.
The metal bonding layer 14 is made of a metal material that can be bonded to the constituent material of the first substrate 21, the constituent material of the second substrate 22, and the constituent material of the third substrate 15, for example, a metal material containing at least gold or tin. More specifically, as gold-based solder materials, a gold-tin solder (Au—Sn), a gold-germanium solder (Au—Ge), a gold-silicon solder (Au—Si), and the like may be used. Further, as tin-based solder materials, an eutectic solder (Sn—Pb), a lead-free solder (Sn—Ag), a copper-tin solder (Sn—Cu), or the like may be used. The constituent materials of the metal bonding layers 14 may be appropriately selected according to the constituent materials of the first substrate 21, second substrate 22, and third substrate 15.
The metal bonding layer 14 is not limited to one layer. For example, when the first substrate 21 and the third substrate 15 are made of different materials, the first substrate 21 and the third substrate 15 may be bonded by a two-layer metal bonding layer using metal materials that are optimal for bonding the respective substrate materials. Further, for example, when the second substrate 22 and the third substrate 15 are made of different materials, the second substrate 22 and the third substrate 15 may be bonded by a two-layer metal bonding layer using metal materials that are optimal for bonding the respective substrate materials. Alternatively, three or more metal bonding layers may be formed using different materials.
Further, in this embodiment, although the first substrate 21 and the third substrate 15, and the second substrate 22 and the third substrate 15 are respectively bonded by the metal bonding layer 14, in the optical module of the present invention, at least only the first substrate 21 and the third substrate 15 may be bonded by the metal bonding layer 14. In such a configuration, the second substrate 22 and the third substrate 15 may be bonded using various adhesives other than the metal bonding layer 14, and a single substrate may be used without separating it into the second substrate 22 and the third substrate 15, and the optical lens and the optical scanning mirror element may be disposed on the single substrate.
A method of manufacturing the optical module of the first embodiment configured as above, and an operation and effects of the optical module of the first embodiment will be described.
When the optical module 10 of the first embodiment is manufactured, first, the laser light emitting element 23 is bonded to one main surface 21a of the first substrate 21 via the metal layer 27. Further, the first wiring layer 25 and the first electrode 28 are formed on the one main surface 21a of the first substrate 21. Thus, the laser light source part 11 is obtained (laser light source part forming step S1).
Further, the optical scanning mirror element 24 is bonded to the inclined surface 22b of the inclined part 22S constituting the second substrate 22, for example, via an adhesive layer. Further, the second wiring layer 26 and the second electrode 29 are formed on one main surface 22a of the second substrate 22. Thus, the mirror part 12 is obtained (mirror part forming step S2).
Further, the lens holder 17 that has supported the optical lens 16 is bonded to one main surface 15a of the third substrate 15, for example, via an adhesive layer. Thus, the lens part 13 is obtained (lens part forming step S3).
Next, a bonding material made of the constituent material of the metal bonding layer 14 is dipped into at least one or both of an end surface of the first substrate 21 constituting the laser light source part 11 and one end surface (an end surface facing the first substrate 21) of the third substrate 15 constituting the lens part 13. Further, a bonding material made of the constituent material of the metal bonding layer 14 is dipped into at least one or both of an end surface of the second substrate 22 constituting the mirror part 12 and the other end surface (an end surface facing the second substrate 22) of the third substrate 15 constituting the lens part 13 (bonding material forming step S4). In this embodiment, the bonding material is dipped into one end surface and the other end surface of the third substrate 15 constituting the lens part 13.
Next, the laser light source part 11, the lens part 13, and the mirror part 12 are disposed (temporarily disposed) adjacent to each other with each of the bonding materials interposed therebetween (placing step S5).
Next, a power source is connected to the laser light emitting element 23 via the first wiring layer 25 to drive the laser light emitting element 23, and the laser light Lis radiated through the optical lens 16 forming the lens part 13 toward the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 forming the mirror part 12. Further, the laser light L reflected by the mirror surface portion 24b is made incident on an optical detection device, for example, a photodetector. Then, in this state, the first substrate 21, the second substrate 22, and the third substrate 15 are positioned with respect to each other. That is, relative positions of the laser light source part 11, the lens part 13, and the mirror part 12 are adjusted with reference to measured values of the photodetector so that an optical axis of the laser light L is aligned with a lens optical axis of the optical lens 16 and a center position of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 (adjusting step S6).
