Variable-focal length lens using IPMC

We fabricated a liquid lens type variable-focal length lens(VFLL), which is composed of a container with a movable silicon plate having a pupil (diameter: 4 mm) covered by a thin polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) film, a liquid enclosed in the container and a plural IPMCs fixed above the container for pushing the silicon plate downward. By applying a force to the silicon plate by IPMCs, the PDMS film of the pupil deforms upward. As a result, the focal length of the liquid lens decreases. The proposed method for fabricating VFLL has a large potential to realized very small VFLL.