Holographic and diffractive optical encoding techniques for forming reflection or transmission holograms. The encoding device includes a substrate having an interference pattern that can propagate light along a light propagation path from one side of the substrate to another side of the substrate. Furthermore, an optical element may be used to propagate light according to a four-dimensional light field coordinate system.

A display device according to embodiments of the present disclosure includes a determination unit to determine a display mode, a light generator to selectively irradiate a 2D light or a hologram 3D light, a spatial light modulator to selectively display a 2D image or a hologram 3D image, and a control unit that controls the light generator to selectively irradiate the 2D light or the hologram 3D light and controls the spatial light modulator to modulate the 2D light or the hologram 3D light irradiated from the light generator to display the 2D image or the hologram 3D image according to the display mode determined by the determination unit.

A system is provided. The system includes a light source configured to emit an infrared light to illuminate an eye of a user. The system includes a grating disposed facing the eye and including a birefringent material film configured with a uniform birefringence lower than or equal to 0.1. The grating is configured to diffract the infrared light reflected from the eye, and transmit a visible light from a real world environment toward the eye, with a diffraction efficiency less than a predetermined threshold. The system includes an optical sensor configured to receive the diffracted infrared light and generate an image of the eye based on the diffracted infrared light.

A three-dimensional (3D) display system includes a reference spatial light modulator configured to generate a reference wavefront. The system also includes an object spatial light modulator configured to generate an object wavefront. The system further includes a Hogel basis display positioned between the reference spatial light modulator and the object spatial light modulator. The Hogel basis display is configured to receive the reference wavefront and the object wavefront. The Hogel basis display is also configured to generate a light field based at least in part on interference between the reference spatial light modulator and the object spatial light modulator.

A lens includes a substrate with optically anisotropic molecules arranged in helical configurations between first and second surfaces. A first portion of the substrate includes a first helical structure having a first phase and a second helical structure adjacent to the first helical structure having a second phase. A difference between the first and second phases corresponds to a first phase difference. A second portion includes a third helical structure having a third phase and a fourth helical structure adjacent to the third helical structure having a fourth phase. A difference between the third and fourth phases corresponds to a second phase difference. A third portion includes a fifth helical structure having a fifth phase and a sixth helical structure adjacent to the fifth helical structure having a sixth phase. A difference between the fifth and sixth phases corresponds to a third phase difference.

Systems and methods for performing coherent diffraction in an optical device are disclosed. An optical device may include a grating medium with a first hologram having a first grating frequency. A second hologram at least partially overlapping the first hologram may be provided in the grating medium. The second hologram may have a second grating frequency that is different from the first grating frequency. The first and second holograms may be pair-wise coherent with each other. A manufacturing system may be provided that writes the pair-wise coherent holograms in a grating medium using a signal beam and a reference beam. Periscopes may redirect portions of the signal and reference beams towards a partial reflector, which combines the beams and provides the combined beam to a detector. A controller may adjust an effective path length difference between the signal and reference beams based on a measured interference pattern.

A holographic lens and a display apparatus using the same as a combiner, the holographic lens including a phase profile obtained through an optimization process for each position to form an imaging optical system for forming a virtual image of lights emitted from a plurality of areas.

Provided is an image display device including a first light source configured to emit a first beam of light, a second light source configured to emit a second beam of light, a spatial light modulator configured to modulate the first beam of light and the second beam of light, a holographic optical element configured to focus, on a first focal point, the first beam of light emitted from the first light source and modulated by the spatial light modulator, and to focus, on a second focal point, the second beam of light emitted from the second light source and modulated by the spatial light modulator and a processor configured to control the first and the second light sources and the spatial light modulator.

An optical element is configured to be worn in front of an eye of a wearer. The optical element has two main surfaces and includes at least one holographic diffusive element having diffusive properties resulting from spatial variations of refractive index of said holographic diffusive element. The spatial variation of refractive index is greater than 0.001 at at least one given wavelength, on a distance less than 30 μm. An optical equipment includes the optical element and methods for recording a holographic medium onto an optical lens.

A three-dimensional (3D) holographic display system includes a projector that generates an image with a form of spatially varying modulation on a light beam; holographic processor that performs a holographic method on the image generated by the projector; and memory device that stores holographic data generated in a process of performing the holographic method by the holographic processor. An amplitude of a light field is adaptively replaced by the holographic processor according to significance of respective areas of the image.