Abstract: An optical irradiation apparatus includes: a light-emitting device configured to emit a plurality of light beams whose optical axes extend in a substantially identical direction; a collimator part configured to convert the light beams into parallel light beams; and a light condensing part configured to collect the parallel light beams. The light-emitting device includes a super luminescent diode array in which a plurality of waveguides are provided on a substrate. Each of the waveguides has a light-emitting facet including a light emission point from which an associated one of the light beams is emitted. The light emission points are located in a plane. The plane including the light emission points is orthogonal to a direction of an optical axis of the collimator part.

Abstract: Despeckle elements, laser beam homogenizers and methods for despeckling are provided. The despeckle element includes a transparent material having a first surface including a plural number of optical steps and a second surface having a plural number of microlenses. Each of the number of optical steps is in a one-to-one correspondence with at least one of the microlenses. One of the first surface and the second surface is configured to receive collimated light having a coherence length and a remaining one of the first surface and the second surface is configured to pass the collimated light separated into a plurality of beamlets corresponding to the number of microlenses. A height of each step of at least two of the optical steps is configured to produce an optical path difference of the collimated light longer than the coherence length.

Abstract: A waveguide light diffuser panel is disclosed that diffuses source lights and transmits ambient light. Conventional waveguide light diffusers diffuse all light and therefore provide a hazy outcome. In manufacturing a waveguide transparent diffuser, a printing method, such as inkjet printing, may be used. In this method, dot micro-lenses are formed on one side of a panel, which cover a portion of the panel in a staggered or random arrangement. The other side of the panel is coated with an anti-reflective material, or the shape of the panel may be concave. The dot shape is designed for efficient reflection of the incident light, as opposed to conventional hazy diffusers in which the reflection efficiency is low. High reflection efficiency in this case compensates for the reduced dot coverage.

Abstract: A light diffuser panel for coupling to an optical element, includes a substrate with a first surface that is diffusive to a plurality of wavelengths of light and a second surface, wherein the substrate comprises a material with a refractive index nin that is greater than a refractive index nd of a medium outside of the first surface, ?min is a minimum wavelength of the plurality of wavelengths of light, ?max is a maximum wavelength of the plurality of wavelengths of light, the first surface is a diffractive grating surface with a grating period P, the grating period P is greater than ?max/(nd+nin), and P is smaller than ?min.

Abstract: A light diffuser including a transparent substrate having a top surface and a bottom surface. The top surface having formed thereon a plurality of tilted plane portions including a first tilted plane portion and a second tilted plane portion. The first tilted plane portion being tilted in a first direction and the second tilted plane portion being tilted in a second direction. The first direction of the first tilted plane portion being different from the second direction of the second tilted plane portion.

Abstract: A light diffuser panel for coupling to an optical element, includes a substrate with a first surface that is diffusive to a plurality of wavelengths of light and a second surface, wherein the substrate comprises a material with a refractive index nin that is greater than a refractive index nd of a medium outside of the first surface, ?min is a minimum wavelength of the plurality of wavelengths of light, ?max is a maximum wavelength of the plurality of wavelengths of light, the first surface is a diffractive grating surface with a grating period P, the grating period P is greater than ?max/(nd+nin), and P is smaller than ?min.

Abstract: A light diffuser panel for coupling to an optical element, includes a substrate with a first surface that is diffusive to a plurality of wavelengths of light and a second surface, wherein the substrate comprises a material with a refractive index nin that is greater than a refractive index nd of a medium outside of the first surface, ?min is a minimum wavelength of the plurality of wavelengths of light, ?max is a maximum wavelength of the plurality of wavelengths of light, the first surface is a diffractive grating surface with a grating period P, the grating period P is greater than ?max/(nd+nin), and P is smaller than ?min.

Abstract: An optical irradiation apparatus includes: a light-emitting device configured to emit a plurality of light beams whose optical axes extend in a substantially identical direction; a collimator part configured to convert the light beams into parallel light beams; and a light condensing part configured to collect the parallel light beams. The light-emitting device includes a super luminescent diode array in which a plurality of waveguides are provided on a substrate. Each of the waveguides has a light-emitting facet including a light emission point from which an associated one of the light beams is emitted. The light emission points are located in a plane. The plane including the light emission points is orthogonal to a direction of an optical axis of the collimator part.

Abstract: An objective lens for a slim type BD combo disc drive focuses a first light beam onto a first optical disc, a second light beam onto a second optical disc, and a third light beam having a third wavelength onto a third optical disc. The lens may include a first surface through which the first, second, and third light beams emitted from a light source enter the objective lens, and a second surface through which the first, second, and third light beams exit the objective lens and proceed toward the three corresponding optical discs. The first surface may include a diffractive surface which provides focus control in accordance with (i) 0th order light of the first and second light beams which are respectively focused onto the first and second optical discs, and (ii) 1st order diffracted light of the third light beam which is focused onto the third optical disc.

