Abstract: An objective lens includes an aspherical lens facing a disk and having a predetermined first focal distance and a predetermined numerical aperture, and a holographic lens installed adjacent to the aspherical lens and having a second focal distance longer than that of the first focal distance and having a diffraction lattice to compensate for the chromatism due to a change in wavelength of laser light having a wavelength of 670 nm or less. Thus, during the shift between recoding and reproduction of a DVD or an HD-DVD, the change in wavelength due to the change in power of the laser light and chromatism according to the change can be effectively corrected. Also, since the objective lens is formed of one aspherical lens and one holographic lens, the material for each of the lenses can be easily selected and also the structure of the optical pickup using the objective lens according to the present invention can be simplified.

Abstract: An apparatus for generating a seek direction detecting signal for an optical pickup determining the relative position of the center of an optical spot focused on an optical disk with respect to the center of a disk track, is disclosed. The apparatus focuses a main beam and a sub-beam having a predetermined aberration in the tangential direction on a track of the optical disk by a light dividing unit. The main beam is focused on a first optical detector, and the sub-beam is focused on a second optical detector neighboring the first optical detector. The second optical detector is divided into three or four portions in a direction corresponding to the radial direction of the optical disk, is divided into two portions in a direction corresponding to the tangential direction of the optical disk, and therefore has six or eight separate areas. The portions of the second optical detector receive the portions of the sub-beam and convert the received optical signals into independent electrical signals.

Abstract: An optical recording/pickup head compatible with a CD-R and a DVD transfers a first light beam of 650 nm wavelength for a DVD and a second light beam having a wavelength of 780 nm for a CD-R, which are respectively emitted from a first light source and a second light source, to an objective lens using first and second beam splitters having polarized light beam splitting characteristics which are varied according to a wavelength. The objective lens focuses the transferred first and second light beams on the information recording surfaces of the DVD and a CD-R, respectively. The first and second light beams reflected from the information recording surfaces of the DVD and the CD-R, respectively, are transferred to first and second photodetectors by the first and second beam splitters, respectively. The first and second photodetectors detect information from the first and second light beams incident from the first and second beam splitters, respectively.

Abstract: An optical disk has a pattern for detecting an amount of a tilt of a disk. The optical disk has a code train having a pit pattern or a mirror pattern which is recorded on a concentrically or spirally formed track, such that a tilt detection pattern having a predetermined code train is recorded at least in a partial area of the disk. Thus, since a pattern for tilt detection is recorded in a portion of a disk, a tilt of a disk can be detected by a common quadrant photodetector without an additional apparatus such as a photo coupler.

Abstract: An optical pickup compatible with optical discs having different formats. A first light source emits a first light beam suitable for a first format optical disc. An objective lens is optimized for a wavelength of the first light source. Light reflected from the first optical disc provides a reproduction signal. A second light source emits a second light beam suitable for a second format optical disc. A light splitter splits the second light beam and the objective lens focuses the split beams onto the second disc as a main light spot and a sub-light spot. Lights reflected from the main light spot and the sub-light spot are independently detected and then processed to correct for chromatic aberration caused by a difference in the wavelengths of the first and second light beams and/or spherical aberration caused by thickness difference between the first and second format optical discs.

Abstract: An optical disc can increase an information storage capacity by reducing the track width of the optical disc. An optical pickup for a narrow track optical disc includes an optical shielding portion having a desired light intensity distribution with respect to a target track and the tracks adjacent to the target track on the optical disc. The optical shielding portion is disposed on the optical path between the light source and the optical disc and shields part of the light beam proceeding toward the optical disc, to provide a light intensity distribution such that only the beam spot focused on the target track is used to detect information stored in the target track. Thus, the beam spot focused on the target track of the optical disc has track crosstalk having a magnitude by which information can be read from the target track. The optical pickup can provide an excellent performance even in the case that the optical pickup is adapted in a high-definition DVD to be commercialized in the future.

Abstract: An optical pickup capable of focusing a main light spot and an auxiliary light spot including optical aberration when an optical disk is not tilted, and analyzing the main light spot and the auxiliary light spot with a photodetector, thereby correcting aberration.

Abstract: A recording/reproducing apparatus includes an optical pickup device having an optical phase plate which is compatible with optical recording mediums having different thicknesses, and an optical signal processing device processes information read from the optical recording mediums and processes information to be recorded thereon using the optical pickup device.

Abstract: An optical pickup apparatus having compatibility with a recodable compact disk (CD-R) and a digital video disk (DVD), which uses a wavelength of one of a first light beam and a second light beam according to the recording medium to be used. In the optical pickup apparatus, laser light sources emit a first light beam having a relatively shorter wavelength for the DVD and a second light beam having a longer wavelength for the CD-R, respectively. An objective lens has a predetermined focal length in accordance with the position of an information recording surface in the DVD. An optical path control unit controls the path of light beams so that the light beam emitted from one of the laser light sources is directed to the objective lens and the light output from the objective lens is directed to the optical detection unit.

