Development of a Micro-integrated hyperspectral imaging system

This work describes the development of a micro-integrated multi-spectral imaging system for hyperspectral imaging (HSI). The aim is to employ polymeric optical components to increase integration density and reduce weight while providing improved functionality compared to classical HSI camera systems. Economic advantages of both, simplified assembly by direct integration of mounting features and the ability of mass production of polymer optics are being addressed. An integration strategy into a camera system is developed, providing the required features for micro-assembly of all components. Methods for micro assembly of a polymeric microlens array (MLA) with 12.000 micro lenses in relation to the positioning of a Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) chip as well as a diffraction grating are applied. The direct integration of mounting features into the MLA allows for ultra-compact assembly with a reduced number of assembly processes. Furthermore, it enables the alignment of spectral lines to the CCD pixels, thus optimizing the number of spectra mapped on a single chip. The functionality of system is demonstrated, presenting a technological improvement for a large variety of applications, which may profit from the availability of such a system in terms of simplicity, costs, size and weight.