A laser soldering system includes a laser source module, a polarization adjusting assembly, a temperature sensor, and a controller. The laser source module is configured to emit a laser beam. The polarization adjusting assembly includes a plurality of polarization elements and at least one stepping motor. The polarization elements are configured to split the laser beam into a Gaussian beam and a ring-shaped beam. The Gaussian beam illuminates the first element, and the ring-shaped beam is illuminates the second element. The stepping motor is configured to adjust a size of the ring-shaped beam. The temperature sensor is configured to monitor temperatures of the first element and a temperature of the second element. The controller is electrically connected to the temperature sensor, the laser source module, and the polarization adjusting assembly.

Liquid crystal (LC) beam control devices using a dispersion shaped (DS) half wave plate (HWP), with specific physical characteristics, allows the broadened beam to maintain significantly better the color cohesion. Beneficial aspects of using a HWP with an appropriate thickness and birefringence index which makes it inefficient in the blue wavelength spectrum, therefore reducing the blue photon depletion in the center of the broadened beam is described herein. Combinations of an homeotropic LC cell and DS HWP structures for reduced color separation, faster relaxation time and reduced ground state scattering is further described herein.

A catadioptric lens includes at least two optical elements arranged along an optical axis. Both optical elements are configured as a mirror having a substrate and a highly reflective coating applied to an interface of the substrate. The highly reflective coating extends from the interface of the substrate along a surface normal. At least one of the highly reflective coatings has one or a plurality of layers. The optical total layer thickness of the one layer of the plurality of layers increases radially from the inner area outward.

Polarization-based optical angle-filters disclosed herein can be engineered to transmit a prescribed amount of light as a function of incidence angle and azimuth. Such filters can transmit light without introducing artifacts, making them suitable for the image-path of an optical system. One example may include an angle-filter having an input circular polarizer, an analyzing circular polarizer, and a retarder positioned between the circular polarizers, the retarder having a thickness-direction retardation. The thickness-direction retardation of the retarder (R.sub.th) is selected to produce a prescribed angle-of-incidence dependent transmission function, and the circular polarizers reduce the amount of azimuth-dependence in the transmission function.

Provided is an imaging apparatus that captures a multispectral image having a good image quality. An imaging apparatus (1) includes an imaging optical system (10) that includes a pupil region which is split into a plurality of regions including a first pupil region and a second pupil region different from the first pupil region, and a polarization filter which polarizes light beams passing through the first pupil region and the second pupil region in directions different from each other, an imaging element (100) that includes a first pixel which receives the light beam passing through the first pupil region and a second pixel which receives the light beam passing through the second pupil region, and a signal processing unit (200) that processes signals output from the imaging element (100), and outputs at least first image data consisting of an output signal of the first pixel and second image data consisting of an output signal of the second pixel. In the imaging optical system (10), wavelengths of the light beams passing through the first pupil region and the second pupil region are different from each other, and aberration characteristics of regions corresponding to the first pupil region and the second pupil region are different from each other.

A laser light source depolarizer includes a laser light source, a light angle adjusting element, a birefringent crystal, and an integration rod. The laser light source is configured to emit a laser light. The light angle adjusting element is configured to change the diffusion angle of the laser light. The light angle adjusting element is disposed between the laser light source and the birefringent crystal. The birefringent crystal is disposed between the light angle adjusting element and the integration rod, and the birefringent crystal is configured to break the polarity of the laser light.

A display device including a display to generate a real image, and an optical system. The optical system includes a plurality of lenslets, each having one cluster of object pixels, where the assignation of object pixels to clusters may change periodically in time intervals. Each lenslet produces a ray pencil from each object pixel of its cluster which has waists laying close to a waist surface. The ray pencils are projected towards an eye position. The ray pencils are configured to generate a partial virtual image from the real image of its corresponding cluster. At least two of the lenslets cannot be made to coincide by a simple translation rigid motion. Foveal rays are a subset of rays emanating from the lenslets.

An optical system is provided that includes a correction portion including one or more spatially varying polarizers. A first spatially varying polarizer of the one or more spatially varying polarizers has a first control input configured to receive a first control signal indicating whether the first spatially varying polarizer is to be active or inactive. When active, the first spatially varying polarizer is operative to provide a first optical correction on light passing through the correction portion. The optical system includes a controller configured to determine whether to implement the first optical correction on the light passing through the correction portion and in response to determining to implement the first optical correction on the light passing through the correction portion, output the first control signal indicating the first spatially varying polarizer is to be active. Additional spatially varying polarizers may be controlled to provide additional or alternative optical corrections.

A directional illuminator includes a light source, a pupil-replicating lightguide, and a tiltable reflector coupling the light source to the pupil-replicating lightguide. The exit beam angle of the light outputted by the pupil-replicating lightguide follows the in-coupling angle, and accordingly depends on the tilting angle of the tiltable reflector. The directional illuminator with steered light beam may be used to illuminate a display panel. Steering the illuminating light by the tiltable reflector enables one to steer the exit pupil of the display device to match the user's eye location(s).

A display device includes a directional illuminator providing a light beam, a display panel downstream of a directional illuminator, for receiving and spatially modulating the light beam, and a beam redirecting module downstream of the display panel, for variably redirecting the spatially modulated light beam. Steering the illuminating light by the beam redirecting module enables one to steer the exit pupil of the display device to match the user's eye location(s).