This is application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/616,156 filed Nov. 11, 2009, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Reference is made to commonly-assigned co-pending U.S. Pat. No. 7,926,951 issued Apr. 29, 2011, entitled “Laser Illuminated Micro-Mirror Projector”, by Silverstein et al., the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
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The present invention generally relates to wavelength-selective optics formed from multilayer thin-film optical coatings and more particularly relates to an arrangement of optical coatings and a method for providing a set of optical coatings having a more uniform response to light having different polarization states.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
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Electronic projection systems have been developed or commercialized using a wide range of modulation technologies. The various light modulation approaches used include deflection, diffraction, blocking or absorption, scattering, and rotation of polarization states, for example. Imaging devices using Liquid Crystal Devices (LCDs), for example, directly modulate the polarization state of incident light within each color channel in a pixel-by-pixel fashion. Imaging devices that use digital micro-mirror devices, include Digital Light Processor (DLP) devices from Texas Instruments Inc., Dallas, Tex., for example, consisting of micro-mirror arrays that deflect light in a pixel-by-pixel fashion.
Each particular light modulation technology has characteristic strengths and weaknesses. For example, in systems that modulate polarization, contamination can occur between on- and off-states due to inadvertent phase shifting, skew ray or large angle cross-talk, or stress birefringence. In alternate systems that modulate light by deflection or diffraction, angular scattering can cause re-direction of light beams into the imaging path. Often, the characteristic disadvantages of one type of light modulation are not factors with another type.
Polarization effects, however, impact numerous light modulation approaches. Polarization is used, for example, to enable 3D or stereo projection in high-end DLP-based systems. DLP projectors adapted for stereo projection using Real-D (Beverly Hills, Calif.) technology use a polarization rotator to switch between polarization states for right- and left-eye images, as perceived by viewers wearing polarization discriminating glasses. The polarization contrast required for 3D projection in DLP based systems is relatively modest (˜400:1), but ghost images can occur if the contrast is too low. Polarized light sources such as visible light emitting lasers are also being used for image projection systems, with or without 3-D projection. Taken together, the polarization sensitivity of a projector, relative to color or contrast artifacts, even in cases where the light modulation components themselves relatively insensitive to polarization, has increased compared to prior art systems.
Color combiners, and other types of optical components for separating and recombining spectral components and for redirecting and conditioning light within the projection apparatus, typically rely on multilayer thin-film optical coatings. Conventional coating designs provide various types of spectral filters with needed levels of reflectivity or transmission at selected wavelengths. However, conventional multilayer coating designs do not provide a highly uniform response to light having different polarization states. In the case of conventional reflective multilayer coatings, for example, there is higher reflectivity for light whose electric field vector oscillates perpendicularly to the plane of incidence (s-polarization) relative to the reflectivity for p-polarized light whose electric field vector oscillates parallel to the plane of incidence over the entire range of incidence angles. The reflectivity for p-polarized light reaches its minimum at the layer-specific Brewster angle. Consequently, noticeable amplitude splits for s- and p-polarized light can occur, particularly in the region about the Brewster angle. At lesser angles, spanning on-axis light, specular light, full-field light, or skew rays, the light efficiency varies with polarization and angle. As another example, if circularly polarized light falls onto a conventional, obliquely-positioned deflecting mirror formed from thin-film coatings, the p-component of the light is more strongly attenuated than the s-component of the light after the reflection. In a polarization sensitive projector, having a polarization analyzer such as a MacNeille prism or a wire grid polarizer, these light efficiency differences can introduce significant contrast or color shading errors. In nominally polarization-sensitive systems lacking a polarization analyzer, on the other hand, image artifacts from these polarization efficiency differences may go largely unnoticed.
Color combiners or other types of dichroic filters can also introduce phase changes for each polarization (Δφs and Δφp), as well as relative phase differences between the various polarization directions (Δφsp=Δφs−Δφp), meaning that the transiting light experiences differing amounts of rotation according to polarization and angle. As a result, the outgoing polarization state of the light is different from the incoming polarization state. These effects can be compounded in an optical system in which there are multiple reflections for polarized light, so that even slight phase shifts for polarized light on each of a number of surfaces can have an additive effect. Linear polarized light can easily become circularly or elliptically polarized, changing the polarization response as the light then transits downstream optics. For example, with conventional beam combiners, designed for optimal spectral efficiency performance, phase differences Δφsp between s- and p-polarized light often exceed ±20 degrees or more. Phase difference Δφsp as large as ±100 degrees or more can often be measured near edge transitions. By comparison, for polarization maintenance, best performance would be achieved with phase differences Δφsp at or near 0 degrees, or at least within no more than about ±10 degrees, without compromising image quality or brightness while attaining the phase performance.
