Architecture and designs of modulating both amplitude and phase at the same time in spatial light modulation are described. According to one aspect of the present invention, light propagation is controlled in two different directions (e.g., 0 and 45 degrees) to perform both amplitude modulation and phase modulation at the same time in liquid crystals. In one embodiment, a mask is used to form a pattern, where the pattern includes an array of alignment cells or embossed microstructures, a first group of the cells are aligned in the first direction and a second group of the cells are aligned in the second direction. Depending on applications, two cells from the first group and the second group may correspond to a single pixel or two neighboring pixels, resulting in amplitude modulation and phase modulation within the pixel or within an array of pixels.

A three-dimensional light modulator, of which the pixels are combined to form modulation elements. Each modulation element can be coded with a preset discrete value such that three-dimensionally arranged object points can be holographically reconstructed. The light modulator is characterized in that assigned to the pixels of the modulator are beam splitters or beam combiners which, for each modulation element, combine the light wave parts modulated by the pixels by means of refraction or diffraction on the output side to form a common light beam which exits the modulation element in a set propagation direction.

The invention relates to a display device for holographic reconstruction. The display device comprises a spatial light modulator device having combined phase modulating pixels and amplitude modulating pixels, an illumination unit generating sufficiently coherent light and arranged to illuminate of the spatial light modulator device and a reflection plane. The device being arranged such that light enters the spatial light modulator device and passes both the phase modulating pixel and the amplitude modulating pixel of the spatial light modulator device. The light is reflected by the reflection plane in between.

A holographic display includes an illuminator, a spatial light modulator (SLM) coupled to the illuminator, a beam redirector and an ocular lens coupled to the SLM. A controller is operably coupled to the SLM and the beam redirector and configured to provide exit pupils at eyebox locations where a holographic image may be observed. The exit pupils provided in a time-sequential manner, forming a grid of exit pupils/eyebox locations. An eye tracking system may be used to center the grid around the current eye pupil position, to provide a larger overall eyebox for viewing the holographically generated image.

A holographic display includes an illuminator, a spatial light modulator (SLM) coupled to the illuminator, and an ocular lens coupled to the SLM. The SLM includes sequentially coupled first and second pixelated SLM panels for spatially modulating the illuminating light beam in amplitude and phase. At least one of the SLM panels may include a liquid crystal (LC) panel, such as an in-plane switching (IPS) panel. At least one of the SLM panels may include an array of piston-type micromirrors.

A holographic display includes an illuminator, a spatial light modulator (SLM) coupled to the illuminator, and an ocular lens coupled to the SLM. The illuminator provides a wide-area illuminating light beam to illuminate the SLM with a spatially homogeneous beam of light. The illuminator may include a slab waveguide with an evanescent out-coupler, or a beam expander based on a diffraction grating with an oblique angle of incidence and a near-normal angle of diffraction of the illuminating light. A low-pass spatial filter may be provided to filter out higher diffraction orders of the illuminating light diffracted on the SLM.

A reflective holographic display apparatus and a display method thereof are disclosed. The reflective holographic display apparatus includes a front light source module, a display panel and a phase plate. The front light source module is configured to provide reference lights; the display panel is configured to adjust amplitude information of the reference lights, wherein the display panel includes a reflective layer and the front light source module is located at a light exit side of the display panel; and the phase plate is configured to adjust phase information of the reference lights and located at a light exit side of the reflective layer.

A holographic display system, a holographic display method and an electronic device are provided. The holographic display system includes a backlight module configured to emit a backlight beam, a spatial light modulator configured to perform phase and amplitude modulations on the backlight beam, and a plurality of liquid crystal grating modules that are sequentially arranged in a first direction. Based on a polarization direction of incident light, a liquid crystal grating module is capable of changing or maintaining a propagation direction of the incident light. A first optical rotator disposed on a light-incident side of the liquid crystal grating module is capable of rotating the polarization direction of the incident light, to make at least one liquid crystal grating module change the propagation direction of the incident light, and at least one liquid crystal grating module do not change the propagation direction of the incident light within a preset duration.

An electro-holographic light field generator device comprises surface acoustic wave (SAW) optical modulators arranged in different directions. Specifically, some embodiments have SAW modulators arranged in pairs, nose-to-nose with each other, and have output couplers that provide face-fire light emission. These SAW modulators also possibly include SAW sense transducers and/or viscoelastic surface material to reduce crosstalk.

A holographic display includes a pixel array including one or more pixels, a holographic data source, a drive array, and a light source. Each pixel includes a phase-modulating structure and an amplitude-modulating structure. The holographic data source is configured to supply a holographic drive signal. The holographic drive signal includes, for each pixel in each of a plurality of time-varying holographic image frames, a phase component defining phase modulation for the pixel and an amplitude component defining amplitude modulation for the pixel. The drive array is configured to, for each pixel in each holographic image frame, modulate the phase-modulating structure according to the phase component and modulate the amplitude-modulating structure according to the amplitude component. The light source is configured to output coherent light to illuminate the one or more pixels of the pixel array.