Abstract: A holographic disc recording system for recording, in the form of holograms, information stored on a source disc onto a target disc includes a conical beam shaper which transforms a reference beam into a conical beam having a substantially cylindrically symmetrical shape and including light rays which travel along lines which intersect a beam axis of the conical beam at substantially the same angle with respect to the beam axis. The conical beam is incident on the target disc while the beam axis of the conical beam substantially coincides with a central axis of the target disc, so that substantially all of the light rays of the conical beam are incident on the target disc at substantially the same angle.

Abstract: An optical pickup apparatus for reproducing information from an optical information recording medium or for recording information onto an optical information recording medium, is provided with a first light source for emitting first light flux having a first wavelength; a second light source for emitting second light flux having a second wavelength, the first wavelength being different from the second wavelength; a converging optical system having an optical axis and a diffractive portion, and a photo detector; wherein in case that the first light flux passes through the diffractive portion to generate at least one diffracted ray, an amount of n-th ordered diffracted ray of the first light flux is greater than that of any other ordered diffracted ray of the first light flux, and in case that the second light flux passes through the diffractive portion to generate at least one diffracted ray, an amount of n-th ordered diffracted ray of the second light flux is greater than that of any other ordered diffracted

Abstract: An optical pickup apparatus for reproducing information from an optical information recording medium or for recording information onto an optical information recording medium, is provided with a first light source for emitting first light flux having a first wavelength; a second light source for emitting second light flux having a second wavelength, the first wavelength being different from the second wavelength; a converging optical system having an optical axis and a diffractive portion, and a photo detector; wherein in case that the first light flux passes through the diffractive portion to generate at least one diffracted ray, an amount of n-th ordered diffracted ray of the first light flux is greater than that of any other ordered diffracted ray of the first light flux, and in case that the second light flux passes through the diffractive portion to generate at least one diffracted ray, an amount of n-th ordered diffracted ray of the second light flux is greater than that of any other ordered diffracted

Abstract: An optical pickup includes a light source which emits first and second lights having different wavelengths for a first recording medium and a second recording medium having a relatively large thickness, respectively, an optical path changer which alters a traveling path of incident light, and an objective lens which focuses the first and second lights on the recording medium. While the light source emits the first light, a photodetector is adjusted to be aligned with the optical axis for the first recording medium. The light source and/or a sensing lens are adjusted in the direction of the optical axis, and the tilt of the objective lens is adjusted. Next, while the light source is operated to emit the second light, the light source is adjusted in a rotating direction. As such, an optical axis alignment is completed for the first and second recording media.

Abstract: Light emitted from a semiconductor laser (1) is split by a diffractive optical element (3a) into a main beam and sub-beams. The diffractive optical element (3a) is divided into four regions by a straight line parallel to a tangential direction of a disc (7) and a straight line parallel to a radial direction of the disc (7). A phase of grating in two regions arranged diagonally and a phase of grating in the other two regions arranged diagonally are different from each other by ?. A focused spot of the main beam and focused spots of the sub-beams are located on the same track. A focusing error signal is detected by a differential astigmatism method, using the main beam and the sub-beams.

Abstract: An optical information reproducing method of the present invention is used for an optical recording medium. The optical recording medium includes a recording layer containing information and a mask layer that is located close to the recording layer and includes a nonlinear optical material whose optical properties are changed in accordance with incident light intensity. The method includes irradiating the optical recording medium with convergent light that is polarized in a first direction and dividing reflected light from the optical recording medium into a first polarized component that is polarized in the first direction and a second polarized component that is polarized in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. The second polarized component is used to detect a reproduction signal.

Abstract: An optical pick-up apparatus and a semiconductor laser apparatus which can suppress reduction of optical utilization efficiency for the laser light emitted from the semiconductor laser element. When a laser light which is emitted from a laser element for DVD and whose polarization direction is perpendicular to a direction of a groove of the polarization grating is incident on the polarization grating, the polarization grating does not diffract the laser light and transmits the laser light as zero-order diffraction light. Consequently, all of the laser light emitted from the laser element for DVD can be used for reading information signal of DVD and detecting FES and TES. This enables reduction of optical utilization efficiency arising by diffracting action of a grating used for detecting TES of CD in a conventional optical pick-up apparatus to be suppressed.

