Optical element and imaging device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10088730-B2
Application number	US-201715492466-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 20, 2017
Priority date	Oct 21, 2014
Publication date	Oct 2, 2018
Grant date	Oct 2, 2018

Abstract

There is provided an optical element which is an apodized filter capable of externally controlling an optical characteristic and stable over a long period. An optical element 100 is an optical element including: a transparent electrolyte layer 110; a pair of solid electrochromic layers which sandwiches the transparent electrolyte layer 110; and further a pair of transparent conductive films 140 which sandwiches a pair of the solid electrochromic layer, wherein a pair of the solid electrochromic layers is constituted by a reduction coloring-type solid electrochromic layer 120 and an oxidation coloring-type solid electrochromic layer 130 opposing each other, the optical element including: an apodized characteristic in which transmittance increases gradually from an outer periphery toward a center in a plane orthogonal to a thickness direction of the transparent electrolyte layer 110.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An optical element comprising:
a transparent electrolyte layer;
a pair of solid electrochromic layers constituted by a reduction coloring-type solid electrochromic layer and an oxidation coloring-type solid electrochromic layer opposing each other, sandwiching the transparent electrolyte layer; and
a pair of transparent conductive films which sandwiches a pair of the solid electrochromic layers,
the optical element having an apodized characteristic having transmittance gradually increasing from an outer periphery toward a center in a plane orthogonal to a thickness direction of the transparent electrolyte layer.

2. The optical element according to claim 1 , wherein the transmittance in the apodized characteristic in a same distance from the center of the optical element becomes substantially same.

3. The optical element according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a transparent substrate on at least one film of the pair of transparent conductive films.

4. The optical element according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a shielding layer at least one of: between the transparent electrolyte layer and the reduction coloring-type solid electrochromic layer; and between the transparent electrolyte layer and the oxidation coloring-type solid electrochromic layer.

5. The optical element according to claim 1 , wherein a contour of an area in the plane where the transmittance with respect to light of a wavelength of 632 nm becomes 80% or more is concentrically variable by controlling a voltage which is applied between a pair of the transparent conductive films.

6. The optical element according to claim 1 , wherein the area in the plane where the transmittance with respect to the light of the wavelength of 632 nm becomes 80% or more is filled in an entire area by setting the voltage which is applied between a pair of the transparent conductive films to a predetermined value.

7. The optical element according to claim 1 , wherein an area in the plane where the transmittance with respect to the light of the wavelength of 632 nm becomes 10% or less is filled in the entire area by setting the voltage which is applied between a pair of the transparent conductive films to a predetermined value.

8. The optical element according to claim 1 , wherein when the center of the optical element is set as a base point (x=0), a transmittance distribution is substantially given by a Gaussian function represented by
f ( x )=exp(− x 2 /(2σ 2 )).

9. The optical element according to claim 1 , wherein when maximum transmittance with respect to light in a range of wavelengths of 430 nm to 660 nm is set to Tmax 430 to 660 ,
both of transmittance T 430 with respect to light of a wavelength of 430 nm and transmittance T 660 with respect to light of a wavelength of 660 nm in Tmax 430 to 660 =50% satisfy 40% or more.

10. The optical element according to claim 1 ,
wherein in a cross section in a thickness direction which includes the center,
at least one of a shape of the reduction coloring-type solid electrochromic layer and a shape of the oxidation coloring-type solid electrochromic layer is a plano-concave shape, and
a shape of the transparent electrolyte layer is a plano-convex shape or a biconvex shape.

11. The optical element according to claim 1 , wherein the transparent electrolyte layer has a liquid-state material.

12. The optical element according to claim 11 , wherein the liquid-state material has Li.

13. An imaging device comprising:
an image sensor configured to be incidented light from a subject or a light source;
a lens which is disposed between the subject or the light source and the image sensor; and
the optical element according to claim 1 which is disposed between the subject or the light source and the image sensor.

Assignees

• Asahi Glass Co Ltd
• Agc Inc

Inventors

• Kumai Hiroshi
• Tahara Shinya
• Konishi Teppei
• Nakagawa Koichi
• Oyama Takuji
• Umeda Satoshi

Classifications

• G03B11/00

  Filters or other obturators specially adapted for photographic purposes · CPC title

• G02B27/58

  Optics for apodization or superresolution; Optical synthetic aperture systems · CPC title

• G02F1/163

  Operation of electrochromic cells, e.g. electrodeposition cells; Circuit arrangements therefor · CPC title

• G02F1/15

  based on an electrochromic effect · CPC title

• G02F2001/1502

  complementary cell · CPC title