A Pancharatnam Berry Phase (PBP) color corrected structure is presented that comprises a plurality of switchable gratings and a plurality of PBP active elements. Each switchable grating has an inactive mode when reflects light of a specific color channel, of a set of color channels, and transmits light of other color channels in the set of color channels, wherein the specific color channel is different for each of the plurality of switchable gratings, and to have an active mode to transmit light that is inclusive of the set of color channels. The PBP active elements receive light output from at least one of the plurality of switchable gratings. Each of the PBP active elements is configured to adjust light of a different color channel of the set of color channels by a same amount to output light corrected for chromatic aberration for the set of color channels.

An optical film includes a polarizing layer including a polymer dyed with iodine, a phase-retardation layer disposed under the polarizing layer, and an inorganic barrier layer including a non-polar inorganic material. The inorganic barrier layer is disposed on at least a surface of the polarizing layer, has a water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) equal to or less than about 100 g/day.Math.m.sup.2, and has a thickness equal to or less than about 5 μm. A display device comprising the optical film is also provided.

One example provides an optical device, comprising a light source configured to output unpolarized light, a polarizing beam splitter configured to split the unpolarized light into light of a first polarization state and light of a second polarization state and a polarization volume grating configured to receive the light of the first polarization state and the light of the second polarization state, and transmit the light of the first polarization state without changing the light of the first polarization state to a different polarization state, and convert the light of the second polarization state to the first polarization state, thereby forming polarized output light.

A method of fabricating a reactive mesogen (RM) guest-host polarizer is disclosed. The method includes forming an RM guest-host polarizer material on a substrate that promotes a substantially uniform planar alignment configuration of the RM guest-host molecules, forming a temporary layer on the RM guest-host polarizer material to align RM guest-host molecules of the RM guest-host polarizer material in the substantially uniform planar alignment configuration, performing polymerization of the RM guest-host polarizer material, and removing the temporary layer from the RM guest-host polarizer. The temporary layer includes at least one of a temporary fluid layer, a temporary particulate layer, a temporary gaseous layer, a temporary vacuum layer, and a temporary alignment substrate layer.

The present disclosure relates to an optical film including an optical laminate in which two or more light reflection layers having center wavelengths of reflection different from each other are laminated and a polarizing element layer. The two or more light reflection layers are selected from at least one light reflection layer RPRL having a center wavelength of selective reflection in the range of 400 nm or more and 900 nm or less, in which a cholesteric liquid crystal phase with a right-handed spiral structure having right-handed circularly polarized light reflectivity is fixed, and at least one light reflection layer LPRL having a center wavelength of selective reflection in the range of 400 nm or more and 900 nm or less, in which a cholesteric liquid crystal phase with a left-handed spiral structure having left-handed circularly polarized light reflectivity is fixed. Light reflection layer RPRL and light reflection layer LPRL each have a center wavelength of selective reflection shifted from that of a light reflection layer adjacent to each other by an interval of 40 nm or more and 500 nm or less, and the maximum reflectance of optical laminate is 50% or less.

A head-mounted apparatus include an eyepiece that include a variable dimming assembly and a frame mounting the eyepiece so that a user side of the eyepiece faces a towards a user and a world side of the eyepiece opposite the first side faces away from the user. The dynamic dimming assembly selectively modulates an intensity of light transmitted parallel to an optical axis from the world side to the user side during operation. The dynamic dimming assembly includes a variable birefringence cell having multiple pixels each having an independently variable birefringence, a first linear polarizer arranged on the user side of the variable birefringence cell, the first linear polarizer being configured to transmit light propagating parallel to the optical axis linearly polarized along a pass axis of the first linear polarizer orthogonal to the optical axis, a quarter wave plate arranged between the variable birefringence cell and the first linear polarizer, a fast axis of the quarter wave plate being arranged relative to the pass axis of the first linear polarizer to transform linearly polarized light transmitted by the first linear polarizer into circularly polarized light, and a second linear polarizer on the world side of the variable birefringence cell.

A multi-spectral lens comprises a circular polarizer and a tunable cholesteric filter having an associated reflection band. Incoming light is circularly polarized to one handedness by the circular polarizer, and the tunable cholesteric filter transmits the circularly polarized light and reflects the opposite handedness of the circularly polarized light if within the reflection band of the filter, with the reflection band of the tunable cholesteric filter varying with a control voltage. In a preferred embodiment, a mirror is arranged to receive light transmitted by the tunable cholesteric filter and reflect it back towards the filter with flipped handedness, with the reflected light with flipped handedness that is within the reflection band of the tunable cholesteric filter reflected by the tunable cholesteric filter back toward the mirror. The architecture described effectively converts the reflection band of a tunable cholesteric filter into a tunable bandpass filter for a multi-spectral imaging lens.

A circular polarizer according to the disclosure includes a λ/4 layer, and a polarization layer that is layered on the λ/4 layer and includes a lyotropic liquid crystal, and an overcoat layer covering an upper surface and a side surface of the polarization layer and a side surface of the λ/4 layer is formed.

An example apparatus may include a display, a beamsplitter having a first region and a second region, and a reflective polarizer. The reflectance of the second region of the beamsplitter may be appreciably greater than the reflectance of the first region; for example, at least approximately 20% greater. In some examples, the second region may be a peripheral region surrounding a generally centrally located first region. An example apparatus may be configured so that at least some light emitted by the display is transmitted through the first region of the beamsplitter, reflects from the reflective polarizer, reflects from the second region of the beamsplitter, and is then directed through the reflective polarizer to an eye of a user when the user wears the apparatus. Other devices, methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.

A liquid crystal display device includes a first substrate, a second substrate located closer to an observer than the first substrate, and a liquid crystal layer provided between the first substrate and the second substrate, and performs display in a twisted vertical alignment mode. Each pixel includes a reflective region where display is performed in a reflection mode. The first substrate includes a reflective electrode including a portion located in the reflective region, and a first vertical alignment film. The second substrate includes a second vertical alignment film. The liquid crystal layer includes a liquid crystal material having negative dielectric anisotropy, and a chiral agent. The reflective electrode includes silver or a silver alloy. The reflective region includes a plurality of liquid crystal domains in which reference alignment azimuths of liquid crystal molecules are different from each other.