Where thin-film surfaces handle the p- and s-polarized light differently, the effective contrast of a digital imaging system can be compromised due to light leakage; throughput also suffers accordingly. In systems that use polarized light for left- and right-eye image separation in stereoscopic (3D) imaging, light leakage due to non-uniform handling of polarized light can lead to cross-talk that degrades the stereoscopic viewing effect. Various solutions have been proposed to compensate for known differences in how coatings respond to s- and p-polarized light. In image projection systems, for example, the use of various types of compensating components, such as quarter-wave retarders, has been taught for correcting the de-polarization of thin-film surfaces.
For projection or display systems that depend inherently on polarization manipulation, such as LCD- or LCOS (liquid crystal on silicon)-based systems, the problem is more acute, since undesired polarization differences and consequent light leakage can directly cause image artifacts. LCDs, of course, modulate polarization orientations temporally and spatially, in a pixel-wise fashion, which means that image quality depends on polarization fidelity. Polarization contributes directly to image contrast (>2000:1 for digital cinema), contrast uniformity, and contrast uniformity with color. There are numerous examples of polarization compensators developed to enhance the polarization performance with LCDs, including those designed for vertically aligned or nematic LCDs. These compensators typically use polymer films to provide angular varying birefringence, structured in a spatially variant fashion, to affect polarization states in portions (that is, within certain spatial and angular areas) of the transiting light beam, without affecting the polarization states in other portions of the light beam. Birefringence is a directional variation of refractive index (Δn=ns−np=nx−ny), that can be provided by intrinsic material properties or by form birefringent sub-wavelength structures. Retardance is the phase change Δφ expressed as distance, where the phase change Δφ(x,t,λ)=2πt(Δn/λ). For example a π/2 (or) 90°) phase change Δφ can be provided by a properly oriented compensator having a quarter wave λ/4 of retardance, which, at 550 nm, equals ˜138 nm retardance.
As one example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,028 to Clerc et al. describes birefringence compensation designed for a vertically aligned LCD with restricted thickness. U.S. Pat. No. 5,298,199 to Hirose et al. describes the use of a biaxial film compensator correcting for optical birefringence errors in the LCD, used in a package with crossed sheet polarizers, where the LCD dark state has a non-zero voltage (a bias voltage). Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,619,352 to Koch et al. describes compensation devices, usable with twisted nematic LCDs, where the compensators have a multi-layer construction, using combinations of A-plates, C-plates, and O-plates, as needed.
Likewise, in such systems, compensators have also been developed to correct for polarization performance variations of other components, such as the polarization beam splitters or analyzers, either individually or in combination with the LCDs. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,576,854 to Schmidt et al. describes a compensator constructed for use in projector apparatus using an LCD with the conventional MacNeille prism type polarization beam splitter. The Schmidt compensator provides 0.27 waves (λ's) of compensation, where 0.25λ's compensate for the MacNeille prism and 0.02λ's of retardance (A-plate) compensate for thermally induced stress birefringence in the counter electrode substrate of the LCD.
In some LCD based projector designs, the color combiner or splitter has its coatings positioned between the LCD panels and the polarization beam splitter. This, in turn, means that system polarization performance is dependent on the design and fabrication of these components. A detailed analysis of this problem is given, for example, by A. E. Rosenbluth et al. in “Correction of Contrast in Projection Systems By Means of Phase-Controlled Prism Coatings and Band-Shifted Twist Compensators” (SPIE Proc., Vol. 3954, pp. 63-90, 2000). Rosenbluth et al. describe a conventional projection architecture in which a “Plumbicon” or “Philips” prism is used in a double-pass configuration to provide both color splitting and recombination. The projector described uses twisted nematic LC panels. The “Plumbicon” tri-prism, described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,202,039 by DeLang, was originally developed for splitting light in TV cameras.
Rosenbluth et al. observe that tilted dichroics are usually polarizing, in that they exhibit a differential phase shift (Δφps=Δφp−Δφs), in both reflection and transmission, which causes polarization mixing, or compound angle depolarization, to transiting light beams. In particular, when oblique or skew light traverses color splitting coatings, which tend to be thick, there are generally differences between the effective penetration depths of the s- and p components, giving the coating a differential phase change Δφps between the two polarizations. Rosenbluth et al. observe that tilted dichroic coatings are usually strong amplitude polarizers at the edges of the band, which in turn implies a strong differential phase shift throughout the band, because of the dispersion integrals that link phase shift with intensity performance. Thus, as s- and p-polarizations transit the coatings at compound incidence angles, they experience different amplitude and phase responses. The most significant polarization cross-talk occurs when skew rays pass through the tilted beam-dividing coatings of the optical system.
