Electro-optic Patents (Class 359/315)
  • Publication number: 20120274867
    Abstract: An illumination unit includes: a light modulation layer disposed in a gap between a first transparent substrate and a second transparent substrate, and exhibiting a scattering property or transparency with respect to light from a light source, depending on magnitude of an electric field; and an electrode generating an electric field in the light modulation layer, when a voltage is applied thereto, in which the light modulation layer generates a plurality of strip-like illumination light beams extending in a direction intersecting with a first end surface of the first or second transparent substrate with use of light from the light source, when an electric field for a three-dimensional display mode is applied from the electrode to the light modulation layer, and a light emission area per unit area of each of the strip-like illumination light beams varies with a distance from the light source.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 18, 2012
    Publication date: November 1, 2012
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Shogo Shinkai, Kentaro Okuyama, Akira Ebisui, Harumi Sato
  • Patent number: 8300304
    Abstract: A reflective electronic display includes a front light assembly with a diffuser for enlarging the viewing cone of the display. The front light may include a substrate, a plurality of optical turning features, and a diffuser formed therebetween. The haze of the diffuser may be spatially non-uniform and switchable between two or more levels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2012
    Assignee: QUALCOMM MEMS Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian J. Gally, Gang Xu, Ion Bita, Marek Mienko, Russell Gruhlke
  • Patent number: 8295710
    Abstract: The invention describes a modulator for the quadrature modulation of an optical carrier signal with an I- and a Q-portion, where a first optical multimode interferometer (MMI) splits the optical carrier signal into four branches and that in pairs of branches the I-portion and the Q-portion respectively is modulated with a Mach-Zehnder-Structure and a second optical multimode interferometer (MMI) combines the modulated I-portion and Q-portion again to one quadrature modulated optical output signal (OS).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2012
    Assignee: Nokia Siemens Networks Oy
    Inventor: Winter Marcus
  • Patent number: 8264760
    Abstract: An E-ink display device includes an active element array substrate, an E-ink layer, a protective layer and a sealant. The active element array substrate has a surface, and the surface includes a contacting region and a sealing region. The E-ink layer is disposed on the contacting region and has a first side wall, and a first included angle defined between the first side wall and the surface being smaller than 90 degrees or larger than 90 degrees. The protective layer is disposed on the E-ink layer and has a second side wall, and a second included angle defined between the second side wall and the surface is smaller than 90 degrees or larger than 90 degrees. The sealant is disposed on the sealing region and surrounds the E-ink layer and the protective layer. A method for manufacturing the E-ink display device is also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 11, 2012
    Assignee: Au Optronics Corp.
    Inventors: Ho-Chien Wu, Chih-Cheng Chan, Chia-Tien Peng
  • Patent number: 8259384
    Abstract: An illumination device is provided and includes: a light guide member; a light source provided on one or more side faces of the light guide member; and a light modulating element including a pair of transparent substrates disposed to oppose each other with a gap therebetween, a first electrode provided on a surface of one of the transparent substrates, a second electrode provided on a surface of the other of the transparent substrates, and a light modulation layer provided in the gap and expressing a scattering property or a transparency to light from the light source in accordance with a magnitude of an electric field. The first electrode, the second electrode, or both thereof is patterned, and a density of pattern of the first electrode, the second electrode, or both thereof to which the patterning is applied is varied depending on a distance from the light source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 4, 2012
    Assignees: Sony Corporation, Tohoku University
    Inventors: Tatsuo Uchida, Takahiro Ishinabe, Tohru Kawakami, Kentaro Okuyama, Shinpei Nagatani, Akira Ebisui, Masahiro Ikeda
  • Publication number: 20120218498
    Abstract: An optically controlled deformable reflective/refractive assembly includes a deformable membrane structure (10) having a reflecting/refractive, electrically conductive surface (10?), which is associated with a rigid photoconductive substrate (14) having an electrically conductive layer (14?) on one side. An electric biasing arrangement applies a potential difference (V0) across the membrane structure (10). A controlling light source (20) illuminates the photoconductive substrate (14) in correspondence of an active region, wherein the light source is arranged for selectively illuminating the substrate (14) by emitting at least an optical beam (B) adapted to generate in an area of the substrate (14) a local electrical charge density proportional to the spatial light intensity of the beam (B) and responsible for a local deformation of the membrane structure (10).
