Optical probe having a refractive index micro-lens and method of manufacturing the same

DETAILED DESCRIPTION In view of the above identified problems, it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an optical probe comprising a cantilever, a projection having a micro-aperture and arranged at the free end of the cantilever and a focussing lens also arranged at the free end of the cantilever.
With such an arrangement, the distance between the micro-aperture and the lens does not vary if the cantilever is deflected so that the lens shows an improved focussing efficiency.
Additionally, the optical probe is practically independent of the wavelength of light.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing an optical probe, which is simple and provides a good reproducibility and a high processing precision.
Optical probes manufactured by a method according to the invention can be arranged in array to form an optical head.
According to a first aspect of the invention, the above objectives are achieved by providing an optical probe including a substrate, an elastic body supported by the substrate and having a free end, a projection having a micro-aperture and arranged at the free end of the elastic body, and a refractive index micro-lens also arranged at the free end of the elastic body and adapted to focus light to the micro-aperture.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing an optical probe including the steps of arranging an elastic material on a substrate, forming a refractive index micro-lens in contact with the elastic material on the substrate, forming a junction layer on the elastic material, forming a projection with a micro-aperture on the junction layer, and producing an elastic body having a free end out of the elastic material by removing part of the substrate.