Methods of manufacturing a liquid crystal device including depositing a layer of liquid crystal material on a substrate and imprinting a pattern on the layer of liquid crystal material using an imprint template are disclosed. The liquid crystal material can be jet deposited. The imprint template can include surface relief features, Pancharatnam-Berry Phase Effect (PBPE) structures or diffractive structures. The liquid crystal device manufactured by the methods described herein can be used to manipulate light, such as for beam steering, wavefront shaping, separating wavelengths and/or polarizations, and combining different wavelengths and/or polarizations.

Virtual and augmented reality systems and methods

Provided in one embodiment is an apparatus for displaying an image, comprising: an input image node configured to provide at least a first and a second image modulated lights; and a holographic waveguide device configured to propagate the at least one of the first and second image modulated lights in at least a first direction. The holographic waveguide device comprises: at least a first and second interspersed multiplicities of grating elements disposed in at least one layer, the first and second grating elements having respectively a first and a second prescriptions. The first and second multiplicity of grating elements are configured to deflect respectively the first and second image modulated lights out of the at least one layer into respectively a first and a second multiplicities of output rays forming respectively a first and second FOV tiles.

Holographic wide angle display

An eye tracker having a waveguide for propagating illumination light towards an eye and propagating image light reflected from at least one surface of an eye, a light source optically coupled to the waveguide, and a detector optically coupled to the waveguide. Disposed in the waveguide is at least one grating lamina for deflecting the illumination light towards the eye along a first waveguide path and deflecting the image light towards the detector along a second waveguide path.

Apparatus for eye tracking

Architectures are provided for selectively outputting light for forming images, the light having different wavelengths and being outputted with low levels of crosstalk. In some embodiments, light is incoupled into a waveguide and deflected to propagate in different directions, depending on wavelength. The incoupled light then outcoupled by outcoupling optical elements that outcouple light based on the direction of propagation of the light. In some other embodiments, color filters are between a waveguide and outcoupling elements. The color filters limit the wavelengths of light that interact with and are outcoupled by the outcoupling elements. In yet other embodiments, a different waveguide is provided for each range of wavelengths to be outputted. Incoupling optical elements selectively incouple light of the appropriate range of wavelengths into a corresponding waveguide, from which the light is outcoupled.

Architectures and methods for outputting different wavelength light out of waveguides

An eye tracker having a first waveguide for propagating illumination light along a first waveguide path and propagating image light reflected from at least one surface of an eye along a second waveguide path. At least one grating lamina for deflecting the illumination light out of the first waveguide path towards the eye and deflecting the image light into the second waveguide path towards a detector is disposed adjacent an optical surface of the waveguide.

Holographic waveguide eye tracker

The technology provides a waveguide display having a compact projection light engine and a diffractive waveguide. The diffractive waveguide includes input diffraction gratings with rolled k-vectors. The projection light engine provides collimating light to a projected exit pupil external to the diffractive waveguide. The projection light engine components may include a light (or illuminating) source, microdisplay, lenticular screen, doublet, polarizing beam splitter (PBS), clean-up polarizer, fold mirror, curved reflector and quarter waveplate. A method of manufacturing a diffractive waveguide includes providing input gratings with rolled k-vectors. Rays of light are diffracted by, and passed through, a master hologram to form input diffraction gratings of a copy substrate. A second copy substrate may likewise be formed with a different master hologram. Multiple copy substrates may be assembled to form a multi-layer diffractive waveguide (or multiple diffractive waveguides) having input diffraction gratings with increased diffraction efficiency and angular bandwidth.

Steven John Robbins

Papers

Compact Projection Light Engine For A Diffractive Waveguide Display