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 30, 2009
    Publication date: August 30, 2012
    Applicant: Consiglio Nazionale Delle Ricerche
    Inventors: Stefano Bonora, Stefania Residori, Umberto Bortolozzo
  • Publication number: 20120204648
    Abstract: A probe for use with an imaging system, including a scanning device configured to receive a first light beam from a light source, a beam-divider configured to split the first light beam into a plurality of second light beams, and a focusing device configured to focus each of the second light beams on respective locations in an object of interest.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 9, 2012
    Publication date: August 16, 2012
    Applicant: Washington University in St. Louis
    Inventors: Lihong Wang, Liang Song, Konstantin Maslov, Bin Rao
  • Publication number: 20120206791
    Abstract: A beam steering device (300) for deflecting a beam of light is provided. The beam steering device comprises a first deflecting member (310), a rotating member (320), and a second deflecting member (330). For an incoming beam of light having components (303, 302) with their polarization parallel (303?) and perpendicular (302?), respectively, to an optic axis (314, 334) of the beam steering device, the parallel component (303) is deflected by a first angle (304) when passing the first deflecting member. When passing the rotating member, the polarization (303?, 302?) of the beam of light is rotated by 90 degrees (303?, 302?). When passing the second deflecting member, the perpendicular component (302) is deflected by a second angle (305).
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2010
    Publication date: August 16, 2012
    Applicant: Koninklijke Phipips Electronics, N.V.
    Inventors: Fetze Pijlman, Marcellinus Petrus Carolus Michael Krijn, Michel Cornelis Josephus Marie Vissenberg, Lieven Raf Roger Desmet, Baptiste Fleury Louis Delplanque, Tim Dekker
  • Patent number: 8218226
    Abstract: An optical modulator that utilizes Bloch surface plasmon (BSP) effects is disclosed. The BSP optical (BSPO) modulator (10) includes a permittivity-modulated (P-M) grating (20) that can be one-dimensional or two-dimensional. Electro-optic (EO) substrates (30) sandwich the P-M grating. The EO substrates have electrodes (64) arranged thereon, and a voltage source (60) connected to the electrodes is used to provide an applied voltage (V30) via a modulation voltage signals (SM) that switches the modulator. Index-matching layers (40) may be used to mitigate adverse reflection effects. The BSPO modulator allows for normally incident input light (100I) to be modulated directly without having to generate oblique angles of incidence for the input light in order to excite the surface plasmon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2012
    Assignee: Corning Incorporated
    Inventors: Andrey Kobyakov, Kevin Bryan Sparks, Aramais Zakharian
  • Patent number: 8203780
    Abstract: A photorefractive device (100) and method of manufacture are disclosed. The device (100) comprises a layered structure in which one or more polymer layers (110) are interposed between a photorefractive material (106) and at least one transparent electrode layer (104). The layered structure is further interposed between a plurality of substrates (102). When a bias is applied to the device (100), the device (100) exhibits an increase in signal efficiency of approximately three to four times that of similar, but non-buffered, devices. Concurrently, the device (100) of the present disclosure utilizes approximately half the biased voltage, advantageously resulting in a longer device lifetime.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 2, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 19, 2012
    Assignees: Nitto Denko Corporation, Arizona Board of Regents on Behalf of the University of Arizona
    Inventors: Michiharu Yamamoto, Peng Wang, Nasser Peyghambarian, Weiping Lin
  • Patent number: 8179580
    Abstract: An optical scanning device includes a light source; a scanning unit to deflect/scan a laser beam from the light source; an imaging optical system to focus the deflected and scanned laser beam to a scan-target surface; an electro-optic element to electrically change a refractive index thereof; a controller to control the refractive index of the electro-optic element to adjust deflection amount of the laser beam; and a positional shift detecting unit, disposed away from the light path, to detect a positional shift of the incident laser beam from an ideal position in a sub-scanning direction. The device further includes a beam splitting element, and the controller adjusts a deflection amount of the laser beam from the electro-optic element based on a detection result by the positional shift detecting unit and corrects a positional shift in the sub-scanning direction of the laser beam on the scan-target surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2012
    Assignee: Ricoh Company, Ltd.