Abstract: An optical head includes a light emitter/detector to emit a laser light towards an optical disc and to detect a return light from the optical disc, a diffraction grating to split the laser light into three beams, and a light converging optical system to focus the laser light on a recording surface of the optical disc. The diffraction grating has formed therein a plurality of slits formed whose depth is selected so that the efficiency of diffraction of first-order light when a first light beam is incident upon the diffraction grating is higher than that when a second light beam having a longer wavelength than the first light beam is incident upon the diffraction grating.

Abstract: An optical pickup comprising: a diffraction grating, a beam splitter and laser beam guiding optical components that change direction of laser beams, which are placed on a light path constituted by a semiconductor laser that emits dual wavelength laser beams and an information recording surface of an optical disk, wherein a wavelength plate is provided on a light path between said diffraction grating and said semiconductor laser so that a laser beam irradiated on the recording surface of said optical disk becomes an elliptically polarized (including circularly polarized) beam or a beam having a polarizing plane that produces an angle of 30–60 degrees relative to a radius direction.

Abstract: An optical pickup is provided which can read information from a plurality of recording mediums having different wavelengths without the need for a mixing prism. The optical pickup is comprised of a light emission part, a grating, a hologram and a light receiving part. The light emission part emits first and second laser beams having different wavelengths from each other. The grating generates a pair of sub-beams from the laser beam emitted from the light emission part. The hologram generates first and second high-order beams from the laser beam reflected by a recording medium to guide the high-order beams to the light receiving part. The light receiving part receives the first and second high-order beams generates a focus error signal and a tracking error signal which enables the information to be correctly read from the different recording mediums.

Abstract: In an optical scanning device for scanning both a high-density, HD, record carrier (38) and a low-density, LD, record carrier (18), a two-wavelength diode laser (50) is used for generating the HD scanning beam and the LD scanning beam. By arranging a composite diffraction element (60) close to the diode laser (50), which element has a first diffraction structure (63), for combining the HD beam and the LD beam, and a second diffraction structure (64), which acts as a lens for either the LD beam or the HD beam only, a compact device is obtained, which is suitable for writing the LD information layer (40).

Abstract: A data storage apparatus includes an array of optical fibers. The array has a first end and a second end. The first end of the array includes multiple optical fiber ends, each optical fiber end having an end face adapted for receiving light of a wavelength ? into the fiber for conveyance to the second end of the fiber array. The second end of the array includes multiple tapered optical fiber tips, each tapered optical fiber end having a minimum diameter less than ?. An opaque coating covers a portion of the tapered optical fiber tips. The data storage apparatus also includes a photochromic medium located within a distance ? of the second end of the array.

Abstract: An optical-pickup slider is characterized in that a light-transmitting-property substrate is bonded to a surface of a layer having a tapered through hole, on which surface a larger opening of the tapered through hole exists. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the layer having an aperture from being destroyed. A method of manufacturing the optical-pickup slider comprises the steps of a) making a tapered through hole in a layer layered on a first substrate and having a thickness smaller than that of the first substrate; and, after bonding a light-transmitting-property substrate to a surface of the layer, removing the first substrate so as to expose an aperture at a tip of the tapered through hole.

Abstract: Light emitted from a laser is separated into a main beam, first sub beams, and second sub beams. The distribution intensity of each first sub beams is the same as that of the main beam. The distribution intensity of each second sub beam is different from that of the main beam. The sum of the focusing error signals relating to the main beam and first sub beams is a final focusing error signal. The difference between the tracking error signal relating to the main beam and the tracking error signal of each first sub beam is a final tracking error signal. The deviation of the thickness of the substrate of the disk and the radial tilt thereof are detected on the basis of the deviation of the zero crossing points of the focusing error signal and the tracking error signal relating to the main beam and each second sub beam.