Abstract: Optical elements, concentrating photovoltaic devices and methods of forming optical elements are provided. An optical element includes a transparent material including a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface. The first surface has a Fresnel lens and the second surface has a plurality of microlenses corresponding to the Fresnel lens. One of the first surface and the second surface is configured to receive light. The optical element is configured so that light passing through the optical element is separated into a plurality of beamlets via the plurality of microlenses. The Fresnel lens has a height where, at the height of the Fresnel lens, a diffraction efficiency of at least two different wavelengths of the light passing through the optical element is maximized.

Abstract: Despeckle elements, laser beam homogenizers and methods for despeckling are provided. The despeckle element includes a transparent material having a first surface including a plural number of optical steps and a second surface having a plural number of microlenses. Each of the number of optical steps is in a one-to-one correspondence with at least one of the microlenses. One of the first surface and the second surface is configured to receive collimated light having a coherence length and a remaining one of the first surface and the second surface is configured to pass the collimated light separated into a plurality of beamlets corresponding to the number of microlenses. A height of each step of at least two of the optical steps is configured to produce an optical path difference of the collimated light longer than the coherence length.

Abstract: A despeckling device and method in which an optical path difference staircase element is disposed between a fly's eye lens array and the image plane in a position near the focus position of the fly's eye lens array, and a laser generating unit generates and transmits pulsed laser beams to the optical path difference staircase element, wherein the pulsed laser beams are driven at a very short pulsed rate.

Abstract: A micro-holographic data storage system and method. Micro-holograms are written to a data storage medium with two counter-propagating beams via objective recording lenses which have a first numerical aperture (NA) to make the micro-holograms larger. Alternatively, elongated micro-holograms can be produced using counter-propagating beams with different focus points. The micro-holograms are retrieved from the data storage medium using a single beam via an objective reading lens which has a second NA that is higher than the first NA. The data storage medium has a substrate with a plurality of tracks separated by a track pitch. The plurality of micro-holograms are each contained in each of the plurality of tracks, wherein, at least one of the plurality of micro-holograms has a width which is nearly equal to a width of the track pitch.

Abstract: Light emitting chips, light emitting unit cells and methods of forming light emitting chips are provided. A light emitting chip includes a light emission structure having a p-type semiconductor layer, an n-type semiconductor layer, and an active layer therebetween. At least one light emitting unit is formed from the light emission structure including a light emitting diode (LED) and a plurality of light receiving diode (LRD) portions. The LRD portions are serially connected and configured to surround the LED portion. The LRD portions are optically coupled to the LED portion to receive total internal reflection (TIR) light from the LED portion and convert the TIR light to a photocurrent.

Abstract: A Fresnel member for an optical system is configured to receive at least reflected light having a first wavelength at a first envelope and reflected light having a second wavelength different from the first wavelength at a second envelope. The Fresnel member includes a plurality of ring zone portions having predetermined surface heights for achieving a maximum diffraction efficiency.

Abstract: An optical unit for a printing apparatus, and a printing apparatus that uses the optical unit. The optical unit includes a plurality of light emitting elements, a lens that collects light from the plurality of light emitting elements, and a light filter that is positioned in light paths from the plurality of light emitting elements. The light filter compensates an intensity of the lights which pass through the lens.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for making a grayscale photo mask and a three-dimensional grayscale diffractive optical element operate as follows. A grayscale photo mask is obtained by exposing a laser direct write (LDW) glass material to laser beam radiation from a first laser beam of modulated power moved over a grid of discrete locations on the LDW material, the modulated power being in accordance with grayscale pattern data, and, while the first laser beam is moved over the discrete locations of the grid, exposing the grid to a second laser beam, the power of the second laser beam being less than the bleach threshold of the glass material, to provide each of the discrete locations with a gray scale level to provide a predetermined gray scale pattern of varying optical transmissivity on the LDW material to produce a grayscale mask.

Abstract: A laser light source device includes: a laser light source, a first optical device that returns some of a beam emitted from the laser light source so as to induce oscillation at a particular wavelength between some of the beam and the laser light source so that the beam emitted from the laser light source becomes close to a single wavelength, and reflects other portion of the emitted beam, a second optical device that forms an interference fringe from a reflected beam from the first optical device, a beam detection unit that detect a main wavelength of a plurality of wavelengths included in a beam derived from the second optical device and detects an ununiform state of the plurality of wavelengths, a partial reflection mirror that transmits some of the reflected beam from the first optical device to the second optical device and reflects the other portion of the reflected beam toward a recording medium, an optical member that integrally includes the first optical device, the second optical device and the part

Abstract: It is an object of the invention to provide an aberration correcting mirror which has a small size, power saving, a low voltage, a low price and high precision. In particular, it is an object to provide a practical mirror for correcting a spherical aberration.

Abstract: In a switching apparatus having a pair of electrodes including a first electrode and a third electrode, which are provided with a piezoelectric element therebetween and a pair of electrodes including a second electrode and a fourth electrode, which are provided adjacently to the pair of the first and third electrodes in a state where they are electrically insulated from the first and third electrodes, an electric field in a first direction is generated between the first electrode and the third electrode, and simultaneously an electric field in a second direction is generated between the second electrode and the fourth electrode.