    Inventors: Akihiro Iwamatsu, Kenichi Yoshimura, Kohei Shimizu, Tokiko Inoue, Mitsuru Nakajima
  • Publication number: 20120092543
    Abstract: An electrically controllable optical lens apparatus makes use of fixed lenses and an active optical element together in a lens enclosure. The enclosure may be a barrel structure that is easily mounted to a camera device having an image sensor. The active optical element, such as a tunable liquid crystal lens, receives an electrical signal from the camera device via electrical conductors integral with the lens enclosure that provide electrical pathways between the active element on the interior of the enclosure and surface contacts on the camera device. The enclosure may be a two-piece structure, and the electrical conductors may be attached to either piece of the structure. The lens enclosure may also be threaded for attachment to the camera device. The electrical conductors may also use spring loaded contact portions or molded interconnect devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2010
    Publication date: April 19, 2012
    Applicant: LENSVECTOR INC.
    Inventors: Bahram Afshari, John Toor, Samuel Wennyann Ho, Peter Clark
  • Patent number: 8134773
    Abstract: A display device includes: an optical cell including: a first electrode; a second electrode; an ion conduction layer facing the first electrode and the second electrode and containing a mobile ion; and a first nanostructure provided between the first electrode and the ion conduction layer and being electrically connected to the first electrode. The first nanostructure has a first plasmon resonance wavelength in a visible light region and contains a first metal element. A first metal compound layer which contains the first metal element contained in the first nanostructure and has a refractive index different from a refractive index of the ion conduction layer is formed on at least a part of a surface of the first nanostructure by applying a voltage between the first electrode and the second electrode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 13, 2012
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Takashi Miyazaki, Rei Hasegawa, Hajime Yamaguchi, Hitoshi Nagato, Haruhi Oooka, Shuichi Uchikoga
  • Patent number: 8125717
    Abstract: A three-dimensional left-handed metamaterial having a completely new constitution, which functions as a three-dimensional electromagnetic wave propagation medium and in which an equivalent permittivity and a permeability of the medium simultaneously take negative values. The three-dimensional left-handed metamaterial is structured such that cubic unit cells 5 are disposed repeatedly in three orthogonal directions of a three-dimensional space, and includes: a first particle 1 constituted by a conductor and disposed in positions centering on respective vertices of the unit cell; a second particle 2 constituted by a conductor and disposed in positions centering on face center points, which are centers of respective faces of the unit cell; a first connecting portion constituted by a conductor, which connects the first particles to a center point of the unit cell; and a second connecting portion constituted by a conductor, which connects the second particles to the center point.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2012
    Assignee: Yamaguchi University
    Inventor: Atsushi Sanada
  • Patent number: 8111443
    Abstract: A plasmonic transistor device includes an electro-optic substrate and a conductive layer placed on said electro-optic substrate to establish an interface therebetween. The first conductive layer and electro-optics substrate are made of materials that are suitable for transmission of a surface plasmon along the interface. The conductive layer is further formed with a source input grating and a drain output grating, for establishing the surface plasmon. A means for varying the electro-optic substrate permittivity, such as a light source or voltage source, is connected to the electro-optic substrate. Selective manipulation of the varying means allows the user to selectively increase or decrease the substrate permittivity. Control of the substrate permittivity further allows the user to control surface plasmon propagation from the source input grating along the interface to a drain output grating, to achieve a transistor-like effect for the surface plasmon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2012
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventors: Stephen D. Russell, Joanna N. Ptasinski
  • Patent number: 8107151
    Abstract: A plasmonic logic device can include a dielectric substrate, and first and second metallic input strips that are placed on the substrate. The input metallic strips can be made of different metals that support propagation of surface plasmons at different frequencies. The input metallic strips can be separated by a predetermined gap that causes for the surface plasmons to constructively combine or destructively cancel each other, according to the gap distances and strip materials chosen, to accomplish the desired logic function. A metallic output strip can be placed on the substrate at a distance from the metallic input strips that allows for selective propagation to accomplish different logic functions. The metallic output strip can further be chosen from a material that allows for propagation of surface plasmons over a broad frequency range to allow for evanescent coupling of a surface plasmon from the metallic input strips.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2012
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventors: Joanna N. Ptasinski, Stephen Russell
  • Publication number: 20120019892
    Abstract: An apparatus to modify an incident free space electromagnetic wave includes a block of an artificially structured material having an adjustable spatial distribution of electromagnetic parameters (e.g., ?, ?, ?, ?, and n). A controller applies control signals to dynamically adjust the spatial distribution of electromagnetic parameters in the material to introduce a time-varying path delay d(t) in the modified electromagnetic wave relative to the incident electromagnetic wave.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 22, 2010
    Publication date: January 26, 2012
    Inventors: Jeffrey A. Bowers, Roderick A. Hyde, Jordin T. Kare, Nathan Kundtz, Bruce Marshall McWilliams, John Brian Pendry, David Schurig, David R. Smith, Anthony F. Starr, Clarence T. Tegreene, Lowell L. Wood, JR.
