Dragonfly‐Eye‐Inspired Artificial Compound Eyes with Sophisticated Imaging

The natural compound eye is a striking imaging device with a wealth of fascinating optical features such as a wide field of view (FOV), low aberration, and high sensitivity. Dragonflies in particular possess large, sophisticated compound eyes that exhibit high resolving power and information-processing capacity. Here, a large-scale artificial compound eye inspired by the unique designs of natural counterparts is presented. The artificial compound eye is created by a high-efficiency strategy that combines single-pulse femtosecond laser wet etching with thermal embossing. These eyes have a macrobase diameter of 5 mm and ≈30 000 close-packed ommatidia with an average diameter of 24.5 μm. Moreover, the optical properties of the artificial compound eyes are investigated; the results confirm that the eye demonstrates advanced imaging quality, an exceptionally wide FOV of up to 140°, and low aberration.

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