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Effects of fabrication errors in the diffractive optical element on the modulation transfer function of a hybrid lens
Hyun Choi,1 Wan-Chin Kim,2 Sang-Hyuck Lee,2 No-Cheol Park,1,* and Young-Pil Park1
1

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yonsei University, 134 Shinchon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120-749, Korea 2 Center for Information Storage Device, Yonsei University, 134 Shinchon-Dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120-749, Korea *Corresponding author: pnch@yonsei.ac.kr Received July 9, 2008; revised September 5, 2008; accepted September 5, 2008; posted September 10, 2008 (Doc. ID 98519); published October 17, 2008 Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) are often used to improve the performance of optical systems. However, when a blazed DOE is machined, shape errors can be generated in the discontinuity region of the DOE due to the nite radius of the processing tool. We simulated the effects of this shape error on the optical path and modulation transfer function (MTF) in a hybrid lens for a compact camera module. The decrease rate of the MTF was larger in the low-spatial-frequency domain and when the light entered at a low incident angle. 2008 Optical Society of America OCIS codes: 050.1970, 110.4100.

1. INTRODUCTION
To enhance optical resolution and reduce aberrations, refractive and diffractive lenses are often combined as a hybrid lens. Many types of diffractive lens have been fabricated to date, such as the binary-phase diffractive element, the multilevel diffractive optical element (DOE), and the blazed DOE. Among these, if the DOE pitch period is greater than 10 m, blazed DOEs are used, because they have higher diffraction efciency than the other types [1]. Symmetrically blazed DOEs can be incorporated with spherical or aspherical surfaces. Therefore, the blazed DOE is the most suitable type to enhance optical performance and reduce the size of slim compact cameras. Generally, blazed DOEs are fabricated by a diamond turning process or with a mold that is itself fabricated by diamond turning [1,2]. However, fabricated blazed DOEs cannot have ideal shapes because of limits in the processing tool shape and size. To determine the inuence of inaccuracies in diamond turning manufacturing, Tamagawa and Ichioka calculated the decrease in diffraction efciency and modulation transfer function (MTF) due to the nite size of the tool, applying electromagnetic and Fourier optics theory to the case of a normally incident beam [2,3]. Here, we consider the decrease in MTF of a hybrid lens for a compact camera module due to the shape error of the blazed DOE using image formation and geometrical optics theory. In a compact camera, light enters the camera lens at an incident angle. Each light eld has a different decrease rate of DOE shape error, because each light eld passes through a different part of the DOE. Therefore, we calculated the MTF considering the eld angle and shape error of the DOE.
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2. PUPIL FUNCTION OF THE HYBRID LENS

To simulate the decrease in image quality due to the shape error of the DOE, we applied linear systems theory using Fourier optics [4]. It is difcult to design a diffraction-limited wide-angle optical system, such as a camera. Therefore, in the case of a compact camera, a phase error at the aperture is generated as a result of wavefront errors. A pupil function with a wavefront error can be represented as i2 P x,y = P0 x,y exp W x,y , 1

where P0 x , y is the ideal exit pupil function, W x , y is the aberration function, and is the wavelength. In hybrid lenses that combine the refractive lens and the DOE, the DOE is designed by compensating for the optical path difference (OPD) that is due to the aberration of the refractive lens. Therefore, the aberration function of a hybrid lens can be determined by summing the aberration function of the refractive optics and that of the DOE. Substituting the aberration function of a hybrid lens into Eq. (1), we can obtain the pupil function of a hybrid lens. The optical transfer function (OTF) is then found by autocorrelation of the pupil function. The magnitude function of the OTF is the MTF. The DOE retards the wavefront by as much as in each blaze (Fig. 1). Therefore, a DOE has discontinuity parts. However, if it is machined directly, the shapes of these parts are not ideal. Fabrication errors, such as the shape error due to the nite radius of the processing tool, can be generated as shown in Fig. 2. Therefore, the per 2008 Optical Society of America

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Fig. 1.

(Color online) Schematic diagram of a blazed DOE.

Fig. 3. (Color online) Design of the hybrid lens for a compact camera module.

d=

n0 1

where 0 is the construction wavelength and n0 is the refractive index of the DOE. We chose 0 = 500 nm and n0 = 1.52. The starting point of the shape error, x1, is d x1 = R 1 +
Fig. 2. tool. Shape error due to the nite radius of the processing

d2 + p2

formance of the DOE as a wavefront converter deteriorates because these fabrication errors distort the wavefront of the DOE.