Rosenbluth et al. seek to suppress depolarization from the coatings of the tri-prism assembly by designing the prism coatings to collectively remove the rotational component of depolarization rather than designing the coatings to be individually non-phase shifting. While the dispersion integrals link the phase performance and the light throughput efficiency, substantial changes in phase can be provided with marginal effect on throughput. The design of Rosenbluth et al., exploits the double pass geometry of the Philips prism. That is, individual coatings are not designed to be non-phase shifting (zero phase difference, Δφps=0), nor are the coatings designed to be collectively phase corrected in single pass, but they are designed to be collectively phase corrected in double pass. The optimization does not emphasize minimizing amplitude de-polarization effects. Rosenbluth et al. basically designed prism coatings so that skew rays experience elliptical polarization without rotation, while the double-pass symmetry of light passing through the prism assembly advantageously cancels the ellipticity. This symmetry and inherent cancellation only holds if the intensity losses in the dichroic coatings are essentially equal for s- and p-polarizations; thus, correction is imperfect near the band edges. Rosenbluth et al. provide examples in which coating depolarization is optimized in combination with the polarization beam splitter (PBS), with or without the benefit of polymeric film compensators that compensate for PBS or light valve depolarization effects.
Aside from Rosenbluth, the phase implications of multilayer thin-film optical coatings are not widely understood by those who specify and design optical thin-film coatings and have been only briefly explored or noted in the literature. However, few if any of the conventional approaches to this problem achieve satisfactory results.
Because de-polarization can degrade the signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio or contrast in telecommunications and other data signal handling optical systems, there have been a number of proposed solutions for compensating for polarization phase shift Δφ where thin-film surfaces are used for narrow-band optical signals. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,373,782 to Thelen entitled “Non-Polarizing Thing Film Edge Filter” describes forming an edge filter having the same s- and p-polarization performance on either the rising or falling edge. This provides a polarization-neutral effect for a single, narrow range of frequencies or wavelengths, but does not compensate for polarization effects beyond this narrow range. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,579,159 entitled “Optical Multilayer Thin Film and Beamsplitter” to Ito describes coatings design approaches that achieve s- and p-polarized light reflectances that are “substantially close to each other over a predetermined wavelength”. However, the Ito solution is intended for beam splitter use with a single laser beam in the IR range and this method is also not readily extendible beyond a narrow range of wavelengths.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,014,255 entitled “Polarizing Beam Splitter and Magneto-Optic Reading Device Using the Same” to Van Der Wal et al. describes a magneto-optic reader that is optimized to direct light over a single, narrow IR wavelength, with phase difference Δφ reduced by thickening the top and bottom layers over a multilayer thin film design. Again, this method does not address the larger problem of polarization compensation applicable to color-combining optics.
With the increasing use of lasers and other narrow-band light sources, some of the conventional strategies and approaches to the problem of combining modulated light beams, originally developed for more broadband illumination, prove unsatisfactory. Optical filters designed for imaging applications using arc lamp and other broadband sources are typically designed to optimize spectral efficiency, maximize bandwidth, and reject IR or UV light. These components are simply not designed to provide the needed performance over the narrow wavelength bands typical of lasers and other solid state light sources, and are generally designed without regard for polarization phase response.
Conventional approaches to reducing phase differences that affect how multilayer thin-film optical coatings handle polarization may work well enough with narrow-range optical signals for telecommunications. However, these conventional solutions fall short of what is needed to compensate for phase- and polarization-shifting effects of dichroic surfaces in image projection. Thus, there is need for an improved method for design of multilayer thin-film optical coatings for phase difference compensation to provide coatings that exhibit reduced polarization-specific response.
OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to advance the art of combining or splitting laser light of different wavelengths. With this object in mind, the present invention provides an anti-reflective thin film coating formed on an optical surface, comprising a multilayer thin-film stack arranged to suppress reflection of incident polarized light within an incident light wavelength range, wherein the multilayer thin-film stack further provides a reflectance edge transition at a wavelength band that lies outside the incident light wavelength range, and wherein the reflectance edge transition is arranged to provide phase difference compensation to the polarized light within the incident polarized light wavelength range.
A feature of the present invention is the addition of a reflective characteristic over an unused portion of the light spectrum, for the purpose of phase compensation.
An advantage of the present invention relates to phase difference compensation for combining polarized light without perceptibly compromising brightness or other imaging performance characteristics.
