Abstract:

Dielectric elastomer (DE) is a class of electroactive polymer smart materials. Under the external electric field, it can produce various forms of responses. Comparing with the traditional lens with which the focus length is manipulated by the mechanical controls, the DE soft tunable lenses exhibit the distinct advantages in the tuning way of the focal length. The DE soft tunable lenses tune the focal length by mimicking the eyeball of human beings. The lens is composed of two circular DE films which are fixed on the rigid frame. The salty water is filled in the enclosed space and forms a convex lens. The top DE film is coated by the annular compliant electrodes. Under the voltage excitation, the upper film is deformed. Accordingly, the lower film is deformed due to the incompressibility of the salt water sealed in the enclosed space. Subsequently, the focal length of the tunable lens is changed. By employing the variational principle and the neo-Hookean model, we obtain the governing equations, boundary conditions and the continuity conditions of the biomimetic lens when driven by the dielectric elastomers. The nonlinear governing equations are solved by the shooting method and the continuity conditions at the interface are treated with in an effective way. The theoretical results agree well with the experimental data. The extensive parametric analysis is carried out based on the presented model. The numerical results show that the geometrical configuration, the initial focal length, the area of the coated annular compliant electrodes, the pre-stretch of the top DE film and the shear modulus of the bottom film have significant effect on the adjusting performance of the tunable lens. The presented theoretical model provides an effective tool in designing and optimizing the biomimetic adaptive focus lens.

Key words: dielectric elastomers, soft tunable lens, focal length, nonlinearity