Micromirrors for Daylight Steering Applications

In this research work electrostatically actuatable micromirrors for daylight steering applications were developed and fabricated. To improve the light steering capability of these mirrors by reflection and to gain maximum transmission of light in the non-actuated state, the mirror plane area was planarized by a newly developed method. In this case, so-called sub-structures were introduced in the mirror layer to stabilize it mechanically, comparable to corrugated structures on macroscopic scale. For the fabrication of these micromirrors a novel process based on nanoimprint lithography (NIL) was developed. Since NIL provides rapid, economical production and fabrication on a large scale, this process will allow the future transfer to an industrial fabrication, and thus ensure commercial availability at a reasonable price for the final daylighting system based on micromirrors.