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Ateneo scientists co-develop low-cost liquid lenses

Ateneo scientists co-develop low-cost liquid lenses

24 Apr 2025

A team of Filipino scientists has discovered a simple, affordable way to make dynamically adjustable water-based lenses that have a wide variety of potential future applications—from classrooms and research labs to cameras and even wearable gadgets.

By coating an ordinary glass slide with specially-prepared polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic, the researchers were able to create a hydrophobic surface that could hold a water droplet in a dome shape similar to a magnifying glass. And by adding or removing water from the droplet, they were able to change and control the magnifying power of this liquid lens with minimal loss or distortion.

A schematic diagram of the experimental setup and a photo (inset) of the actual setup in action. A glass slide coated with a substrate made of electrospun PVC fibers makes for a hydrophobic surface where water droplets can form spherical domes with useful optical properties. (SOURCE: Budlayan et al., 2025)

In a process called “electrospinning,” the researchers melted the PVC in an electric field, which stretches out and deposits the plastic onto the glass slide as very fine microfibers. This makes the surface of the slide more water repellent, and the result is that water droplets stay in a spherical dome shape instead of flattening out. By placing droplets of different sizes on this surface and shining a laser through them, the researchers observed that the light beam widened or narrowed depending on the droplet’s size. Larger droplets acted like lenses with longer focal lengths, while smaller droplets behaved like close-up lenses, with the laser maintaining a clean and undistorted beam.

Seen in the inset are PVC microfibers that make the glass slide surface hydrophobic. The researchers were able to observe the effect of the water droplet’s volume on its optical properties, particularly its power of magnification. By understanding this relationship, they are better able to control and adjust the liquid lens to suit the needs of a given application. (SOURCE: Budlayan et al., 2025)

Because it is low-cost, simple to make, and easy to use, this discovery has multiple potential practical applications: it could be used in science classrooms to teach optics, particularly in schools with limited lab equipment; in remote or low-resource areas, it could help build basic optical tools for experiments or diagnostics; and even in research labs, it offers a quick way to adjust laser beams. It also lays the groundwork for more advanced liquid lenses for possible use in cameras, microscopes, and even wearable tech. With further development, it might also be used in portable diagnostic devices or small projection and lighting systems.

The research was led by Ateneo de Manila University School of Science and Engineering - Department of Physics researchers Mr. Marco Laurence M. Budlayan and Dr. Raphael A. Guerrero, together with colleagues from Caraga State University, Pangasinan State University, and the University of the Philippines - Diliman. Their findings are published in the May 2025 issue of Results in Optics.

SOURCE:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666950125000525

https://archium.ateneo.edu/physics-faculty-pubs/181

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