Optical construction including lens film and multilayer mask

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12510779-B2
Application number	US-202118265742-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 14, 2021
Priority date	Dec 18, 2020
Publication date	Dec 30, 2025
Grant date	Dec 30, 2025

Abstract

An optical construction includes a lens film having outermost first and second major surfaces. The first major surface includes a plurality of microlenses. A multilayer mask having an average thickness of less than about 0.5 times an average focal length of the microlenses and an optical density of greater than about 2 is disposed on the second major surface. The multilayer mask includes polymeric first and second mask layers where each of the first and second mask layers has an optical density of greater than about 0.3. The multilayer mask defines a plurality of laser-ablated through openings therein that are aligned to the microlenses in a one-to-one correspondence. An optical transmittance of the optical construction as a function of the incident angle has a transmitted peak having a peak transmittance T1 and a corresponding full width at 20 percent of maximum W1, where T1/W1≥2.4%/degree.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An optical construction comprising:
a lens film comprising an outermost structured first major surface and an opposing outermost substantially planar second major surface, the structured first major surface comprising a plurality of microlenses arranged along orthogonal first and second directions; and a polymeric multilayer mask disposed on the second major surface of the lens film, the multilayer mask having an average thickness of less than about 0.5 times an average focal length of the microlenses and an optical density of greater than about 2, the multilayer mask comprising polymeric first and second mask layers, each of the first and second mask layers having an optical density of greater than about 0.3, the multilayer mask defining a plurality of laser-ablated through openings therein arranged along the first and second directions, the through openings aligned to the microlenses in a one-to-one correspondence, such that for substantially collimated light incident on the structured first major surface side of the optical construction along an incident direction forming an incident angle with the second major surface, an optical transmittance of the optical construction as a function of the incident angle comprises a first transmitted peak having a first peak transmittance T1 and a corresponding full width at 20 percent of maximum W1, T1/W1≥2.4%/degree.

2 . The optical construction of claim 1 , wherein the second mask layer comprises first and second materials comprising respective first and second binding groups, the first and second binding groups having complementary interactions.

3 . The optical construction of claim 1 , wherein the first mask layer comprises a solvent-deposited mask layer.

4 . The optical construction of claim 1 , wherein the first mask layer is disposed between the lens film and the second mask layer.

5 . The optical construction of claim 1 , wherein the second mask layer is disposed between the lens film and the first mask layer.

6 . The optical construction of claim 1 , wherein the first and second mask layers have respective first and second average thickness ta and tb, tb less than about 0.5 ta.

7 . The optical construction of claim 1 , wherein the optical transmittance of the optical construction further comprises a second transmitted peak having a second peak transmittance T2, the second transmitted peak being the largest transmitted peak for incident angles greater than an incident angle of the first transmitted peak by at least about 30 degrees and by no more than about 60 degrees, T2≤3%.

8 . An optical construction comprising:
a lens film comprising an outermost structured first major surface and an opposing outermost substantially planar second major surface, the structured first major surface comprising a plurality of microlenses arranged along orthogonal first and second directions; and a polymeric multilayer mask disposed on the second major surface of the lens film, the multilayer mask having an average thickness of less than about 0.5 times an average focal length of the microlenses and an optical density of greater than about 2, the multilayer mask comprising polymeric first and second mask layers, each of the first and second mask layers having an optical density of greater than about 0.3, the multilayer mask defining a plurality of laser-ablated through openings therein arranged along the first and second directions, the through openings aligned to the microlenses in a one-to-one correspondence, such that for substantially collimated light incident on the structured first major surface side of the optical construction along an incident direction forming an incident angle with the second major surface, an optical transmittance of the optical construction as a function of the incident angle comprises a first transmitted peak having a first peak transmittance T1 and a second transmitted peak having a second peak transmittance T2, the second transmitted peak being the largest transmitted peak at an incident angle greater than an incident angle of the first transmitted peak by at least about 30 degrees and by no more than about 60 degrees, T2≤3%, T1/T2≥10.

9 . The optical construction of claim 8 , wherein the optical transmittance has a full width at 20 percent of maximum W1 corresponding to the first transmitted peak of less than about 20 degrees.

10 . The optical construction of claim 8 , wherein the second mask layer comprises first and second materials comprising respective first and second binding groups, the first and second binding groups having complementary interactions.

11 . An optical construction comprising:
a lens film comprising an outermost structured first major surface and an opposing outermost substantially planar second major surface, the structured first major surface comprising a plurality of microlenses arranged along orthogonal first and second directions; and a multilayer mask disposed on the second major surface of the lens film, the multilayer mask having an average thickness of less than about 0.5 times an average focal length of the microlenses and an optical density of greater than about 2, the multilayer mask defining a plurality of laser-ablated through openings therein arranged along the first and second directions, the through openings aligned to the microlenses in a one-to-one correspondence, the multilayer mask comprising a polymeric first mask layer and a second mask layer comprising first and second materials comprising respective first and second binding groups, the first and second binding groups having complementary interactions, each of the first and second mask layers having an optical density of greater than about 0.3.

12 . The optical construction of claim 11 , wherein the first material comprises charged polymer and the second material comprises oppositely charged nanoparticles, the second mask layer comprising at least about 50 weight percent of the nanoparticles.

13 . The optical construction of claim 11 , wherein the first mask layer comprises at least first and second optically absorptive materials, the first and second optically absorptive materials having different optical absorption spectra.

14 . The optical construction of claim 11 , wherein the first and second mask layers have different optical absorption spectra.

Assignees

• 3M Innovative Properties Company

Inventors

• Sharma Neeraj
• Markowicz Przemyslaw P
• Schmidt Daniel J
• Reddy Timothy J
• Roehrig Mark A

Classifications

• G02B1/041

  Lenses · CPC title

• G02B27/0988

  Diaphragms, spatial filters, masks for removing or filtering a part of the beam · CPC title

• G02B3/0056

  arranged along two different directions in a plane, e.g. honeycomb arrangement of lenses (G02B3/0043 takes precedence; miniaturised objectives for electronic devices employing wafer level optics G02B13/0085) · CPC title

• G02B3/0012 Primary

  characterised by the manufacturing method · CPC title

• G02F1/133526 Primary

  Lenses, e.g. microlenses or Fresnel lenses · CPC title