Finger-nail size, 50X magnification factor, wide angle, and sharper image than human eyes: these are the descriptions of a MEMS-based dielectric liquid lens. MEMS stands for "Micro Electro Mechanical System". The lens came out of NTHU's MEMS institute headed by Prof. Andrew Yeh, and will be mass-produced before the end of the year. These lenses are expected to revolutionize the miniature lens market.

The MEMS-based fluid lens is a piezoelectric dielectric liquid droplet that changes shape with electric biases applied, much the same as the human eyes change focus by the ciliary muscles working on the eye's lens. The possible applications of the MEMS-based lens include digital camera lens, cell-phone camera lens, finger-printing system, retina examination system, endoscopic checkup, oral inspection camera and other heath-care related areas.

Prof. Yeh hopes to use the MEMS-based lens as the beachhead product to promote academia-industry cooperation. He plans to apply for top-level patents, and establishes Taiwan's manufacturing chain to produce high value-added products.

Armed with a BA in mechanical engineering (1992) and a Ph.D. from Cornell (EE, 1999), he had built up AIP Networks, Inc. before joining NTHU's Power Mechanical Engineering Dept. in 2001. . And in 2002 he joined Department of MEMS. His research interests include liquid lens, optofludics, solar cell modules, nano-Anti-reflection materials, nanostructure surfaces, nano-structure for cell development control and chemical ambient sensors. He has 20 patents, 40 journal papers and 50 conference papers, and he is on the editorial board of the Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems.

Prof. Yeh was recipient of Hiwin Technologies' silver medal award in 2005, Acer's Lon-Tang Gold Medal in 2005, Lon-Tang's "Smiling' Award in 2007; Wu Ta-You Memorial award in 2006, NTHU's New Faculty Research Award in 2007, Chi Lin Technology Co., Ltd.'s "Star-picking" Award in 2009 and Hiwin's Mechanical Engineering Silver and Bronze medals in 2010.