Typical waveguides rely on total internal reflection between the outer surfaces of substrates, which can make them highly susceptible to beam misalignment caused by nonplanarity of the substrates. In the manufacturing of the glass sheets commonly used for substrates, ripples can occur during the stretching and drawing of glass as it emerges from a furnace. Although glass manufacturers try to minimize ripples using predictions from mathematical models, it is difficult to totally eradicate the problem from the glass manufacturing process. Typically, these beam misalignments manifest themselves as image distortions and non-uniformities in the output illumination from the waveguide. Many embodiments of the invention are directed toward optically efficient, low cost solutions to the problem of controlling output image quality in waveguides manufactured using commercially available substrate glass and to the problem of compensating the image distortions and non-uniformity of curved waveguides.

Mastering systems and methods of fabricating waveguides and waveguide devices using such mastering systems are described. Mastering systems for fabricating holographic waveguides can include using a master to control the application of energy (e.g. a laser, light, or magnetic beam) onto a liquid crystal substrate to fabricate a holographic waveguide into the liquid crystal substrate. Mastering systems for fabricating holographic waveguides in accordance with embodiments of the invention can include a variety of features. These features include, but are not limited to: chirp for single input beam copy (near i.e. hybrid contact copy), dual chirped gratings (for input and output), zero order grating for transmittance control, alignment reference gratings, 3:1 construction, position adjustment tooling to enable rapid alignment, optimization of lens and window thickness for multiple RKVs simultaneously, and avoidance of other orders and crossover of the diffraction beam.

An optical assembly includes a first flexible membrane and a first optical element coupled with at least a first portion of the first flexible membrane. The optical assembly also includes a substrate having a curved surface. The first optical element is coupled to the curved surface of the substrate with the first flexible membrane. A method for making an optical assembly includes obtaining a first flexible membrane and a first optical element. The method includes coupling the first optical element with at least a first portion of the first flexible membrane and coupling, with the first flexible membrane, the first optical element to a curved surface of a substrate.

An optical device includes an optical component (e.g., a polarization volume hologram, a geometric phase device, or a polarization-insensitive diffractive optical element) having a uniform thickness and configured to modify a wavefront of a light beam that includes light in two or more wavelengths visible to human eyes, where the optical component has a chromatic aberration between the two or more wavelengths. The optical device also includes a metasurface on the optical component. The metasurface includes a plurality of nanostructures configured to modify respective phases of incident light at a plurality of regions of the metasurface, where the plurality of nanostructures is configured to, at each region of the plurality of regions, add a respective phase delay for each of the two or more wavelengths to correct the chromatic aberration between the two or more wavelengths.

A system includes a diffractive optical element configured to receive a first beam and a second beam interfering with one another to generate a first interference pattern. The diffractive optical element is also configured to forwardly diffract the first beam and the second beam to output a third beam and a fourth beam. The third beam and the fourth beam interfere with one another to generate a second interference pattern. The system also includes a detector configured to detect the second interference pattern.

The disclosed optical assembly may include a photoalignment layer that includes photoalignment material (PAM) anchored to a substrate according to a specified surface anchoring. The optical assembly may also include a functional or transforming layer that is applied to the photoalignment layer. The transforming layer may modify the surface anchoring of the photoalignment layer to align with a polarization volume hologram layer. The polarization volume hologram layer of the optical assembly may be disposed on the transforming layer. Various other methods of manufacturing, systems, and apparatuses are also disclosed.

Provided are methods for replication (copying) of volume Holographic Optical Elements (HOE) using a master hologram in optical contact with a prism, wherein the master hologram comprises distinct object and reference beam coupling elements, and wherein in the replication process light is coupled from one face of the prism and transmitted through another face of the prism using the distinct object and reference beam coupling elements. Methods for making the master hologram by sequentially forming the distinct object and reference beam coupling elements therein are provided. Further methods for encoding aperture functions directly to the master hologram are provided. Yet further methods provide for forming a copy HOE in an array configuration using a step-and-repeat method wherein the copy HOE is translated laterally by a specified distance before the next exposure is made.

An image display device according to an aspect of the present technology includes an emission portion, a transparent base material, an irradiation target, and an optical portion. The emission portion emits image light along a predetermined axis. The transparent base material includes a tapered surface having a tapered shape along the predetermined axis. The irradiation target is disposed at least a part around the predetermined axis along the tapered surface. The optical portion controls an incident angle of the image light on the irradiation target, the image light having been emitted from the emission portion, the optical portion being disposed in a manner that the optical portion faces the emission portion on the basis of the predetermined axis.

Disclosed embodiments include an energy directing device having one or more energy relay elements configured to direct energy from one or more energy locations through the device. In an embodiment, surfaces of the one or more energy relay elements may form a singular seamless energy surface where a separation between adjacent energy relay element surfaces is less than a minimum perceptible contour. In disclosed embodiments, energy is produced at energy locations having an active energy surface and a mechanical envelope. In an embodiment, the energy directing device is configured to relay energy from the energy locations through the singular seamless energy surface while minimizing separation between energy locations due to their mechanical envelope. In embodiments, the energy relay elements may comprise energy relays utilizing transverse Anderson localization phenomena.

A directional illuminator for a display apparatus includes a switchable diffuser for tuning a divergence of a light beam illuminating a display panel of the display apparatus. The tunable divergence of the illuminating light beam translates into a tunable exit pupil size at the eyebox of the display apparatus, which may be matched to a pupil size of a user’s eye, thus providing a configurable illumination of the eye pupil. A tiltable reflector in an optical path of the illuminating light beam may be used to shift the location of the exit pupil at the eyebox of the display apparatus.