Abstract: In an optical pickup apparatus of the present invention, either a first laser diode emits a laser beam having a first wavelength or a second laser diode emits a laser beam having a second wavelength. An optical system focuses one of the two laser beams onto a recording surface of an optical recording medium. A photodetector unit receives reflection beams, which are reflected from the recording medium, to generate detection signals from the received reflection beams. A holographic unit has a first hologram suited to the first laser diode and a second hologram suited to the second laser diode, the first hologram provided to diffract a reflection beam of the laser beam of the first laser diode to the photodetector unit, and the second hologram provided to diffract a reflection beam of the laser beam of the second laser diode to the photodetector unit.

Abstract: An optical pick-up capable of reproducing information excellently on both CD and DVD, which are significantly different in terms of three kinds of factors, a base material thickness, a wavelength of a light source, and NA, and detecting TE signals by three kinds of methods, that is, the phase difference method, the PP method, and the 3-beam method, which are necessary to record and reproduce information. The optical pick-up is formed by integrating laser light sources having two kinds of wavelengths (?1, ?2) for detecting TE signals; photodetectors, and hologram for generating the diffracted light for detecting signals. The distance d1 between the center of the photo detecting portion PD0 and the light emitting spot of the first semiconductor laser light source and a distance d2 between the center of the photo detecting portion PD0 and the light emitting spot of the second semiconductor laser light source substantially satisfy the following relationship: ?1/?2=d1/d2.

Abstract: In an optical pickup used in a DVD player, a photo detector has a predetermined photo sensing area pattern for detecting a returning laser beam from an optical disc. The returning laser beam is originated from a first laser beam or a second laser beam. The first and the second laser beams are alternatively emitted from a two wavelength laser having first and second light sources. Either the first laser beam or the second laser beam travels to the optical disc through a grating, a polarizing beam splitter, a collimating lens, a rising mirror, and an object lens and is reflected by the optical disc. The reflected laser beam reflected from the optical disc travels to the photo detector as the returning laser beam through the object lens, the rising mirror, the collimating lens, and the polarizing beam splitter. The predetermined photo sensing area pattern enables the photo detector to detect the returning laser beam regardless of the origin of the returning laser beam.

Abstract: Light emitted from a laser is divided into two light waves so that the ratio of the power of one light wave to the power of the other will be appropriate. The resultant light waves are irradiated to the same track on a medium. The preceding spot is used for erasure, and modulated so that the same pattern as the one formed with a recording pulse will be formed. The high-power component of the modulated light of the erasing spot causes the temperature of a recording layer to be equal to or higher than the melting point. The medium-power component of the modulated light forms a crystallizing temperature area on the recording layer. A liquid crystal diffraction grating is used to divide power, and a power division ratio is variable and controllable.

Abstract: An optical head includes a light emitter/detector to emit a laser light towards an optical disc and to detect a return light from the optical disc, a diffraction grating to split the laser light into three beams, and a light converging optical system to focus the laser light on a recording surface of the optical disc. The diffraction grating has formed therein a plurality of slits formed whose depth is selected so that the efficiency of diffraction of first-order light when a first light beam is incident upon the diffraction grating is higher than that when a second light beam having a longer wavelength than the first light beam is incident upon the diffraction grating.

Abstract: An optical recording media objective lens is disclosed for converging either of two working lights of a first wavelength or a second wavelength. The working light of the first wavelength is converged at a first numerical aperture onto the first optical recording medium and the working light of the second wavelength is converged at a second numerical aperture onto the second optical recording medium. An aperture adjusting zonal part is included on at least one of the objective lens surfaces for apparently eliminating light at the periphery of a light flux having a wavelength &lgr;1 while maintaining light at the periphery of a light flux having a wavelength &lgr;2, where &lgr;1 is one of the first and second wavelengths and &lgr;2 is the other wavelength. The aperture adjusting zonal part is formed so as to satisfy two conditions.

Abstract: An optical system utilized in an optical pickup apparatus comprising: an aberration-correcting element made of a plastic material; and a converging lens to converge a light flux emitted from the aberration-correcting element, the converging lens being made of a plastic material, wherein the aberration-correcting element has a first optical surface provided thereon an optical path difference generating structure and has a second optical surface provided thereon a diffractive structure, and the converging lens is a single refractive lens having at least an aspherical surface.