In the embodiment, the optical axis of the laser light L emitted from the laser light emitting element 23 is aligned with the lens optical axis of the optical lens 16 and the center position of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 by moving the relative position of the laser light source part 11 with respect to the lens part 13 and the mirror part 12.
Then, at the positions adjusted in the adjusting step S6, heat rays are radiated toward each of one end surface and the other end surface of the second substrate 22 to melt the respective bonding materials. Then, the end surfaces of the first substrate 21 and the third substrate 15, and the end surfaces of the second substrate 22 and the third substrate 15 are respectively bonded to each other via the respective metal bonding layers 14 formed by cooling and solidifying the melted bonding materials (joining step S7). The heat rays used in the joining step S7 may be, for example, solid laser light mainly having a wavelength of 1064 μm emitted from a YAG laser device.
Through the steps described above, the optical module 10 of the first embodiment can be manufactured.
According to the optical module 10 of the first embodiment, since a substrate (the first substrate 21) on which the laser light emitting element 23 is placed, a substrate (the second substrate 22) on which the optical scanning mirror element 24 is placed, and a substrate (the third substrate 15) on which the optical lens 16 is placed are each separate substrates, and the three substrates are bonded to each other via the metal bonding layers 14, the optical axis position of the laser light L can be aligned so that during manufacturing, the relative positions of the first substrate 21, the second substrate 22, and the third substrate 15 are adjusted, and alignment of the optical axis of the laser light L can be performed so that the optical axis of the laser light L can be aligned with each of the lens optical axis of the optical lens 16 and the center position of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 (active alignment).
Thus, for example, compared to a conventional optical module in which a laser light emitting element, an optical lens, and a mirror element are all mounted on one common substrate, it is possible to obtain the optical module 10 that can radiate the laser light L having a high intensity of light with high positional accuracy.
Further, since the substrate (the first substrate 21) on which the laser light emitting element 23 is placed, the substrate (the second substrate 22) on which the optical scanning mirror element 24 is placed, and the substrate (the third substrate 15) on which the optical lens 16 is placed are configured as separate substrates, the optical module of the second embodiment which will be described below can be easily manufactured.
Next, a configuration of an optical module of a second embodiment will be described. Components similar to those in the first embodiment are given the same numbers and redundant descriptions will be omitted.
In the optical module 30 of the second embodiment, first substrates 41A, 41B, and 41C which respectively constitute three laser light source parts 31A, 31B, and 31C are bonded to a third substrate 45 constituting one lens part 33 via metal bonding layers 14. Additionally, the third substrate 45 of the lens part 33 is bonded to the second substrate 42 constituting one mirror part 32 via the metal bonding layer 14.
A laser light emitting element 43A that constitutes the laser light source part 31A is configured of, for example, a red LED that emits red laser light RL. Further, a laser light emitting element 43B that constitutes the laser light source part 31B is configured of, for example, a green LED that emits green laser light GL. Furthermore, a laser light emitting element 43C that constitutes the laser light source part 31C is configured of, for example, a blue LED that emits blue laser light BL.
Further, an optical lens 46 constituting the lens part 33 is an aspherical lens with an elliptical exterior, and focuses a plurality of laser lights RL, GL, and BL that are incident from mutually different directions toward the center of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24.
The laser light emitted from each of the laser light source parts 31A, 31B, and 31C is focused through the optical lens 46 forming the lens part 33 toward the center of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 forming the mirror part 32. Additionally, a surface of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 is, for example, a reflective surface (a concave mirror) having a concave surface.
More specifically, as shown in
Thus, even when the respective emission positions of the laser lights RL, GL, and BL are different, as long as a physical distance and a positional relationship between projection positions of the mirror surface portion 24b are fixed, it becomes possible to radiate the laser lights RL, GL, and BL parallel to each other toward any one region.
According to the optical module 30 of the second embodiment, an image of any color tone, for example, a full color image, can be displayed on an external display surface due to the laser light WL reflected by the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 by performing scanning of each of the laser light source parts 31A, 31B, and 31C at arbitrary timings.
