Optical devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12442971-B2
Application number	US-202017122646-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 15, 2020
Priority date	Jun 27, 2016
Publication date	Oct 14, 2025
Grant date	Oct 14, 2025

Abstract

A sheet including a reflector having a first surface, a second surface opposite the first surface, and a third surface; a first selective light modulator layer external to of the first surface of the reflector; and a second selective light modulator layer external to the second surface of the reflector; wherein the third surface of the reflector is open is disclosed. A method of making a sheet is also disclosed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for manufacturing a sheet comprising:
depositing on a substrate a first selective light modulator layer;
depositing on the first selective light modulator layer at least one reflector;
depositing on the at least one reflector a second selective light modulator layer, the sheet comprising the first selective light modulator layer, the at least one reflector and the second selective light modulator layer; and
releasing the substrate from the sheet,
wherein at least one layer chosen from the first selective light modulator layer and the second selective light modulator layer is deposited as a wet film comprising a solvent using a liquid coating process,
wherein the method further comprises: evaporating the solvent from the wet film, wherein after evaporation of the solvent the at least one layer remains a liquid having a second viscosity that is greater than the first viscosity and exhibits a pseudoplastic behavior that allows self-leveling of the at least one layer; and subsequent to evaporation of the solvent but prior to the releasing the substrate from the sheet, curing the at least one layer to form a self-leveled, cured selective light modulator layer.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one side of the at least one reflector is free of a selective light modulator layer.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one reflector is a metallic.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the liquid coating process comprises adjusting at least one of speed from about 5 to about 100 m/min or a coating gap from about 50 μm to about 100 μm to deposit a wet film from about 2 μm to 10 μm of the selective light modulator layer with a predetermined thickness from about 500 nm to about 1500 nm.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the liquid coating process comprises depositing each of the first and second light modulator layers at a rate of from about 0.1 to about 1000 m/min.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first selective light modulator layer or the second selective light modulator layer includes a host material.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the host material is combined with a color shifting particle, a dye, a pigment, a reflective pigment, quantum dots, nanoparticles, micelles, metal oxides, metal sulfides, chalcogenides, carbonates, fluorides, and mixtures thereof.

8. The method of claim 6 , wherein the host material includes at least one of organic polymers, inorganic polymers, or composite materials.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the organic polymer includes at least one of thermoplastics, thermosets, or energy curable material.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the inorganic polymers are a polymer chosen from silanes, siloxanes, titanates, zirconates, aluminates, silicates, phosphazanes, polyborazylenes, and polythiazyls.

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising, depositing on the second selective light modulator layer a protective layer.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the liquid coating process is chosen from slot die, slot-bead, slide bead, slot curtain, slide curtain, in single and multilayer coating, tensioned web slot, gravure, and roll coating.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first selective light modulator layer or the second selective light modulator layer has less than about 7% optical thickness variation across the layer.

14. The method of claim 1 , further comprising, removing the substrate from the deposited layers.

15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising, sizing the deposited layer.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the first selective light modulator layer or the second selective light modulator layer are deposited having a wet film thickness ranging from about 0.1 μm to about 500 μm.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the viscosity is a dynamic viscosity ranges from about 10 cP to about 3000 cP.

Assignees

• Viavi Solutions Inc

Inventors

• Seydel Johannes
• Tevis Mark
• Liang Kangning
• Zieba Jaroslaw
• Kohlmann Paul Thomas
• Kuna Jeffrey James

Classifications

• G02B6/29337

  Cavities of the linear kind, e.g. formed by reflectors at ends of a light guide · CPC title

• G02B6/0053

  Prismatic sheet or layer; Brightness enhancement element, sheet or layer · CPC title

• G02B6/0051

  Diffusing sheet or layer · CPC title

• C09C1/0015 Primary

  Pigments exhibiting interference colours, e.g. transparent platelets of appropriate thinness or flaky substrates, e.g. mica, bearing appropriate thin transparent coatings · CPC title

• C09C2200/1054

  the core consisting of a metal · CPC title