Methods, apparatus, devices, and systems for displaying three-dimensional objects by individually diffracting different colors of light are provided. In one aspect, an optical device includes: a first optically diffractive component including a first diffractive structure configured to diffract a first color of light having a first incident angle at a first diffracted angle, a second optically diffractive component including a second diffractive structure configured to diffract a second color of light having a second incident angle at a second diffracted angle, a first reflective layer configured to totally reflect the first color of light having the first incident angle and transmit the second color of light, and a second reflective layer configured to totally reflect the second color of light having the second incident angle. The first reflective layer is between the first and second diffractive structures, and the second diffractive structure is between the first and second reflective layers.

Methods, apparatus, devices, and systems for displaying three-dimensional objects by individually diffracting different colors of light are provided. In one aspect, a system includes a display having a plurality of display elements and an optical device configured to diffract a plurality of different colors of light to the display. The optical device is configured such that, when the plurality of different colors of light is incident on the optical device, the optical device separates light of individual colors of the different colors while suppressing crosstalk between the different colors.

An optical scanning device includes: a first waveguide that propagates light by total reflection; and a second waveguide. The second waveguide includes: a first multilayer reflective film; a second multilayer reflective film that faces the first multilayer reflective film; and a first optical waveguide layer directly connected to the first waveguide and located between the first and second multilayer reflective films. The first optical waveguide layer has a variable thickness and/or a variable refractive index and propagates the light transmitted through the first waveguide. The first multilayer reflective film has a higher light transmittance than the second multilayer reflective film and allows part of the light propagating through the first optical waveguide layer to be emitted to the outside. By changing the thickness of the first optical waveguide layer and/or its refractive index, the direction of the part of the light emitted from the second waveguide is changed.

An eye tracker comprises a light source; a detector; and first and second waveguides. The first waveguide comprises an input coupler for coupling source light into a waveguide path and a first grating for coupling light out of the waveguide path onto an eye. The second waveguide comprises a second grating for coupling light reflected from the eye into a waveguide path and an output coupler for coupling light out of the waveguide path onto the detector. The second grating is optically configured for imaging the eye onto the detector.

Aspects of the present disclosure describe optical structures and devices, and more particularly to improved, tunable optical structures including optical gratings that are dynamically affected and/or tuned by acousto-optic or electro-optic mechanisms.

A polarization multiplex optical transmitter circuit can provide compensation for the transmission PDL while reducing decrease in transmission power. The polarization multiplex optical transmitter circuit includes a beam divider circuit configured to divide light outputted from a light source, optical phase shifters provided in at least one of two waveguides connected to output terminals of the beam divider circuit, a light wave synthesizer circuit connected to the two waveguides, first and second optical transmitters coupled to two output terminals of the light wave synthesizer circuit, a polarization multiplexer configured to synthesize two output polarized waves from the first and second optical transmitters, and a polarization rotator provided between the first and second optical transmitters and the polarization multiplexer and coupled to at least one of the first and second optical transmitters.

An apparatus comprises: a first integrated circuit comprising: a plurality of sets of optical waveguides, each set of optical waveguides including a plurality of optical waveguide segments, and a plurality of optical emitter elements arranged over a first surface of the first integrated circuit, each optical emitter element coupled to a distal end of one of the optical waveguide segments; and a second integrated circuit comprising: a plurality of optical phase shifters that each provide a phase-shifted optical wave that is coupled to the first integrated circuit from a first edge surface of the second integrated circuit. The first edge surface of the second integrated circuit is in proximity to a row of proximal ends of the optical waveguide segments of a first set of the plurality of sets of optical waveguides.

An optical phased array comprising a row-column driving mechanism is disclosed that reduces the number of digital to analog converter (DAC) channels to the number of rows N and the total number of interface pin counts down to the number of columns plus the number of rows M+N. Disclosed herein are systems and architecture for thermal waveguide-based phase shifters which improve thermal efficiency by having multi-pass waveguides arranged proximate a heating element in a serpentine fashion, which enables an increase in phase shift without increasing the length or the power consumption of the heating element by increasing the total length of waveguide being heated by a singular heating element.

An optical signal transmitter includes a laser source configured to generate light with different wavelengths, respectively; a wavelength division (WD) demultiplexer configured to redirect the light in different directions based on the different wavelengths, respectively; and a lens array including an array of lenses configured to collimate the light from the WD demultiplexer for transmission in different directions, respectively. The optical signal transmitter may be implemented in a light detection and ranging (LIDAR) apparatus. The optical signal transmitter may further include a 1×N splitter and a set of WD demultiplexers to increase the number of distinct optical signal transmissions.

A beam steering device includes a waveguide configured to transmit a beam therethrough; a cladding layer provided on the waveguide and including a material having a refractive index that varies according to a voltage applied thereto; and an electrode layer including at least two electrodes configured to independently voltages to at least two portions of the cladding layer.