  • Patent number: 8098417
    Abstract: An electromechanical device includes a partially reflective and partially transmissive layer and a movable functional element. The movable functional element includes a patterned flexible dielectric layer and a reflective layer mechanically coupled to the flexible dielectric layer. The patterned flexible dielectric layer is configured to flex in response to voltages applied to the partially reflective and partially transmissive layer to move the functional element in a direction generally perpendicular to the partially reflective and partially transmissive layer. The reflective layer is situated between the flexible dielectric layer and the partially reflective and partially transmissive layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 17, 2012
    Assignee: Qualcomm MEMS Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Teruo Sasagawa
  • Patent number: 8085459
    Abstract: A plasmonic transistor device includes an electro-optic substrate and a conductive layer placed on said electro-optic substrate to establish an interface therebetween. The first conductive layer and electro-optics substrate are made of materials that are suitable for transmission of a surface plasmon along the interface. The conductive layer is further formed with a source input grating and a drain output grating, for establishing the surface plasmon. A means for varying the electro-optic substrate permittivity, such as a light source or voltage source, is connected to the electro-optic substrate. Selective manipulation of the varying means allows the user to selectively increase or decrease the substrate permittivity. Control of the substrate permittivity further allows the user to control surface plasmon propagation from the source input grating along the interface to a drain output grating, to achieve a transistor-like effect for the surface plasmon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2011
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventors: Stephen D. Russell, Joanna N. Ptasinski
  • Publication number: 20110287940
    Abstract: An optical element is disclosed which includes transparent superconductor material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 9, 2009
    Publication date: November 24, 2011
    Inventor: Daniel Brandt
  • Publication number: 20110267680
    Abstract: An optical device includes a soft polymer film having a first and second surface. A first compliant electrode is connected to the first surface and a second compliant electrode is connected to the second surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 18, 2009
    Publication date: November 3, 2011
    Applicant: OPTOTUNE AG
    Inventor: Manuel Aschwanden
  • Patent number: 8045253
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention are directed to systems and methods for obtaining images of objects with higher resolution than the diffraction limit. In one aspect, a method for collecting evanescent waves scattered from an object comprises electronically configuring a reconfigurable device to operate as a grating for one or more lattice periods using a computing device. Propagating waves scattered from the object pass through the reconfigurable device and a portion of evanescent waves scattered from the object are projected into the far field of the object. The method includes detecting propagating waves and detecting the portion of evanescent waves projected into the far field for each lattice period using an imaging system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2011
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Jingjing Li, Philip J. Kuekes
  • Patent number: 8035879
    Abstract: An electrowetting display device includes a first and a second transparent substrates, multiple partition walls, a polar liquid, a non-polar liquid, and a phosphor layer. The non-polar liquid is opaque and immiscible with the polar liquid. The phosphor layer is formed on at least one of the first and the second transparent substrates. The phosphor layer comprises a first part that transforms the short-wavelength light into red light, a second part that transforms the short-wavelength light into green light, and a third part that transforms the short-wavelength light into blue light or allows the short-wavelength light to pass therethrough without transformation. Each of the first, the second, and the third parts is corresponding to one pixel unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2011
    Assignee: Wintek Corporation
    Inventors: Wen-Chun Wang, Kuo-Chang Su, Cheng-Yi Chen
  • Patent number: 8014061
    Abstract: To provide a variable-focal length lens capable of altering its focal length at high speed. The variable-focal length lens has an electrooptic material and electrodes formed on an incident surface of light and on an exit surface of the light of the electrooptic material. An optical axis is set so that the light is inputted into a gap where the electrodes of the incident surface are not formed and is outputted from a gap where the electrodes of the exit surface are not formed. A focus of the light that is transmitted through the electrooptic material becomes variable by varying an applied voltage between the electrodes of the incident surface and the electrodes of the exit surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 2008
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2011
    Assignee: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