3. MODELING OF THE BLAZED DOE AND CALCULATION OF THE MTF

We calculated the pupil function of a DOE, including the shape error due to the nite radius of the processing tool. For the simulation, we designed a hybrid lens for a compact camera module (Fig. 3). A DOE was positioned on the back of the rst lens. The radius of the DOE was 472.7 m, with six zones of widths 73.3, 51.7, 41.6, 36.5, 36.5, and 11.1 m (Fig. 4). The shape error due to the nite radius of the processing tool, yerror, was generated from x1 to 0, as shown in Fig. 2 [2]. The yerror is expressed as follows: yerror = R2 x + x0 2 + y0 , 2

We calculated the sag of the DOE with shape error due to the processing tool radius by substituting yerror into the sag equation of the DOE. Then, we calculated the OPD compensation effect of a DOE with shape error included. By the derived equation, the phase distortion of DOE with shape error can be calculated geometrically. The aberration function of a hybrid lens that has a DOE with shape error can be calculated by summing the aberration function of the refractive optics and that of the DOEs phasedistortion-induced shape error. We can also derive the geometrical model of the pupil function of a hybrid lens

where R is the radius of the processing tool and x0 and y0 are at the center of the processing tool when it is positioned as shown in Fig. 2. The values of x0 and y0 are d x0 = R, y0 = R p + 1+ d2 p2 , 3

where d is the grating depth of the DOE and p is the grating pitch period. The former is expressed as

Fig. 4.

Design of the blazed DOE for a hybrid lens.

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DOE diameter of 685 m, the number of meshes is determined to be at least 22,842. Figure 5 shows the MTF for various processing tool radii. We calculated the MTF of 0.0, 0.4, and 0.7 elds in the case of tool radii of 0.3, 0.5, and 1.0 m. If the tool radius is 1 m on the same level as the grating depth, the shape error markedly affects the MTF. If the DOE is ideal, the modulation value of normally incident light is 0.81 at 40 line pairs/mm, as shown in Fig. 5(a). However, when the shape error due to tool radii of 0.3, 0.5, and 1.0 m of the DOE is taken into account, the decrease rates of the modulation value of the hybrid lens are 14.8%, 29.6%, and 50.6%, respectively. The decrease rate of modulation in the low-frequency domain is larger than that in the highfrequency domain. For a 0.0 eld, for example, the decrease rates of the modulation value caused by a tool radius of 1.0 m at 40 and 150 line pairs/mm are 50.6% and 35.1%, respectively. The decrease rate of the modulation is larger for a 0.0 eld than for 0.4 and 0.7 elds, because more light is passed by the discontinuity part of the DOE at the 0.0 eld. The decrease rates of the modulation transfer function are 50.6% and 33.0% for the 0.0 and 0.7 elds, respectively.

4. CONCLUSIONS
We simulated the decrease of MTF due to DOE fabrication error caused by the nite radius of the processing tool in a compact camera module using geometrical and Fourier optics theory. We conrmed that the MTF is decreased by the shape error of the DOE. We also found that the decrease rate of the MTF is larger in the low-spatialfrequency domain and for low incident light angles. To maintain good optical performance, the tool radius must be smaller than the grating depth.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This work was funded by the Korea Science and Engineering Foundation (KOSEF) through the Center for Information Storage Mechatronics grant R17-2008-04001001-0.

Fig. 5. (Color online) Modulation transfer function of (a) 0.0 eld, (b) 0.4 eld, and (c) 0.7 eld, considering the shape error of the DOE.

REFERENCES
1. C. G. Blough, M. Rossi, S. K. Mack, and R. L. Michaels, Single-point diamond turning and replication of visible and near-infrared diffractive optical elements, Appl. Opt. 36, 46484654 (1997). Y. Tamagawa and Y. Ichioka, Modulation transfer function of blazed diffractive optics produced by diamond turning, Opt. Rev. 6 288292 (1999). Y. Tamagawa and Y. Ichioka, Efciency of blazed diffractive optics produced by diamond turning, Opt. Rev. 5 291294 (1998). J. W. Goodman, Introduction to Fourier Optics (Roberts, 2005).

with shape error. For accurate calculation of the aberration function due to the distortion of the DOE, the number of meshes for the calculation have to be determined considering the diameter of the DOE plane and the processing tool radii. For example, for a 0.0-eld incident light that has passed through only a part of a DOE of diameter 685 m, considering the tool radus of 0.3 m on a

2. 3. 4.