Abstract: An optical focusing system which uses a light beam emitted from a light source, includes a refractive surface on one side of the optical focusing system and having a first radius of curvature, a first reflection surface on the above one side, surrounding the refractive surface and having a second radius of curvature being different from the first radius of curvature, a transparent beam focusing surface on the other side of the optical focusing system, and a second reflection surface on the above other side and surrounding the beam focusing surface. The refractive surface refracts an incident light beam, the second reflection surface reflects a light beam refracted by the refractive surface toward the first reflection surface, and the first reflection surface focuses a laser light beam reflected from the second reflection surface on the beam focusing surface as a focused beam spot. The optical focusing system can be used in an optical pickup.

Abstract: An optical pickup apparatus having compatibility with a recodable compact disk (CD-R) and a digital video disk (DVD), which uses a wavelength of one of a first light beam and a second light beam according to the recording medium to be used. In the optical pickup apparatus, laser light sources emit a first light beam having a relatively shorter wavelength for the DVD and a second light beam having a longer wavelength for the CD-R, respectively. An objective lens has a predetermined focal length in accordance with the position of an information recording surface in the DVD. An optical path control unit controls the path of light beams so that the light beam emitted from one of the laser light sources is directed to the objective lens and the light output from the objective lens is directed to the optical detection unit.

Abstract: An optical pickup apparatus having compatibility with a recodable compact disk (CD-R) and a digital video disk (DVD), which uses a wavelength of one of a first light beam and a second light beam according to the recording medium to be used. In the optical pickup apparatus, laser light sources emit a first light beam having a relatively shorter wavelength for the DVD and a second light beam having a longer wavelength for the CD-R, respectively. An objective lens has a predetermined focal length in accordance with the position of an information recording surface in the DVD. An optical path control unit controls the path of light beams so that the light beam emitted from one of the laser light sources is directed to the objective lens and the light output from the objective lens is directed to the optical detection unit.

Abstract: An optical pickup compatible with a plurality of optical recording media each using light of a different wavelength. The optical pickup includes at least one light source, an objective lens having a function of focusing light emitted from the light source into the optimal light spot on an information recording surface of one of the plurality of the optical recording media, and a light detector to detect light transmitted through the objective lens after being reflected from the information recording surface of the optical recording medium on which the light spot is formed. The objective lens has an inner area, an annular lens area and an outer area such that the annular lens area divides the inner area from the outer area and has a ring shape centered at a vertex.

Abstract: An optical pickup device includes a light module, emitting light and receiving light reflected from a recording medium, and a solid immersion lens (SIL) member disposed in an optical path between the light module and the recording medium. The SIL has a planar surface facing the recording medium and a plurality of elliptically curved surfaces opposite the recording medium. The elliptically curved surfaces have different radii of curvature arranged symmetrical with respect to a central axis for focusing the incident light to form a tight beam spot on a recording plane of the recording medium.

Abstract: An optical pickup compatible with a plurality of optical recording media each using light of a different wavelength. The optical pickup includes at least one light source, an objective lens, and a light detector. The objective lens has an inner area, an annular lens area and an outer area such that the annular lens area divides the inner area from the outer area and has a ring shape centered at a vertex. The inner area, the annular lens area and the outer area have aspherical surface shapes to focus light transmitted through the inner area and the outer area into a single light spot by which information can be read from the information recording surface of a relatively thin first optical recording medium and scatter light transmitted through the annular lens area located between the inner area and the outer area so that information cannot be read from the information recording surface of the first optical recording medium, during reproduction of the first optical recording medium.

Abstract: An optical pickup is compatible with at least two types of optical recording media each using light beams having different wavelengths from one another and which are used for recording and reproducing information. The optical pickup includes a first laser light source for emitting a first light beam having a relatively long wavelength, and a second laser light source for emitting a second light beam having a relatively short wavelength. A beam splitting plate transmits the first light beam and reflects the second light beam toward a collimator. The collimator collimates the light beam incident from the beam splitting plate to transmit the collimated light beam into an objective lens.

Abstract: An optical pickup which include a light source; an optical path changing portion to change a path of light emitted from the light source; an objective lens to converge the light from the optical path changing portion to form a light spot on a recording surface of a disk; and a photodetector having at least two light-receiving regions, preferably four light-receiving regions in a 2.times.2 matrix, which separately perform photo-electric conversion, for receiving the light which has passed through the optical path changing portion and the objective lens and been reflected from the disk. The light-receiving regions are separated by a predetermined distance, such that a center region of the light is not received by the light-receiving regions.

Abstract: A disc discriminating method and an objective lens adopting the same, in which fast disc type discrimination and stable reproduction signal generation is performed. The method includes the steps of increasing and decreasing a focus voltage applied to an actuator of an objective lens facing a disc having an information-recorded plane to move the objective lens in a standby state at a neutral position to a focus position corresponding to the disc, detecting a movement distance value of the objectiveness from a focus signal applied to the actuator when the objective lens moves to the focus position, comparing the movement distance value with a reference value and determining the disc to be a thick disc if the movement distance value is greater than the reference value, and determining the disc to be a thin disc if the movement distance value is less than the reference value.

Abstract: A lens device which can be used as an objective lens in an optical pickup apparatus includes an objective lens provided along a light path facing a disc and having a predetermined effective diameter, and light controlling means provided along the light path for controlling the light in an intermediate region between near and far axes of an incident light beam, thus providing a simplified and inexpensive device for using discs of differing thickness in a single disc drive, by reducing the spherical aberration effect.

Abstract: An optical pickup adopting a multi-coated polarization holographic optical element (HOE).