Abstract: The optical pickup device includes a semiconductor laser for emitting laser light of 650 nm and 780 nm in wavelengths, a semiconductor laser for emitting laser light of 400 nm in wavelength, and an optical sensor which is provided in sequence with a first light receiving surface divided into four areas in a matrix manner, a second light receiving surface divided into four areas in a matrix manner, and a third light receiving surface divided at least into two areas aligned inline. Reflected light of three beams of 400 nm in wavelength and reflected light of three beams in 780 nm in wavelength are received on the first to third light receiving surfaces respectively, and a main beam of reflected light of 650 nm in wavelength is received on the first light receiving surface on one side out of the three light receiving surfaces.

Abstract: This invention is directed to an optical pickup apparatus, condensing optical system, and optical element which can at least reproduce and/or record information from/on a first optical information recording medium having a protective substrate thickness t1 by using a light beam of a first wavelength &lgr;1 emitted from a first light source, and reproduce and/or record information from/on a second optical information recording medium having a protective substrate thickness t2 (t2≧t1) by using a light beam of a second wavelength &lgr;2 (&lgr;2>&lgr;1) emitted from a second light source.

Abstract: An optical pick-up apparatus-includes a light source, an inclined multi-division phase shift diffraction grating, an objective lens that collects light emitted from the light source onto an optical recording medium, a light diverging element that-diverges reflection light reflected on the optical recording medium, and a light receiving element that receives diverged reflection light. The diffraction grating is formed on a light-transmitting rectangular substrate, and is manufactured by being cut out in such a manner that a virtual line as a symmetric axial line that forms the diffraction grating line-symmetrically, becomes parallel to at least one side of the substrate. This makes it possible to adjust the assembling position by placing the visually observable one side of the substrate, used as a guiding index, to become perpendicular to the radius direction of the optical recording medium. Hence, the assembling position adjustment of the diffraction grating can be extremely easy.

Abstract: An optical pickup apparatus for reproducing information from an optical information recording medium or for recording information onto an optical information recording medium, is provided with a first light source for emitting first light flux having a first wavelength; a second light source for emitting second light flux having a second wavelength, the first wavelength being different from the second wavelength; a converging optical system having an optical axis and a diffractive portion, and a photo detector; wherein in case that the first light flux passes through the diffractive portion to generate at least one diffracted ray, an amount of n-th ordered diffracted ray of the first light flux is greater than that of any other ordered diffracted ray of the first light flux, and in case that the second light flux passes through the diffractive portion to generate at least one diffracted ray, an amount of n-th ordered diffracted ray of the second light flux is greater than that of any other ordered diffracted

Abstract: Regional borderlines that are the borderlines between the first region and the second region on a diffraction grating of an optical pickup partially overlap a group of y-axis parallel borderlines that are borderlines between pattern A and pattern B that are parallel to a direction parallel to the y-axis.

Abstract: An optical head is provided which is capable of making an optical disk drive unit thinner. The optical head includes: a laser diode which emits light toward an optical disk; a photodiode which is disposed in the same housing as the laser diode; a light-turning mirror which reflects and deflects the light emitted from the laser diode; a light-raising mirror which reflects and deflects the light reflected by the light-turning mirror in the direction of the optical disk; an objective lens that converges the light reflected by the light-raising mirror onto the optical disk; and a hologram element which allows the light reflected by the optical disk to branch off and reach the photodiode, in which at least a part of the light-turning mirror is disposed inside of the window portion of a cartridge which houses the optical disk.

Abstract: A diffraction element (2) is interposed between a semiconductor laser (11) and collimator lens (12). Other diffracted light than zero-order light output from the diffraction element (2) will not be focused on an optical recording medium and the amount of light condensed to the focus of the zero-order light is thus smaller. The diffraction element (2) is variable in diffraction efficiency. When the diffraction efficiency of the diffraction element (2) is raised, an optical pickup device (1) will utilize the light with a lower efficiency. With the diffraction efficiency being lowered, the optical pickup device (1) will utilize the light with a higher efficiency. Thus, the optical pickup device (1) can utilize the light with a variable efficiency without having to being designed larger.