These and other aspects, objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood and appreciated from a review of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and appended claims, and by reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
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FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the behavior of conventional beam combiner coatings for an imaging apparatus;
FIG. 2A is a set of graphs that show the phase difference relationship for a representative reflective multilayer thin film filter;
FIG. 2B illustrates design principles of the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing phase compensation provided by the beam combiner coatings for the embodiment of FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the behavior of beam combiner coatings for an imaging apparatus in an alternate embodiment;
FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing phase compensation provided by the beam combiner coatings for the embodiment of FIG. 4;
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing orientation of polarized light components relative to polarization plane of incidence;
FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an imaging apparatus having an orthogonal arrangement of polarization planes of incidence for color combiner surfaces;
FIG. 8 shows a set of graphs for surface reflectivity, phase difference in transmission, and phase difference in reflection for the embodiment of FIG. 7 prior to phase compensation;
FIG. 9 shows the total phase difference per color channel for the un-corrected embodiment of FIG. 8;
FIG. 10 shows a set of graphs for surface reflectivity, phase difference in transmission, and phase difference in reflection for the embodiment of FIG. 7 with phase compensation in one embodiment;
FIG. 11 shows the total phase difference per color channel for the corrected embodiment of FIG. 10;
FIGS. 12A, 12B and 12C are graphs that show the results of a method for increasing phase difference by increasing the number of layers;
FIGS. 13A, 13B and 13C are graphs that show the results of a method for increasing phase difference by increasing the ratio of indices of refraction;
FIGS. 14A and 14B are graphs that show the results of a method for increasing phase difference by increasing the angle of incident light;
FIGS. 15A and 15B are graphs that show the results of a method for increasing phase difference by decreasing indices of refraction used to form alternating thin-film layers, relative to the propagation medium;
FIG. 16 is a logic flow diagram that shows a sequence of steps for designing beam combiner coatings in one embodiment;
FIGS. 17A, 17B, and 17C give tables showing the arrangement of multilayer thin-film surfaces in an embodiment in which dichroic surfaces have the same plane of incidence;
FIGS. 18A, 18B, and 18C give tables showing the arrangement of multilayer thin-film surfaces in an embodiment in which dichroic surfaces have orthogonal polarization planes of incidence;
FIG. 19 is a schematic block diagram that shows the color combiner used with an imaging apparatus that employs a Philips prism in one embodiment;
FIG. 20 is a schematic block diagram that shows the color combiner used with an imaging apparatus that employs a Philips prism in another embodiment; and
FIG. 21 is a schematic block diagram that shows the color combiner used with an imaging apparatus that employs an X-prism in one embodiment.
The terms “color”, “wavelength”, “wavelength range”, and “wavelength band” are used interchangeably in the description that follows. Red, green, and blue color paths are described for the examples given, since these apply for color projection and other color imaging applications. However, it is to be understood that the methods and apparatus of the present invention can be more broadly applied for different wavelength bands, and may include beam-combining or beam-splitting apparatus that operate to combine or to separate light of different wavelengths that may include those that lie outside the visible spectrum.
Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a schematic of a prior art imaging apparatus 100 having a beam combiner 40 that uses two multilayer thin-film plate dichroic elements 43 and 44. Each dichroic element 43 and 44 also has a corresponding anti-reflection (AR) surface 43a and 44a, respectively, and a filter surface 43b and 44b, respectively, with an appropriate dichroic coating. Variations of the FIG. 1 system will be discussed subsequently, both with and without the benefit of the present invention. As shown here, each dichroic element comprises a small sheet or plate of glass, having a multilayer optical coating on each of its two side optical surfaces (rather than the edge surfaces). A dichroic optical coating, as commonly understood in the optical field, provides selective reflection or transmission of light as a function of wavelength. A dichroic optical coating typically provides comparable, although not identical, efficiency response (reflectivity or transmissivity) relative to polarized light through the designed pass band, while the efficiency response typically varies more dramatically for the “s” and “p” polarization states at the pass band edge transitions. As will be discussed subsequently, the phase response also varies at edge transitions with respect to its effect on the polarization states of incident light.
The terms “edge transition”, “negative reflectance edge transition” and “positive reflectance edge transition” have their conventional meaning as these terms would be understood by one skilled in the optical coating arts. An edge transition is intentionally formed using multilayer thin-film coatings and following design principles used in the optical coating arts. An edge transition occurs within a narrow bandwidth of not more than about 25-30 nm. An edge transition can be created by forming a notch filter, a low-wavelength pass (LWP) filter, or a high-wavelength pass (HWP) filter, for example. Edge transitions for reflective filters are of particular interest for the present invention; it is these edge transitions that are deliberately designed and used to provide phase difference compensation for light combiner apparatus in the description that follows.
The term “reflective” has its conventional meaning in the context of optical coatings. A multilayer coating can be said to be reflective for a wavelength band where it is at least about 80% reflective to light over the band. The term “anti-reflective coating” or “AR coating” has its conventional meaning in the context of the present disclosure, which typically means a coating that modifies an air-glass interface to have greater than about 95% transmission over some anti-reflection wavelength band. Embodiments that may manipulate AR coating properties so as to provide phase compensation, do so at wavelength ranges that lie outside the needed anti-reflection wavelength bands provided by these coatings. For imaging apparatus, for example, an AR coating would be used to prevent reflection over the visible range. Altered reflective properties that are only outside the visible wavelength band, such as in ultraviolet UV or infrared IR wavelength bands, do not impact the performance of the AR coating with respect to its primary function in a projector or other imaging apparatus.