    Inventors: Tadayuki Imai, Masahiro Sasaura, Jun Miyazu, Shogo Yagi, Kazuo Fujiura
  • Publication number: 20110211249
    Abstract: An optical device and method is disclosed for forming the optical device within the wide-bandgap semiconductor substrate. The optical device is formed by directing a thermal energy beam onto a selected portion of the wide-bandgap semiconductor substrate for changing an optical property of the selected portion to form the optical device in the wide-bandgap semiconductor substrate. The thermal energy beam defines the optical and physical properties of the optical device. The optical device may take the form of an electro-optical device with the addition of electrodes located on the wide-bandgap semiconductor substrate in proximity to the optical device for changing the optical property of the optical device upon a change of a voltage applied to the optional electrodes. The invention is also incorporated into a method of using the optical device for remotely sensing temperature, pressure and/or chemical composition.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2011
    Publication date: September 1, 2011
    Applicant: University of Central Florida
    Inventors: Nathaniel R. Quick, Aravinda Kar, Islam A. Salama
  • Patent number: 7990605
    Abstract: An illumination device is provided and has a light guide plate, a light source and a light modulator, wherein the light modulator has a pair of transparent substrates a pair of electrodes and a light modulator layer. The light modulator layer includes a first region being changed between a transparent state and a scatterable state depending on intensity of an electric field, and a second region being more transparent than the first region in a scatterable state at an electric field having a certain intensity, the electric field being applied when the first region is changed between the transparent state and the scatterable state, and an occupancy rate of the first region in the light modulator layer is increased with increase in distance from the light source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Kentaro Okuyama, Harumi Sato
  • Patent number: 7969641
    Abstract: A power generating black mask comprising an anti-reflection layer deposited over a substrate, a first electrode layer deposited over the anti-reflection layer, a semi-conductor layer deposited over the first electrode layer and a second electrode layer deposited over the semi-conductor layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2009
    Date of Patent: June 28, 2011
    Assignee: QUALCOMM MEMS Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Ion Bita, Chun-Ming Wang, Gang Xu
  • Patent number: 7965439
    Abstract: A scanning device includes: an optical element in which a refractive index distribution changes according to the intensity of an electric field generated therein such that an incident laser beam is scanned; first and second electrodes provided on two opposite surfaces of the optical element; and a control unit that controls a voltage applied to at least one of the first and second electrodes such that the electric field is generated in one direction and the other direction opposite to the one direction with time in the optical element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2011
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Shigeo Nojima
  • Publication number: 20110141551
    Abstract: An illumination device is provided and includes: a light guide member; a light source provided on one or more side faces of the light guide member; and a light modulating element including a pair of transparent substrates disposed to oppose each other with a gap therebetween, a first electrode provided on a surface of one of the transparent substrates, a second electrode provided on a surface of the other of the transparent substrates, and a light modulation layer provided in the gap and expressing a scattering property or a transparency to light from the light source in accordance with a magnitude of an electric field. The first electrode, the second electrode, or both thereof is patterned, and a density of pattern of the first electrode, the second electrode, or both thereof to which the patterning is applied is varied depending on a distance from the light source.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2010
    Publication date: June 16, 2011
    Applicants: TOHOKU UNIVERSITY, SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tatsuo Uchida, Takahiro Ishinabe, Tohru Kawakami, Kentaro Okuyama, Shinpei Nagatani, Akira Ebisui, Masahiro Ikeda
  • Publication number: 20110121158
    Abstract: An adaptive plasma optics cell includes a housing defining a chamber, and a gas disposed within the housing chamber. A first light transmissive electrode layer is coupled to a first side of the housing and a first light transmissive dielectric layer is coupled between the first light transmissive electrode layer and the housing chamber. A second electrode layer is coupled to a second side of the housing such that the housing chamber is at least partially disposed between the first and second electrode layers and a second dielectric layer coupled between the second electrode layer electrode and the housing chamber. In operation, a power supply is controlled such that the power supply selectively supplies an electric signal sufficient to cause the gas to generate a plasma having a desired plasma gradient.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 23, 2010
    Publication date: May 26, 2011