Abstract: There is disclosed an optical pickup device including: a blue semiconductor laser which emits a first laser light having a wavelength of 450 nm or less to record on or reproduce from an extra-high density optical disc; a red semiconductor laser which emits a second laser light having a wavelength longer than that of the first laser light to record on or reproduce from a DVD having a low recording density; an objective lens; and an aberration correction element. The objective lens is designed for the extra-high density optical disc, and has a numerical aperture (NA) of 0.75 or more. The aberration correction element passes the first laser light as such and thereafter allows the light to be incident upon the objective lens, whereas the element limits an aperture with respect to the second laser light and diffracts the second laser light so as to correct an aberration with respect to the DVD and thereafter allows the light to be incident upon the objective lens.

Abstract: An objective optical element and an optical pickup device at least capable of reproducing and/or recording information from and/or on a high-density optical disk and securing an even light volume. The objective optical element is made of a single lens for use in an optical pickup device at least reproducing and/or recording information from and/or on a first optical information recording medium by focusing a light beam having a wavelength &lgr;1 (380 nm≦&lgr;1≦450 nm) on an information recording surface of the first optical information recording medium having a protected substrate thickness t1 (0 mm<t1≦0.7 mm). The objective optical element has a convex object-side optical surface and a diffracting structure having positive diffraction power at least on one of the object-side and image-side optical surfaces, and is formed from a lens material satisfying 97≦T1≦99 where T1 (%/mm) is an optical transmittance not including a reflection loss for the light beam having the wavelength &lgr;1.

Abstract: An optical pickup apparatus has a simplified configuration for using a plurality of laser beams at different wavelength to reduce the size, and a laser diode chip for use therewith. An irradiation light path for leading a laser beam emitted from a light emitter to a recording medium is provided with an optical axis correcting element for passing a first laser beam and for diffracting a second laser beam having a wavelength different from that of the first laser beam to generate diffracted light which has the optical axis substantially matching the optical axis of the first laser beam. The optical axis correcting element is arranged at a position at which the center of a light intensity distribution of the first laser beam incident thereto matches the center of a light intensity distribution of the second laser beam incident thereto.

Abstract: There is provided an optical system of an optical pick-up for recording/reproducing data to/from at least two types of optical discs including a first optical disc and a second optical disc whose recording density is higher than that of the first optical disc. The optical system is provided with a light source unit for the first and second optical discs, an objective lens, and a photo detector. The optical system further includes an optical surface to satisfy compatibility between the at least two types of optical discs, the optical surface being located between the light source unit and one of the at least two type of optical discs. The optical surface has an inner region having a numerical aperture for the first optical disc, an outer region located having a numerical aperture for the second optical disc, and an intermediate region that is located within the outer region at a periphery of the inner region.

Abstract: In a diffraction grating used in an optical head device leading light, diffracted light exiting from each of the plurality of areas is lead to a corresponding particular photo-detecting area of the photodetector. Each of the plurality of areas of the diffraction grating is produced either by first two-beam interference exposure to interference fringes from first divergent light from a position equivalent to a light emitting point on the light source of the optical head device and second divergent light form a position equivalent to a light receiving point corresponding to each photo-detecting area, or by second two-beam interference exposure to interference fringes from first convergent light converging at the position equivalent to the light emitting point on the light source and second convergent light converging at the point equivalent to the light receiving point corresponding to each photo-detecting area.

Abstract: Two light sources radiating two light beams having different wavelengths are simultaneously operated. Reflected beams of these two types of laser beams from an optical recording medium are simultaneously detected by two detectors. When one of the two types of light beams having different wavelengths is used while being focused on an optical recording medium, the spot diameter of the other non-focused metering beam on the optical recording medium is set larger than that of the one of the two light beams. A reflected light having a larger spot diameter is used to reduce DC offset in a tracking error signal.