Where they are used, the terms “first”, “second”, and so on, do not necessarily denote any ordinal or priority relation, but may be simply used to more clearly distinguish one element from another.
In the context of the present invention, blue, green, and red light have their conventional meanings and wavelength ranges as these colors are understood to have to those skilled in the electronic imaging and projection arts. Typical values for these colors in one embodiment are generally within these approximate ranges: red λo=637 nm and its range is generally 620-660 nm; green λo=532 nm and its range is generally 520-560 nm; blue λo=465 nm and its range is generally 440-480 nm. In general, the selected light sources have spectral emission bandwidths Δλ that fall within these ranges, although the bandwidths λ2 of individual light sources can be much smaller. For example, an individual green laser may have a spectral bandwidth Δλ˜0.1-2.0 nm, and an array of multiple green lasers of that type may have a spectral bandwidth Δλ˜2-7 nm.
In figures and description of the present application, the notation Δφ is used to denote phase change, including differential phase change, where φ indicates phase. The subscript “t”, where used, indicates “transmission.” For example, Δφt means a change of phase that occurs in transmission. Similarly, the subscript “r”, where used, indicates “reflection.”
As was noted in the background section given earlier, s- and p-polarized light interact differently upon incidence with multilayer thin films, which causes some unwanted amount of relative phase difference (Δφsp) for these components of incident polarized light. Considering FIG. 6, incident light 82 is incident at an angle onto an optical element 80 that typically comprises a small sheet of plate glass. Incident light 82 can have either s-polarized light (oscillating normal to the plane of incidence 84), p-polarized light (oscillating within the plane of incidence 84), or both (both are shown). Although incident light 82 can be transmitted, reflected, or both, from optical element 80, depending on the properties of optical element 80, only reflected light 86 is shown. Light of either polarization orientation can experience a phase change Δφ at the optical element 80, and both polarizations can experience an identical phase change Δφ or no phase change (Δφ=0), such that there is no differential phase change (Δφsp=Δφs−Δφp=0). As another example, effectively no differential phase change can also occur upon reflection if the differential phase change is shifted in phase by 180° (π), or multiples thereof, such that Δφsp=Δφs−Δφp=180°. In these cases, the initial polarization relationships are maintained.
Optical element 80 can also cause differential responses for the s-polarized and p-polarized light, relative to reflectivity, transmissivity, and reflected or transmitted phase. For example, if s-polarized light experiences a phase change (Δφs), while p-polarized light experiences a different phase change (Δφp), the resulting phase φs of s-polarized light will have one value, and the phase φp of p-polarized light will have another value, and a non-zero phase difference will result (Δφsp=Δφs−Δφp≠0). The phase difference can be calculated as Δφsp=Δφs−Δφp or as Δφps=Δφp−Δs, although the choice can depend upon geometry. The phase change term Δφ is used herein to denote phase change generally rather than a polarization specific change (Δφp, Δφs), or to denote a phase difference generally, without concern for geometry (Δφsp, Δφps). With respect to combiner design, the goal can be to reduce the differential phase change in transmission or reflection (as appropriate) to near zero (Δφ=0) for each combiner element individually, or for the combiner elements in aggregate. For example, in commonly-assigned, co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/171,916 to Silverstein et al., entitled “Laser Illuminated Micro-Mirror Projector,” combining elements are designed to individually reduce differential phase change Δφ to near zero by positioning edge transitions, and their associated phase profiles as far away from the wavelengths of interest (λo) as possible. For the green color channel, this can mean trying to position edge transitions equally between the green and blue, or green and red wavelengths of interest. Although this approach can work, particularly for color channels with narrow spectral bandwidths Δλ, residual phase differences Δφ can still be significant, and small coating variations can cause large phase shifts or changes, imparting significant phase differences despite the design intent.
As another aspect, the two polarizations can encounter different or similar reflection (Rp or Rs) or transmission efficiencies (Tp or Ts), as described by the well known Fresnel equations. While it is certainly desirable to provide comparable efficiencies (Tp˜Ts, and Rp˜Rs), other mechanisms or methods can often be used in imaging systems to compensate for modest light level variations occurring at the dichroic combiner surfaces.
As further background, the propagation of light can be described by the well known wave equations, including Eq. (1) which describes a plane polarized wave ψ(x,t) travelling a distance x for a time t, where A(x,t) is the amplitude function, and φ(x,t) is the phase of the disturbance:
where x is the distance along the optical path, and t is the time.