Additionally, also in such an optical module 30, when the optical module 30 is manufactured, alignment of the optical axis positions can be performed between the laser light source parts 31A, 31B, and 31C and the optical lens 46 by configuring the first substrates 41A, 41B, and 41C to be bonded to one third substrate 45 via the metal bonding layers 14 (the active alignment). Thus, it is now possible to accurately focus the three laser lights RL, GL, and BL toward one point, such as the center of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 and to display a clear and blur-free full-color image on an external display surface.
Furthermore, according to the optical module 30 of the second embodiment, since the configuration is such that the laser lights emitted from the laser light source parts 31A, 31B, and 31C are focused on the center of the mirror surface portion 24b of the optical scanning mirror element 24 via the optical lens 46, as in the related art, there is no need for an optical waveguide unit for coupling multiple laser lights, and it is possible to realize a compact and lightweight optical module 30 that corresponds to a full-color image.
As a modified example of the second embodiment, as shown in
Thus, two sets of RGB laser lights parallel to each other and configured of the laser lights RL1, GL1, BL1 and RL2, GL2, BL2 parallel to each other can be radiated on an external display surface or the like.
Next, a configuration of the optical engine for image projection according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Components similar to those of the optical module of the first embodiment are given the same numbers, and redundant descriptions will be omitted.
The optical engine 50 for image projection of this embodiment includes the optical module 10 of the first embodiment, an integrated circuit 51, and a common substrate 52.
The integrated circuit 51 performs control of light emission of the laser light emitting element 23 (refer to
The common substrate 52 forms one common substrate on which the first substrate 21 constituting the laser light source part 11, the second substrate 22 constituting the mirror part 12, and the third substrate 15 constituting the lens part 13 are placed.
According to such an optical engine 50 for image projection, it functions as a laser image projection means that is miniaturized and compact. For example, by incorporating such an optical engine 50 for image projection into a wearable device, it is possible to realize a wearable device that can project a clear image while ensuring a comfortable wearing feeling without incompatibility.
Next, the configuration of the optical engine for image projection according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Components similar to those of the optical engine for image projection of the embodiment described above are given the same numbers, and redundant descriptions will be omitted.
The glass display 60 of this embodiment includes the optical engine 50 for image projection of the embodiment described above and a frame 61 having an eyeglass shape.
A miniaturized optical engine 50 for image projection is built in a temple part 62 constituting the frame 61.
The optical engine 50 for image projection emits laser light constituting image light toward a glass 64 supported by a front frame 63 constituting the frame 61. The glass 64 is, for example, a half mirror, and an image formed by the laser light L emitted from the optical engine 50 for image projection is projected onto the glass 64. A wearer of the glass display 60 can directly observe an image projected on an inner surface of the glass 64.
As described above, according to the glass display 60 of this embodiment, it is possible to realize a glass display 60 that maintains a good wearing feeling without greatly expanding the temple part 62 of the frame 61 having an eyeglass shape which has a space limitation using the optical engine 50 for image projection that is compact and lightweight.
Next, a configuration of a sample testing device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. The same components as those of the optical engine for image projection of the embodiment described above are given the same numbers, and redundant descriptions will be omitted.
The sample testing device 70 of this embodiment includes the optical engine 50 for image projection of the embodiment described above and a stage 71 on which a sample for testing is placed.
The optical engine 50 for image projection emits a laser light having a wavelength that acts on a sample, for example, a near-infrared region laser light having a wavelength range of 800 nm or more and less than 1800 nm toward the stage 71. The sample M placed on the stage 71 undergoes a specific reaction by the near-infrared region laser light L radiated from the optical engine 50 for image projection. It becomes possible to analyze a composition, a lesion, or the like of the sample by analyzing the sample after such a reaction due to the laser light.
According to the sample testing device 70 of this embodiment, it is possible to realize a sample testing device 70 that is small and low-cost and performs optical analysis of a living body, or the like using the optical engine 50 for image projection that is compact and lightweight.
Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, this embodiment is presented as an example and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. This embodiment can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. This embodiment and modifications thereof are included within the scope and gist of the invention as well as within the scope of the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-000175 | Jan 2023 | JP | national |
