[size=15pt]Camera lens one two-thousandth the thickness of human hair could make your phone thinner than a credit card[/size]

Created from a crystal 6.3-nanometers thick with nine atomic layers
Used a focused ion beam to shave off the layers of crystal, atom by atom
Has optical path length, controls phase the light and monitors interference

By Stacy Liberatore For Dailymail.com


Scientists have created the world's thinnest camera lens - and it could change how phones look forever.

The innovation is just 6.3-nanometers, one two-thousandth the thickness of a human hair, which is comparably thinner than the previous smallest lens that is 50-nanometer thick.

Although this technology could revolution applications in numerous industries and devices, researchers also believe they can use arrays of micro lenses to mimic the compound eyes of insects for 'supervision'.


The innovation is just 6.3-nanometers, which is comparably thinner than previous smallest lens that is 50-nanometer thick. Although this technology could revolution applications in numerous industries, researchers believe it can use arrays of micro lenses to mimic the compound eyes of insects

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Here we report that a single-layer molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) has a giant optical path length (OPL), around one order of magnitude larger than that from a single-layer of graphene,' reads the study published in the journal Science and Applications.

'Using such giant OPL to engineer the phase front of optical beams we have demonstrated, to the best of our knowledge, the world's thinnest optical lens consisting of a few layers of MoS2 less than 6.3 nm thick.'

The Australian National University believes 'the discovery hinged on the remarkable potential of the molybdenum disulphide crystal'.

'This type of material is the perfect candidate for future flexible displays,' said Dr Lu, leader of Nano-Electro-Mechanical System (NEMS) Laboratory in the ANU Research School of Engineering.

'We will also be able to use arrays of micro lenses to mimic the compound eyes of insects.'

Molybdenum disulphide is in a group of materials that have become very popular in high-technology components due to their flexible electronic characteristics.

'Molybdenum disulphide is an amazing crystal,' said Dr Lu. 'It survives at high temperatures, is a lubricant, a good semiconductor and can emit photons too. The capability of manipulating the flow of light in atomic scale opens an exciting avenue towards unprecedented miniaturisation of optical components and the integration of advanced optical functionalities.'

The Australian National University believes 'the discovery hinged on the remarkable potential of the molybdenum disulphide crystal'. This brought the team to discover the single layers of molybdenum disulphide had optical properties, appearing to a light beam to be 50 times thicker, at 38 nanometres

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The record breaking lens was created from a crystal 6.3-nanometers thick with nine atomic layers that were peeled off a larger piece of molybdenum disulphide with sticky tape. Using a focused ion beam to shave off the layers atom by atom, researchers were able to create a 10-micron radius lens

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This property, known as optical path length, controls the phase of the light and monitors interference and diffraction of light as it propagates.

'At the beginning we couldn't imagine why molybdenum disulphide had such surprising properties,' said Dr Lu.

'Manipulating the flow of light at an atomic scale could lead to unprecedented miniaturization in the making of cameras.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3488312/World-s-thinnest-lens-make-phone-credit-card-Lens-just-one-two-thousandth-thickness-human-hair.html#ixzz42id9jBXx
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