New meta-lens revolutionises vacuum UV optics

27 July 2022 News

Vacuum ultra-violet (VUV) is used in semiconductor manufacturing, photochemistry and materials science. The focused VUV light source is needed for nanolithography, material processing, advanced manufacturing, and other industrial areas.

Up to now it has been expensive to work with. VUV with wavelengths between 100 and 200 nm is strongly absorbed by the oxygen in air, and therefore, the application of VUV requires a vacuum chamber or other specialised environment. Conventionally, very bulky and expensive systems with rare nonlinear crystals are used for generating and focusing VUV light.

Almost all types of glass used to make conventional lenses are unsuitable for VUV due to their strong absorption in this region, and the few VUV-transmittable materials currently used for lenses are extremely thin and fragile.

To address these limitations, researchers at the City University of Hong Kong (CityU) have developed and fabricated a meta-lens consisting of many 150 nm triangle-shaped zinc oxide nano-antenna. “We have developed a meta-lens with intricate nanostructures on zinc oxide thin film capable of focusing VUV light. This meta-lens provides a compact method for nonlinear VUV generation and focusing of the generated light,” said Professor Tsai.

The new VUV meta-lens in a 45 µm diameter can convert UV light with 394 nm wavelength into VUV light with 197 nm wavelength and focuses the VUV light on a small spot less than 2 microns in diameter. Tests at Rice University demonstrated a focused light spot from the lens with an enhanced power density of 21 times.

“Our VUV meta-lens is compact, lightweight, effective, and can be mass produced [in a] semiconductor electronics fabrication process. This novel and disruptive meta-device could revolutionise the conventional VUV optics technology and its market,” Professor Tsai said.

Further reading:

SACEEC celebrates standout industrial innovation on the KITE 2025 show floor
News
Exhibitor innovation took the spotlight at the KITE 2025 as the South African Capital Equipment Export Council announced the winners of its prestigious New Product & Innovation Awards.

Read more...

---

SA team for International Olympiad in Informatics
News
The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa has named the team that will represent South Africa at this year’s International Olympiad in Informatics.

Read more...

---

Anritsu and Bluetest to support OTA measurement
News
Anritsu Company and Sweden-based Bluetest AB have jointly developed an Over-The-Air measurement solution to evaluate the performance of 5G IoT devices compliant with the RedCap specification.

Read more...

---

The current sentiment of the global electronics manufacturing supply chain
News
In its latest report, the Global Electronics Association provides an analysis of the current sentiment and conditions in the global electronics manufacturing supply chain as of June 2025.

Read more...

---

Global semiconductor sales increase in May
News
The Semiconductor Industry Association recently announced global semiconductor sales were $59,0 billion during the month of May 2025, an increase of 19,8%.

Read more...

---

New president for Avnet EMEA
News
Avnet has announced that Avnet Silica’s president, Gilles Beltran, will step into the role of president of Avnet EMEA.

Read more...

---

DARPA sets new record for wireless power beaming
News
In tests performed in New Mexico, the Persistent Optical Wireless Energy Relay program team recorded over 800 W of power delivered for about 30 seconds with a laser beam crossing 8,6 kilometres.

Read more...

---

Nordic Semiconductor acquires Memfault
RF Design News
With this acquisition, Nordic has launched its first complete chip-to-cloud platform for lifecycle management of connected products.

Read more...

---

Trina storage demonstrates high efficiency and long-term reliability
News
Independent testing confirms 95,2% DC efficiency and 98% capacity retention after one year of operation.

Read more...

---

From the editor's desk: AI – a double-edged sword
Technews Publishing News
As with any powerful tool, AI presents challenges, some of which, if not carefully managed, threaten to undo the potential that it can offer.

Read more...

---