The phase equation can be written various ways, including with an initial phase is given by ε, which is a value that can be subsequently ignored for current purposes:
φ(x,t)=ωt−kx+ε or φ(x,t)=ωt−kx=ω(t−x/v) (2)
where ω is the rate of change of phase with time, k is the rate of change of phase with distance, and v is velocity. The value ω is also known as the angular frequency, where ω=2π/ν, and the value k is also known as the propagation number, where k=2π/λ. The frequency ν and the wavelength λ of light are related by the speed of light, c=λ/ν. The wavelength λ of light in free space is usually expressed in microns (μm) or nanometers (nm). As light enters and traverses a material, it can experience a variable reflectivity and phase change Δφ, depending on the angle of incidence, the polarization orientation of the incident light relative to the media, the refractive index n, and the thickness of the material. The Fresnel equations, which model surface reflectance or transmission, affect the amplitude term of Eq. (1). The refractive index in a material or medium is basically the ratio of the speed of light in vacuum c to the speed in the medium v (n=c/v). Substituting into Eq. (2) puts the phase in terms of the refractive index:
Even in an isotropic material of constant refractive index, a differential phase change Δφ can occur for different beam propagation angles, as the optical path length (t/n) in the material changes from one angle to another. In the case of a complex structure, such as a thin film coating with multiple layered materials, differential reflectivity and phase changes can occur for different beam propagation angles. Thus, tilted dichroics are usually polarizing, as they exhibit a differential amount of rotation and ellipticity induced on the illumination by the coatings, per degree of ray angle (skew or otherwise). Thus, differential phase changes Δφ can occur depending on the angle and polarization states of the incident light; (Δφ=Δφsp=Δφs−Δφp) or (Δφ=Δφps=Δφp−Δφs).
Although there are methods for reducing the amount of phase change Δφ by manipulating one or more thin-film material characteristics or design structures, such as by polarization matching edge transitions or band pass reflectance, such changes do not generally provide sufficient compensation for the magnitude of the phase difference. It can be observed that there are other known techniques, familiar to those skilled in the art, which can be used to adjust and optimize a multifilm coatings design in order to minimize phase shift. For example, some amount of compromise can be achieved by sacrificing efficiency and throughput in specifying color filter characteristics relative to the wavelengths of light that are used. However, beyond somewhat narrow adjustment tolerances, there can be very little benefit available to the optics designer, in practice, for improving performance of optical coatings and for reducing phase shift differences using conventional approaches.
As noted earlier in the background section, conventional beam combiners typically fail to address the problem of phase difference Δφ for polarization components of the incident light and often exhibit phase differences well in excess of ±20 degrees. The apparatus and method of the present invention provide ways to improve beam combiner performance in this respect and to reduce phase difference to within a preferred range of ±10 degrees or less.
Returning to FIG. 1, color channels 12r, 12g, and 12b, represented in block diagram form in this figure, provide modulated light of red, green, and blue, respectively, to be combined at beam combiner 40 and directed to a projection lens 28 for projection onto a display surface 30. Again, beam combiner 40 comprises two multilayer thin-film plate dichroic elements 43 and 44 having dichroic optical coatings for reflecting and transmitting light selectively based on wavelength. The modulated light in each channel can be modulated by SLMs (not shown) that use digital micromirror arrays, such as DLP devices. Temporally or spatially modulated polarized light can be provided by the SLMs or by a polarization switching device located optically upstream of the spatial light modulators. As compared to a conventional system that use a Plumbicon prism in double pass to separate light in one direction and combine color beams in another direction, dichroic elements 43 and 44 are used to combine the light in a single pass. That is, light in each respective color channel (12r, 12g and 12b) traverses an optical path (not shown) that does not transit combiner 40 on an occasion prior to the combination of the light beams by beam combiner 40 as shown in FIG. 1.
The red, green, and blue light paths are represented with a slight spatial offset in FIG. 1, to help show the basic transmission and reflection functions of dichroic elements 43 and 44. In practice, these light paths are overlaid along the same output axis. The red, green, and blue color channels (12r, 12g and 12b) each include light sources, which are preferably lasers, although other narrow-band light sources, including Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs) or Super-luminescent Light-Emitting Diodes (SLEDs) can be used. Color channels 12g, 12b and 12r either emit polarized light, or have light polarized by a pre-polarizer (not shown), or both. A polarization analyzer 32 or, optionally, polarization beam splitter is provided in the optical path, downstream of the second dichroic element 44, to for example, enable stereo image projection. Display surface 30 is a target plane, in which a screen typically resides, upon which an audience can view the projected images.
