The Era of Mass-Produced Lenses Like Newspaper Printing... Path Opened for Large-Scale Production of Korean Metalenses [Reading Science]

Sungkyunkwan University and POSTECH Achieve 300 Units Per Second Production
Breaking Commercialization Bottlenecks, Transforming the Optical Market

The era of mass production for metalenses, which is expected to address the protrusion of smartphone cameras and the thickness limitations of AR glasses, has begun in South Korea. For the first time in the world, a roll-to-roll (R2R) process—capable of continuously producing ultra-thin metalenses much like newspaper printing—has been realized, overcoming the constraints of conventional semiconductor processes that restricted these lenses to laboratory prototypes. This breakthrough has significantly accelerated the timeline for the commercialization of next-generation optical components.

According to the Ministry of Science and ICT, a joint research team led by Professors Kyu Jin Cho and Inki Kim at Sungkyunkwan University and Professor Junsuk Rho at POSTECH have co-developed a roll-to-roll nanoimprint process technology that can produce more than 300 visible-light metalenses per second. The research results were published in the international journal Nature.

Roll-to-roll nanoprinting-based mass production process of metalenses. (a) Polymer mold fabrication and roll-to-roll process using it. (b) Photo of the roll-to-roll nanoprinting equipment at the Leading Research Center of Sungkyunkwan University used by the research team. Photo by research team

Metalenses are next-generation flat optical elements that control the phase, amplitude, and polarization of light at the nanometer scale. Being hundreds of times thinner than conventional refractive lenses, they can precisely control focus and have been regarded as key components for smartphones, AR glasses, medical imaging, and space optical systems. However, the need for deep ultraviolet photolithography or electron beam processes has made production costly and slow, posing a high barrier to commercialization.

300 units per second, 100 times more productive... Metalenses as industrial components

The research team developed an original process that uses a flexible polymer replica mold applied to a 12-inch cylindrical roller, instead of a rigid nickel mold, to continuously print metalenses onto a flexible substrate. In essence, this system allows for the endless production of lenses by rotating the roller, similar to newspaper printing.

The key was ensuring reliability. By introducing a special surface treatment technology, the researchers were able to maintain process uniformity so that the performance difference between the first and last lens in a 200-meter continuous process was almost negligible.

This system increased production speed to 300 units per second—approximately 100 times faster than conventional methods. Moreover, by applying a high-refractive-index titanium dioxide (TiO₂) layer using atomic layer deposition (ALD), the team achieved over 90% optical efficiency in the visible spectrum and reached diffraction-limited focus and a Strehl ratio of over 0.8 across the entire visible range.

This demonstrates that metalenses are no longer just laboratory prototypes, but have entered the stage of mass-produced industrial components.

Large-area fabricated metalens. (a) Photo of the metalens array film manufactured through a continuous process of 200m length. (b) Photo of the metalens array with a 12-inch wafer size. (c) Metalens nanostructure image captured by SEM. Provided by the research team

Will camera bumps disappear? Immediate impact on AR and space optics

The industrial impact of this achievement is enormous. The most immediate change will be seen in smartphone cameras. Since the metalenses can be made hundreds of times thinner than existing lenses, it opens the door to fundamentally solving the persistent "camera bump" issue in smartphones.

There is also immediate commercialization potential for lightweight augmented reality (AR) glasses, ultra-precise medical imaging equipment, biosensors, and satellite/space optical systems. In particular, the mass production of meta-optical components is seen as a critical turning point that could drive the semiconductorization and foundry-ization of future optical components.

Professors Kyu Jin Cho and Inki Kim of Sungkyunkwan University, and Professor Junsuk Rho of POSTECH, stated, "We have demonstrated for the first time in the world that metalenses, previously considered too expensive for commercialization, can now be mass-produced at a rate of over 300 units per second in an actual industrial setting. This will serve as a crucial foundation for accelerating the commercialization of the next-generation optics industry as a whole."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.