System and method for fabricating liquid crystal polarization holograms

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12314007-B2
Application number	US-202117217249-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 30, 2021
Priority date	Mar 30, 2021
Publication date	May 27, 2025
Grant date	May 27, 2025

Abstract

A system includes a light outputting element configured to output a first beam propagating toward a beam interference zone from a first side of the beam interference zone. The system also includes a reflective assembly configured to reflect the first beam back as a second beam propagating toward the beam interference zone from a second side of the beam interference zone. The first beam and the second beam interfere with one another within the beam interference zone to generate a polarization interference pattern.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system, comprising:
a light outputting element configured to output a first beam propagating toward a beam interference zone from a first side of the beam interference zone;
a reflective assembly configured to reflect the first beam back as a second beam propagating toward the beam interference zone from a second side of the beam interference zone; and
a lens assembly disposed between the light outputting element and the reflective assembly,
wherein the lens assembly is a diverging lens assembly, and the reflective assembly includes a reflector having a curved reflective surface,
wherein the first beam propagating in a space between the light outputting element and the reflective assembly has a first wavefront,
wherein the second beam propagating in the same space between the light outputting element and the reflective assembly has a second wavefront,
wherein the first wavefront is the same as the second wavefront, and
wherein the first beam and the second beam interfere with one another within the beam interference zone to generate a polarization interference pattern.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first beam and the second beam are polarized beams having the same handedness.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the reflective assembly includes a reflector.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the reflective assembly also includes a waveplate.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the lens assembly includes a lens and a substrate, the substrate is configured to support a recording medium layer disposed within the beam interference zone for recording the polarization interference pattern, and the lens is disposed between the substrate and the light outputting element.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the lens assembly includes a first lens and a second lens, the second lens is configured to support a recording medium layer disposed within the beam interference zone for recording the polarization interference pattern, and the first lens is disposed between the second lens and the light outputting element.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the lens assembly includes a lens configured to support a recording medium layer for recording the polarization interference pattern.

8. A system, comprising:
a light outputting element configured to output a first beam propagating toward a beam interference zone from a first side of the beam interference zone;
a reflective assembly configured to reflect the first beam back as a second beam propagating toward the beam interference zone from a second side of the beam interference zone; and
a lens assembly disposed between the light outputting element and the reflective assembly,
wherein the lens assembly includes a transmissive spatial light modulator (“SLM”), and the reflective assembly includes a reflective SLM,
wherein the first beam propagating in a space between the light outputting element and the reflective assembly has a first wavefront,
wherein the second beam propagating in the same space between the light outputting element and the reflective assembly has a second wavefront,
wherein the first wavefront is the same as the second wavefront, and
wherein the first beam and the second beam interfere with one another within the beam interference zone to generate a polarization interference pattern.

9. A method, comprising:
directing a first beam to propagate through a beam interference zone toward a reflective assembly, wherein the first beam propagates toward the beam interference zone from a first side of the beam interference zone;
directing the first beam to propagate through a lens assembly toward the reflective assembly, wherein the lens assembly includes a diverging lens assembly or a transmissive spatial light modulator (“SLM”), and the reflective assembly includes a reflector having a curved reflective surface or a reflective SLM; and
reflecting, by the reflective assembly, the first beam back toward the beam interference zone as a second beam, wherein the second beam propagates toward the beam interference zone from a second side of the beam interference zone,
wherein the first beam propagating in a space between a light outputting element and the reflective assembly has a first wavefront,
wherein the second beam propagating in the same space between the light outputting element and the reflective assembly has a second wavefront,
wherein the first wavefront is the same as the second wavefront, and
wherein the first beam and the second beam interfere with one another within the beam interference zone to generate a polarization interference pattern.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the first beam and the second beam are polarized beams having the same handedness.

11. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
exposing a recording medium layer disposed within the beam interference zone to the polarization interference pattern to record the polarization interference pattern.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein
the recording medium layer includes a surface photo-alignment material, and
the method further comprises forming a birefringent medium layer on the recording medium layer after the polarization interference pattern is recorded in the recording medium layer.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the recording medium layer includes a bulk photo-alignment material, and exposing the recording medium layer disposed within the beam interference zone to the polarization interference pattern includes recording the polarization interference pattern in the bulk photo-alignment material.

Assignees

• Meta Platforms Tech Llc

Inventors

• Tu Xingzhou
• Lee Yun-Han
• Wang Mengfei
• Choi Stephen
• Lu Lu

Classifications

• G03H2001/0441

  Formation of interference pattern, not otherwise provided for · CPC title

• G03H2001/0216

  Optical components (G03H2001/0224, G03H1/0256 take precedence; corresponding details, see subgroups of G03H2223/00) · CPC title

• G02F1/1337

  Surface-induced orientation of the liquid crystal molecules, e.g. by alignment layers · CPC title

• G02B5/1833

  comprising birefringent materials (birefringent elements per se G02B5/3083) · CPC title

• G02B17/08

  Catadioptric systems {(used in non-imaging applications G02B19/00)} · CPC title