Also shown in FIG. 1 are representative filter graphs for transmission (T) and reflection (R) and for the phase difference Δφsp between s- and p-polarized light for each filter surface 43b and 44b of dichroic elements 43 and 44. Encircled by the dashed box 46L on the left are a reflection filter graph 53r and a transmission filter graph 53t for filter surface 43b of dichroic element 43. A phase difference graph 53φ shows the phase difference Δφsp for the high wavelength pass (HWP) edge filter of dichroic element 43. Significant phase differences Δφsp are imparted to the transiting green and blue light by the (HWP) edge filter of dichroic element 43. Similarly, encircled by the dashed box 46R on the right are a reflection filter graph 54r and a transmission filter graph 54t for filter surface 44b of dichroic element 44. A phase difference graph 54φ shows the phase difference Δφsp for the notch filter of dichroic element 44. An accumulated phase change graph 56φ then shows the sum of accumulated phase difference Δφsp, computed by summing phase difference graphs 53φ and 54φ. Here, the magnitude of the accumulated phase difference Δφsp for light in the green and red wavelength bands exceeds 20 degrees, and may be as much as 100 degrees or more. This phase performance is typical of many standard filter designs.
As noted previously, Rosenbluth et al. observed that tilted dichroic coatings are usually strong amplitude polarizers at the edges of a pass band. This, in turn, implies a strong differential phase shift throughout the band because of the dispersion integrals that link phase shift with intensity performance. Thus, as s- and p-polarization components transit the coatings at compound incidence angles, they experience different amplitude and phase responses. With respect to this behavior, the inventors have further observed that there is a characteristic relationship between phase shift and filter band edges (or reflectance edge transitions) of dichroic coatings. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2A, a positive or negative phase change difference Δφsp characteristic of the phase difference profile 50 corresponds to the positive or negative edge transition 42E of the reflectance stack. An example reflectance filter curve set (both s and p polarization reflectance profiles 42) for a notch filter with a pass band extending from ˜470 nm to ˜690 nm, and with rejection bands below 470 nm and above 690 nm, is shown on the upper left in FIG. 2A. Below this example is shown the corresponding plotted response for phase difference (Δφsp=Δφs−vφp) that occurs over the same range of wavelengths with this filter. The schematic diagrams on the right summarize the basic behavior of phase difference to reflection band edges. The phase difference change profile 50 has a positive phase difference Δφsp that corresponds to the rising band-edge, or the positive edge transition 42E of the reflectance profile 42. A negative phase difference Δφsp corresponds to the falling band-edge of the reflectance profile 42, that is, to the negative edge transition 42E of the reflectance curve. Note that a negative edge transition 42E for a tilted dichroic filter in reflection appears as a positive edge transition 42E for that filter in transmission. Following a relatively pronounced response at each transition, the phase difference Δφsp then drifts back toward zero for longer wavelengths.
It should be emphasized that phase differences vary considerably with wavelength; Δφ(λ). Considering the asymmetrical phase difference profile 50 on the left, at each band edge, phase difference peak magnitudes in excess of 80 degrees are observed (|Δφsp|=|Δφs−Δφp|>80°), along with large phase differences (|Δφsp|=|Δφs−Δφp|>20°) about the edge transitions that extend to become phase tails 51 of the phase profile for ˜40 nm towards the pass band center, and for ˜100 nm into the adjacent low reflectance rejection bands. It is also noted that the phase tails 51 into the rejection bands tend to be shorter, or compressed, at shorter wavelengths as compared to those at longer wavelengths. In the case of the exemplary notch filter of FIG. 2A, it is also noted that there are pronounced ripples in the reflectance profiles 42 outside the nominal 470-690 nm pass band. The corresponding phase difference profile 50 shows some small ripples in the phase tails 51 at the corresponding wavelengths. In cases where notch or edge filters are designed without pronounced rejection band reflectance ripples, dramatic phase changes (in magnitude and extent) are still observed about the edge transitions, but without the small rippling effects shown here. This behavior will be evident with later design examples.
In considering the behavior shown in FIG. 2A, and expanded upon in FIG. 2B, the inventors have found that interaction between characteristic positive and negative phase difference Δφ curves can be utilized for reducing phase differences for multilayer thin-film coated surfaces. Thus, for example, a primary dichroic element 41 with a primary spectral bandpass (or pass band 42P) exhibits the general behavior shown in FIG. 2B with respect to phase difference profile 50 having phase tails 51. If an edge transition 42E for a second phase compensating dichroic element 52, having a phase compensating spectral bandpass and an associated phase difference profile 50c, is provided along the light path in sufficient proximity to the primary spectral band in terms of wavelength, the characteristic phase responses associated with the adjacent edge transitions 42E can interact in an advantageous way. As shown in FIG. 2B, the phase tails 51c of the phase difference profile 50c for a phase compensating dichroic element 52 interact with the phase tails 51 of the phase difference profile 50 for the primary dichroic element 41 near the target wavelength (λo) to provide reduced combined phase differences. This can occur even when two bandpasses are spectrally separated by an intervening rejection band 42R of width Δλoffset1. For example, the pass bands 42P of both the primary dichroic element 41 and the phase compensating dichroic element 52 can have high reflectivity (Rp, Rs>90%) while the intervening rejection band 42R has low reflectivity (Rp, Rs<5%). If the intervening rejection band 42R is sufficiently narrow (Δλoffset1<50-100 nm) between the two edge transitions, λedge1 and λedge2, the negative phase difference profile of the proximate falling edge and the positive phase difference profile of the proximate rising edge can interact or combine at the intended spectral band to reduce the phase differences Δφsp imparted to the light at the wavelengths of interest (λo±Δλ/2), provided that significant phase difference compensation is present across the desired wavelength span (Δλoffset2). The two distances Δλoffset1 and Δφoffset2, can be nearly identical, or significantly different, depending on how close the target wavelength (λo) is to the edge transition. The application of this concept will become clearer in subsequent design examples.