    Inventors: Thomas C. CORKE, Eric H. MATLIS
  • Publication number: 20110085229
    Abstract: Electrically reconfigurable metamaterial with spatially varied refractive index is proposed for applications such as optical cloaks and lenses. The apparatus and method comprises a metamaterial in which the refractive indices are modified in space and time by applying one or more electric fields. The metamaterials are electrically controllable and reconfigurable, and consist of metal (gold, silver, etc.) particles of different shapes, such as rods, with dimension much smaller than the wavelength of light, dispersed in a dielectric medium, for example, fluids such as water, toluene, oil, glycerine, thermotropic liquid crystal, lyotropic liquid crystal, polymer, elastomer, and other suitable materials placed in a non-uniform electric field.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 13, 2009
    Publication date: April 14, 2011
    Applicant: KENT STATE UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Oleg Lavrentovich, Andrii B. Golovin
  • Patent number: 7911675
    Abstract: An optical modulation device includes: an optical splitter for splitting input light into a first input beam and a second input beam; an optical intensity modulator for modulating the intensity of the first input beam in response to a modulating signal; a variable optical phase shifter for shifting the phase of the second input beam; and an optical combiner for combining an output beam of the optical intensity modulator and an output beam of the variable optical phase shifter into a combined beam and outputting the combined beam. The amount of phase shift produced by the variable optical phase shifter is externally controlled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2011
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventor: Yasunori Miyazaki
  • Publication number: 20110037001
    Abstract: To provide a terahertz beam scanning apparatus and method that can scan a terahertz beam at high speed over a wide angle. The terahertz beam scanning apparatus includes: a laser device 12 that generates a first laser beam 1 and a second laser beam 2 having different wavelengths; a laser optical system 14 that focuses the first laser beam 1 and the second laser beam 2 on a same common focal point 14b; and a terahertz generator 16 that is located at the common focal point and generates a terahertz beam 4 by difference frequency mixing. The laser optical system 14 is configured to be capable of changing a relative incidence ?i between the first laser beam and the second laser beam to the terahertz generator.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 21, 2009
    Publication date: February 17, 2011
    Applicant: RIKEN
    Inventors: Ken-ichiro Maki, Takayuki Shibuya, Chiko Otani, Kodo Kawase
  • Patent number: 7889420
    Abstract: A color-tunable, reflective, paper-like display utilizes the unique optical properties of nano-engineered metal and metal-dielectric composite structures that exhibit a plasmon resonance. By changing the dielectric properties of a medium in which these structures are embedded, or by changing the spatial relationship of these structures, their optical absorbance and scattering spectra can be tuned. This enables simpler pixel architectures with better performance than is possible with fixed-color technologies. Low power video rate operation can be achieved in a paper-like display.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2011
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventor: Gary A. Gibson
  • Publication number: 20110013244
    Abstract: A visibility region produced through superimposed light bundles is tracked within a large angular range in front of a light modulator through controllable electrowetting cells having a prism function. Negative effects of buckling of the light bundle cross section are minimized by deflecting the light bundle in the prism cell. Light bundles, modulated by a controllable light modulator, impinge the modulator cells with a defined intensity distribution and pass by a controllable deflection device including a prism cell and a controllable electrode arrangement that adjusts boundary surfaces between a plurality of non-mixable materials. The altered intensity distribution is compensated in the light path of the light bundle in the visibility region by reducing the intensities of secondary diffraction order maxima such that the effective surface of a modulator cell has a shape that is tailored to the altered intensity distribution.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 12, 2009
    Publication date: January 20, 2011
    Applicant: SeeReal Technologies S.A.
    Inventor: Gerald Futterer
  • Publication number: 20110013179
    Abstract: A controllable light angle selecting device (100) is provided. It comprises a fixed light selecting means (110) adapted to transmit light incident thereon within a limited acceptance angle, optically connected to at least one light redirecting means (120) capable of obtaining a variable angular difference between light entering said light redirecting means (120) and light exiting said light redirecting means. A photometer, comprising a controllable light angle selector arranged in the path of light between a light source and a light measuring sensor is also provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 31, 2009
    Publication date: January 20, 2011
    Applicant: KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS ELECTRONICS N.V.
