Configurations are disclosed for presenting virtual reality and augmented reality experiences to users. The system may comprise a lens assembly comprising two transmissive plates, a first of the two transmissive plates comprising a first surface sag based at least in part on a cubic function, and a DOE to direct image information to a user's eye; wherein the DOE is placed in between the two transmissive plates of the lens assembly, and wherein the DOE is encoded with the inverse of the cubic function corresponding to the surface sag of the first transmissive plate; such that a wavefront created by the encoded DOE is compensated by the wavefront created by the first transmissive plate, thereby collimating light rays associated with virtual content delivered to the DOE.

A grating structure for a diffractive optic includes grating lines, each of which is approximated by successive segments. Longitudinal axes of the segments each have an angle relative to a first coordinate axis of a reference coordinate system. A first section of a first one of the grating lines is approximated by a first group of the segments, and a second section adjacent to the first section of the first grating line is approximated by a second group of segments. The longitudinal axes of a major portion of the segments of the first group have a first predetermined angle relative to the first coordinate axis of the reference coordinate system, and the longitudinal axes of a major portion of the segments of the second group have a second predetermined angle different from the first predetermined angle relative to the first coordinate axis of the reference coordinate system.

A device includes a diffraction element and an optical filter stacked with the diffraction element. The optical filter is configured to forwardly deflect a light from a real-world environment incident onto the optical filter, at an incidence angle greater than or equal to a predetermined angle, toward the diffraction element. The diffraction element is configured to substantially transmit the light forwardly deflected by the optical filter.

Method and apparatus for generating pulses in a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) system. In some embodiments, a resonance chamber is provided to recirculate electromagnetic radiation from a light source between a base mirror and an active laminated structure characterized as a Bragg grating structure and having interleaved passive and active layers. A Q-switch control circuit applies a voltage profile to the active layers to transition the active laminated structure between a charging state in which the electromagnetic radiation recirculates within the resonance chamber and a release state in which the electromagnetic radiation is transmitted through the active laminated structure as an emitted light pulse. The passive layers may be formed of a dielectric material. The active layers may be formed of a metal material such but not limited to Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), Lithium Niobate (LiNbO3), Barium Titanate (BaTiO3), doped Silicon (Si), or doped Germanium (Ge).

An optical probe includes a cylindrical lens adapted to receive and transmit incident light. A light-emitting surface of the cylindrical lens is a curved end surface having a concentric ring-shaped diffractive microstructure. A working position of the optical probe is a position where a diffraction order is 1 when the incident light having a design wavelength between a first wavelength and a second wavelength passes through the diffractive microstructure. When passing through the cylindrical lens, the incident light having the first wavelength produces a diffraction effect with the diffractive microstructure and is converged at a first wavelength working position approximately the same as the working position of the optical probe with the diffraction order of 1. After being refracted by the curved end surface, the incident light having the second wavelength is converged at a second wavelength working position approximately the same as the working position of the optical probe.

The image display device includes an image generating unit that emits first image light, a pupil expanding element that expands a diameter of a light flux included in the first image light from the image generating unit to obtain second image light, a first light condensing optical system that condenses the second image light and forms an intermediate image, and a second light condensing optical system that condenses light from the intermediate image and generates a virtual image on eye of a viewer, in a plane including at least the image generating unit, the pupil expanding element, and the eye of the viewer, a maximum emission angle of the first image light is smaller than a maximum viewing angle of the virtual image, and the diameter of the light flux included in the second image light is greater than that of a light flux included in the virtual image.

A lightweight stacked optical waveguide using two plastic substrates having nano-structure gratings and a single glass substrate sandwiched between them. The nano-structure gratings face each other, and are each encapsulated within the optical waveguide. The two plastic substrates are each adhesively secured to the central glass substrate rather than to each other to provide sufficient securing strength and precisely establish and maintain an air gap between the substrates. The thickness of the plastic substrates and the glass substrate are selected such that the stacked optical waveguide is lightweight, but also has sufficient drop performance. The stacked optical waveguide can be efficiently manufactured as the adhesive bonds a plastic substrate to a glass substrate.

A spatial light modulator and a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) apparatus including the spatial light modulator are provided. The spatial light modulator includes: a first reflective layer; a second reflective layer comprising a plurality of grating structures spaced apart from each other; a resonance layer provided between the first reflective layer and the second reflective layer; and a filling layer having a heat transfer coefficient of about 100 mW/mK or less and being in contact with an upper surface of the resonance layer while surrounding at least one grating structure of the plurality of grating structures.

The invention relates to a waveguide having a partially transparent incoupling portion, having a decoupling portion which is spaced apart from the incoupling portion in the lateral direction, having a substantially transparent base body which is outside of the incoupling portion and outside of the decoupling portion, wherein the transparent base body has a front side and a rear side, the wave guide having a diffractive incoupling structure in the incoupling portion and the waveguide having a decoupling structure in the decoupling portion, the diffractive incoupling structure being designed to diffract radiation coming from an object to be detected and incident on a front side of the waveguide in the incoupling portion only in part such that the diffracted part propagates to the decoupling portion by reflections in the base body as incoupled radiation, wherein the decoupling structure deflects at least one part of the incoupled radiation incident thereon such that the deflected part exits the base body in the decoupling portion via the front side or the rear side of the base body as decoupled radiation, and wherein the diffractive incoupling structure has at least one diffractive efficiency which continually decreases toward one edge of the incoupling portion.

Provided are an optical element that can make the brightness of light emitted from a light guide plate uniform, a light guide element, and an image display device. The optical element includes a patterned cholesteric liquid crystal layer that is obtained by immobilizing a cholesteric liquid crystalline phase, in which the patterned cholesteric liquid crystal layer has a liquid crystal alignment pattern in which a direction of an optical axis derived from a liquid crystal compound changes while continuously rotating in at least one in-plane direction, and the patterned cholesteric liquid crystal layer has regions having different pitches of helical structures in a plane.