The apparatus and method of the present invention apply the design approach suggested by FIG. 2B. That is, the relationship of phase change to band-edge for a reflective filter is used to compensate for phase difference Δφ, by providing a phase difference compensation multilayer thin-film stack that then provides a more uniform phase response to light of different polarization states at particular target wavelengths. In particular, a phase compensating dichroic element 52, which is provided as a phase compensating filter having a supplementary multilayer thin-film stack, provides a spectral band pass and edge transitions 42E at wavelengths outside the spectral bandwidth containing the wavelengths of interest that are present at the surface on which the phase compensating dichroic element 52 is formed. To be effective, the phase tails 51c of the phase difference profile 50c associated with the phase compensating dichroic element 52, must extend far enough (Δλoffset) and have the right sign (+or −) and magnitude, to provide phase difference Δφ compensation for the phase impact of the primary dichroic element 41 of the dichroic filter. As will be discussed subsequently, phase compensating dichroic element 52 can be provided on a surface of a dichroic element, or on a surface having an AR coating, or on some other optical element. Both the primary dichroic element 41 and the phase compensating dichroic element 52 can be notch filters, or pass edge filters, and examples of both will be given subsequently. Embodiments of the present invention employ this phase-change response to reflectance band-edge behavior as a mechanism for compensating the phase shift that affects polarization for spectral filters generally, and beam combiners in particular. Referring back to the conventional arrangement of FIG. 1, for example, the accumulated phase difference shown in phase difference graph 56φ can be reduced using appropriately constructed thin film structures that affect a phase difference Δφsp that does not compromise image quality.
Referring to FIG. 3, the method of phase difference compensation is shown for one embodiment. In this configuration, the dichroic element 44 of FIG. 1 is replaced by a dichroic element 45 having a phase compensating feature. The dichroic element 43 has an anti-reflection surface 45a and a filter surface 45b. On the left side of FIG. 3 in box 47L, reflection filter graph 53r, transmission filter graph 53t, and phase difference graph 53φ are repeated from FIG. 1 for the high wavelength (red) pass (HWP) edge filter of dichroic element 43. In order to compensate for the negative phase change in the intended spectral bandpass in the red wavelengths, a second supplementary spectral bandpass or reflectance band, is provided by phase compensating spectral bandpass 60 (encircled in FIG. 3), which is added to the filter surface 45b of dichroic element 45. Phase compensating spectral bandpass 60, in this instance is a specific type of phase compensating dichroic element (52), and corresponds to an infrared (IR) spectral bandpass notch filter, that is formed by adding a stack of layers to the multilayer thin film stack on filter surface 45b, wherein the stack reflects light of longer wavelengths outside the visible region. On the right side of FIG. 3 in box 47R, reflection filter graph 55r, transmission filter graph 55t, and phase difference graph 55φ illustrate the characteristics of the filter when the phase compensating spectral bandpass 60 is added to the formulation of the filter characterized by the graphs in box 46L of FIG. 1. Phase difference graph 55φ shows the effect of this modification to the thin-film filter formulation at filter surface 45b, that is, the addition of IR phase compensating spectral bandpass 60 to the multilayer thin-film stack for filter surface 45b. Here IR phase compensating spectral bandpass 60 provides a phase difference Δφsp reducing or compensating structure for light in the intended (red) spectral pass band, thus improving the phase response over the red region. This can occur even though the color channels 12r, 12g and 12b provide no IR light to interact with the phase compensating spectral bandpass 60. The resulting compensated accumulated phase change is shown at the bottom of FIG. 3 as phase difference graph 57φ. For comparison, the initial accumulated phase difference Δφsp is repeated from FIG. 1 and shown as the dashed phase difference graph 56φ, showing the improvement that the added reflectance band of the phase compensating spectral bandpass 60 provides, in particular at the red wavelength.