    Inventors: Eduard Johannes Meijer, Ties Van Bommel, Rifat Ata Mustafa Hikmet
  • Patent number: 7856155
    Abstract: It is an object of the invention to provide a light modulator using a thin plate having a thickness of 20 ?m or less and capable of stably holding a conductive film suppressing troubles such as resonance phenomenon of microwaves in a substrate and pyro-electric phenomenon and to provide a method of fabricating the light modulator. The light modulator includes: a thin plate (10) formed of a material having an electro-optic effect and having a thickness of 20 ?m or less; a light waveguide (11) formed on the front or rear surface of the thin plate; and modulation electrodes (13, 14) formed on the front surface of the thin plate to modulate light passing through the light waveguide. The light modulator further includes a reinforcing plate (16) bonded to the rear surface of the thin plate and a conductive film (17) continuously formed in the range from the side surface of the thin plate to the side surface of the reinforcing plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2006
    Date of Patent: December 21, 2010
    Assignee: Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Takashi Shinriki, Katsutoshi Kondou, Tsutomu Saitou
  • Publication number: 20100302490
    Abstract: A lens includes a first substrate, a second substrate and a medium layer. The first substrate includes a first electrode layer, an insulation layer, a second electrode layer and a first alignment layer. The first electrode layer includes first electrodes, and the second electrode layer includes second electrodes formed on the insulation layer. The second electrodes separately overlap the first electrodes, and one of the second electrodes shifts relatively to the corresponding first electrode toward a first direction. The first alignment layer is formed on the second electrode layer and has a first rubbing direction opposite to the first direction. The liquid crystal layer is disposed between the first substrate and the second substrate. A three-dimensional display is also disclosed herein.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 6, 2009
    Publication date: December 2, 2010
    Applicant: AU OPTRONICS CORPORATION
    Inventor: Chung-Hsiang Chiu
  • Patent number: 7839564
    Abstract: An electro-optic display comprises, in order, a backplane comprising a plurality of pixel electrodes; a layer of a solid electro-optic medium; a main adhesive layer; and at least one of a light-transmissive protective layer and a light-transmissive electrically-conductive layer. The electro-optic layer may be in direct contact with the backplane or separated therefrom by a thin auxiliary layer of adhesive. The main adhesive layer may be colored to provide a color filter array. An inverted front plane laminate useful in forming such a display comprises the same layers except that the backplane is replaced by a release sheet. The display combines good low temperature performance and good resolution at higher temperatures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2010
    Assignee: E Ink Corporation
    Inventors: Thomas H. Whitesides, Richard J. Paolini, Jr., Michael D. Walls, Seungman Sohn, Michael D. McCreary, Guy M. Danner, Charles Howie Honeyman, Gregg M. Duthaler, Michael L. Steiner, John E. Ritter
  • Patent number: 7839565
    Abstract: An optical deflector made of an electro-optic material has one or more pairs of electrodes on opposite surfaces. Each pair of electrodes defines an interaction region in which an electric field applied from the electrodes produces a linear refractive-index gradient in the direction of the electric field. An incident light beam is refracted in this direction within the interaction region. The interaction region is shaped so that the light beam is also refracted in an orthogonal direction when it enters or leaves the interaction region. The light beam is thereby deflected three-dimensionally.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2010
    Assignee: Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Hideaki Okayama
  • Patent number: 7830592
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a process for manufacturing a brightness enhancement structure comprising micro-reflectors. The process comprises forming an array of micro-structures by embossing; and depositing a metal layer over the surface of the micro-structures. The present invention also relates to a process for manufacturing a display device comprising micro-reflectors. The present invention further relates to a display device comprising micro-reflectors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2010
    Assignee: SiPix Imaging, Inc.
    Inventors: Robert A. Sprague, Yi-Shung Chaug, HongMei Zang, Xiaojia Wang, Gary Kang
  • Patent number: 7829871
    Abstract: An electron beam apparatus such as a sheet beam based testing apparatus has an electron-optical system for irradiating an object under testing with a primary electron beam from an electron beam source, and projecting an image of a secondary electron beam emitted by the irradiation of the primary electron beam, and a detector for detecting the secondary electron beam image projected by the electron-optical system; specifically, the electron beam apparatus comprises beam generating means 2004 for irradiating an electron beam having a particular width, a primary electron-optical system 2001 for leading the beam to reach the surface of a substrate 2006 under testing, a secondary electron-optical system 2002 for trapping secondary electrons generated from the substrate 2006 and introducing them into an image processing system 2015, a stage 2003 for transportably holding the substrate 2006 with a continuous degree of freedom equal to at least one, a testing chamber for the substrate 2006, a substrate transport mech
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2010
    Assignee: Ebara Corporation
    Inventors: Mamoru Nakasuji, Nobuharu Noji, Tohru Satake, Toshifumi Kimba, Hirosi Sobukawa, Tsutomu Karimata, Shin Oowada, Shoji Yoshikawa, Mutsumi Saito
  • Patent number: 7830595
    Abstract: An electro-optical device includes an electro-optical panel including a pair of substrates and an electro-optical layer between the pair of substrates, a protective member composed of a light-transmitting substrate mounted on at least one of the pair of substrates, and a holding member that holds the electro-optical panel. The protective member has a thick portion where the thickness of the light-transmitting substrate is large, thin portions where the thickness of the light-transmitting substrate is small, the thin portions being provided at the outer circumference of the light-transmitting substrate, and step portions provided between the thick and thin portions. The holding member has fitting portions that are nested into the step portions of the protective member. The light-transmitting substrate and the electro-optical panel are bonded to each other with an adhesive layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2006
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2010
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Shoji Hinata, Shinji Sakurai
  • Publication number: 20100278479
    Abstract: A device includes one or more waveguides and a memristive array adjacent to the waveguide(s). The memristive array is programmable to form a pattern that diffracts light and couples diffracted light into or out of the waveguide(s).
