Fabrication of microlenses by laser chemical vapor deposition.

A new laser-based method was developed for fabrication of microlenses on flat quartz plates. In this method, a CO(2) laser is used to heat a quartz surface and induce thermal reactions for source gases of SiH(4) and NO. Even as-grown silicon oxide deposits have the spherical thickness distribution required for a lens at the center and this useful area can be further increased by wet etching. Microlenses were checked on a Fizeau interferometer for surface accuracy and aberrations. As a demonstration, a 14-microm thick microlens was used for collimating light from an optical fiber.