Optical Element and Radiation-Emitting Device Comprising Such an Optical Element

• US 20140001507A1
• Filed: 01/27/2012
• Published: 01/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OSRAM OLED GMBH (Ams-Osram AG)
• Original Assignee: Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH (Ams-Osram AG)
• Inventors: Streppel, Ulrich, Markytan, Ales, Gaertner, Christian
• Granted Patent: US 9,632,214 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/98
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 5/002 using microoptical elements for redirecting or diffusing light
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 5/045 the lens having discontinuous faces, e.g. Fresnel lenses
• CPC Class Codes: F21Y 2105/10 comprising a two-dimensional array of point-like light-generating elements
• CPC Class Codes: F21Y 2115/10 Light-emitting diodes [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 3/0006 Arrays G02B3/02, G02B5/188 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 3/08 with discontinuous faces, e.g. Fresnel lens diffractive Fresnel lenses G02B5/1876

Abstract

An optical element has an optical body and a number of microstructures. The optical body takes the form of a half-shell and has an inner face and an outer face. The microstructures form the inner and/or outer face of the optical body at least in places and are light-scattering refractive structures. The invention further relates to a radiation-emitting device having at least one semiconductor component and one such optical element.

Claims

1-15. -15. (canceled)

16. An optical element comprising:

an optical body taking the form of a half-shell and comprising an inner face and an outer face; and

a plurality of microstructures forming the inner and/or outer face of the optical body at least in places, wherein the microstructures are light-scattering refractive structures.

17. The optical element according to claim 16, wherein the microstructures take the form of an annular shape or an array of individual lenses and wherein at least some of the microstructures, when viewed in plan view onto the outer face, have a trapezoidal base area, wherein the base area of the microstructures declines continuously towards a point of intersection of an optical axis with the outer face.

18. The optical element according to claim 16, wherein the microstructures at least in part have different curvatures.

19. The optical element according to claim 16, wherein the microstructures have an identical curvature.

20. The optical element according to claim 16, wherein the microstructures are spherical.

21. The optical element according to claim 16, wherein the microstructures are aspherical.

22. The optical element according to claim 16, wherein the following apply:

1/R_{optical body}≦

1/(2*r_{microstructure}), and

0. 01≦

D_{microstructure}/(4*r_{microstructure})≦

0.5,

wherein R_optical body is a radius of the half-shell of the optical body, r_{microstructure} is the curvature of the microstructures and D_{microstructure} is the width of the microstructures.

23. The optical element according to claim 16, wherein the microstructures form the inner and outer face at least in places.

24. The optical element according to claim 23, wherein the microstructures of the inner face have a curvature that differs from the microstructures of the outer face.

25. The optical element according to claim 23, wherein the microstructures of the inner and outer face are identically oriented and are arranged directly opposite one another.

26. The optical element according to claim 23, wherein the microstructures of the inner and outer face are identically oriented and are arranged with a lateral offset in a polar direction.

27. The optical element according to claim 25, wherein the microstructures have a curvature (r_micro) for which the following applies:

d_max/(2*r_{microstructure})≦

1.2,

wherein d_max is the maximum height of the microstructures and r_{microstructure} is the curvature of the microstructures.

28. The optical element according to claim 23, wherein the microstructures on the inner face are arranged rotated by 90°

relative to the microstructures of the outer face, with regard to the main directions of extension of the microstructures, the microstructures on the outer face extend along lines of latitude, and the microstructures on the inner side extend along degrees of longitude and converge towards a point of intersection of an optical axis with the inner face.

29. The optical element according to claim 16, wherein the optical body takes the form of a hemispherical shell, a cylindrical half-shell or toric half-shell.

30. A radiation-emitting device comprising:

a radiation-emitting semiconductor component, which comprises an active layer suitable for generation; and

an optical element according to claim 16 arranged downstream of the semiconductor component in an emission direction.

31. The radiation-emitting device according to claim 30, wherein the device comprises a plurality of semiconductor components that emit monochromatic light.

32. The radiation-emitting device according to claim 30, wherein the device comprises a plurality of semiconductor components that emit light which is at least in part of different colors.

33. The radiation-emitting device according to claim 30, further comprising a secondary optical system arranged downstream of the optical element in the emission direction.

34. An optical element comprising:

an optical body that takes the form of a half-shell and comprises an inner face and an outer face; and

a plurality of microstructures that form the inner and outer face of the optical body,

wherein the microstructures are light-scattering refractive structures,

wherein the microstructures of the outer face have annular shape about an axis of symmetry of the optical body, the annular shape of the microstructures becoming smaller towards the axis of symmetry,

wherein the microstructures of the inner face have annular configuration, the annular configuration being rotated by 90°

relative to the annular shape of the microstructures of the outer face so that the microstructures of the inner face are directed along the axis of symmetry; and

wherein the microstructures of the outer face take the form of lines of latitude and the microstructures of the inner face take the form of lines of longitude.