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 30, 2009
    Publication date: November 4, 2010
    Inventors: Alexandre M. Bratkovski, Sagi V. Mathai
  • Publication number: 20100265552
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention are directed to negative index material crossbars that can be electronically controlled and dynamically reconfigured to exhibit a variety of electromagnetic properties. In one aspect, a negative index material crossbar comprises a first layer of non-crossing nanowires, and a second layer of approximately parallel nanowires that overlay the nanowires in the first layer. Resonant elements at nanowire intersections, and a gain material incorporated in the crossbar such that transmitted electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths in a wavelength band of interest is enhanced when the crossbar is flood pumped with pump electromagnetic radiation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 16, 2009
    Publication date: October 21, 2010
    Inventors: Shih-Yuan Wang, Jingling Li, Alexandre M. Bratkovski, Lars Helge Thulen, Wei Wu
  • Publication number: 20100253996
    Abstract: An electrooptic device having a simple structure that can efficiently increase deflection of a beam is provided. The device includes: an electrooptic crystal (11) having an electrooptic effect; an electrode pair of a positive electrode (12) and a negative electrode (13) for generating an electric field inside the electrooptic crystal; and a power source for applying a voltage between the electrode pair so as to generate a space charge inside the electrooptic crystal. With this arrangement, by using a simple structure, a change in a deflection angle is temporally rapid, and a large deflection angle that cannot be obtained by a conventional electrooptic crystal prism can be acquired at a low applied voltage.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 16, 2010
    Publication date: October 7, 2010
    Applicant: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
    Inventors: Kouichirou Nakamura, Kazuo Fujiura, Tadayuki Imai, Jun Miyazu
  • Publication number: 20100253997
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present invention are directed to dynamically and electronically reconfigurable optical devices that can be operated as a lens or prism for incident beams of electromagnetic radiation. The optical devices include a phase-modulation layer (1501) disposed between first and second nanowire layers (1502,1503). Overlapping nanowires can be electronically addressed to implement a selected effective refractive index pattern of one or more regions (1510) of the phase-modulation layer, such that each region refracts a portion of an incident beam of electromagnetic radiation having a wavelength of interest in order to focus, diverge, or bend the incident beam.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 2, 2009
    Publication date: October 7, 2010
    Inventor: Jingjing Li
  • Publication number: 20100226000
    Abstract: An optical property altering apparatus includes an optical property altering element formed by inductors that are smaller than a wavelength of visible light, mutually connected by connecting lines, and arranged in a single plane; a photoconductor that is excited by incident light and generates alternating current of a frequency identical to that of the incident light; and an amplifying circuit that amplifies the alternating current generated by the photoconductor and supplies the amplified alternating current to the optical property altering element, where the optical property altering element, through supply of the alternating current from the amplifying circuit, arbitrarily alters a refractive index of the incident light.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 1, 2010
    Publication date: September 9, 2010
    Inventors: Shunsuke Sasaki, Kazuki Nishizawa
  • Publication number: 20100220384
    Abstract: A laser device, includes: a fundamental wave generating portion configured to generate a plurality of fundamental waves having wavelengths which are different from each other in at least one set thereof, the fundamental wave generating portion having a semiconductor laser having a plurality of luminous points, and a Bragg reflection structure; and a nonlinear optical element in which a poling structure adapted to pseudophase matching for the wavelengths of the plurality of fundamental waves emitted from the fundamental wave generating portion, respectively, is formed variatively along a propagating direction of the plurality of fundamental waves.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 29, 2010
    Publication date: September 2, 2010
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kaoru KIMURA, Akio FURUKAWA, Michio OKA
  • Publication number: 20100220383
    Abstract: A lens is provided, comprising a lens body. According to an embodiment, the lens body comprises at least one portion of electroactive material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 27, 2009
    Publication date: September 2, 2010
    Applicant: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB
    Inventors: Daniel Wik, Anders Ingemar Jahge