Abstract: A polarizing optical element is used in an optical pickup apparatus. A diffraction grating (hologram) is formed on the polarizing optical element. The diffraction efficiency of the diffraction grating varies in accordance with the polarization direction of an incident optical beam. When the duty ratio of the diffraction grating is defined as the ratio of the width of a protrusion of the diffraction grating to the grating period, the duty ratio of the diffraction grating is within the range of 0.4-0.5.

Abstract: An optical system of an optical pick-up that is capable of using thin cover type and thick cover type optical discs. The system includes a light source portion for emitting a short wavelength laser beam for the thin cover type optical disc and a long wavelength laser beam for the thick cover type optical disc, and an objective lens for converging the laser beam onto an information layer of the optical disc through the cover layer. The objective lens has a diffractive lens structure having wavelength dependence such that spherical aberration varies in the overcorrected direction as incident wavelength increases. The light source portion emits the laser beam such that divergence of the long wavelength laser beam incident on the objective lens is larger than that of the short wavelength laser beam. The objective lens converges the laser beams of an identical diffractive order without changing position thereof.

Abstract: In an optical head for use in an optical data recording/reproducing apparatus of the present invention, light emitted from a semiconductor laser is split into a main beam that is zeroth order light and sub-beams that are plus and minus first-order diffracted light. A focus error signal is detected from each of the main beam and sub-beams. A diffractive optical lens causes the main beam and sub-beams to differ in light intensity distribution from each other when incident to an objective lens. As a result, when a disk or optical recording medium has a thickness error, the focus error signal derived from the main beam and focus error signals derived from the sub-beams differ in zero-crossing point from each other. The thickness error is detected on the basis of the difference between the zero-crossing points.

Abstract: A grating mounting section 10 for mounting a laser diode 3 and a diffraction grating element 8 is formed in a frame body 2 of an optical pickup device. The diffraction grating element 8 includes a main body 83 provided with a grating face 82, a holder 84 being integral with the main body 83 while surrounding the same, and an arm portion 81 protruded outward from the outer circumferential face of the holder 84 as viewed in the radial direction. The arm portion 81 is protruded outward through a groove 22 formed in the grating mounting section 10 of the frame body side. An angular position adjustment of the diffraction grating element 8 can be carried out by turning the arm portion 81 about the optical axis.

Abstract: An optical pick-up generates a 0-th order diffraction light and ±1st order diffraction lights by a diffraction grating and irradiates the same to an optical disc. The ±1st order diffraction lights have phase distributions equivalent to a wavefront aberration of the optical disc when there is a tilt in the optical disc. Distances between the center of the main optical spot and centers of sub optical spots in a disc radial direction on a recording surface are whole multiples of a track pitch. The generation circuit generates a main push-pull signal corresponding to the 0-th order diffraction light and first and second sub push-pull signals corresponding to the ±1st order diffraction lights and generates tracking error signals TE as differential push-pull signals obtained by subtracting a sum signal of the first and second sub push-pull signals from the main push-pull signal.

Abstract: A track discrimination signal can be generated without requiring the use of a large number of parts or a complex device configuration even when an optical recording medium adapted to the “land/groove recording system” such as a “DVD-RAM” is used. A main light spot is and auxiliary light spots are formed on an optical disc for signal recording and signal reproduction. The auxiliary light spots have respective distances different from that of the main light spot relative to an objective lens and formed at a position expressed by SPn/2, where S is the absolute value of the distance relative to the main spot in the normal direction of the recording tracks formed on the signal recording surface relative to the man spot, P is the track pitch and n is an integer.

Abstract: In a diffraction element, a diffraction grating is formed with a grating pitch having different diffraction angles in accordance with a wavelength of a laser light beam incident thereon. The wavelength is variable in accordance with an environment temperature. The diffraction element is made of a material having a linear expansion coefficient which causes thermal variation in the grating pitch enough to compensate at least a part of the diffraction angle variation due to environment temperature change.

Abstract: The disclosed invention relates to an optical integrated device, an optical pickup, and an optical disk apparatus, and is applicable to an optical disk apparatus for playing back a compact disk (CD) and a DVD (Digital Video Disk), thereby to access a plurality of types of optical disks with a simple arrangement. For dividing feedback light with a hologram 19A and detecting the divided feedback light with a light-detecting element 20, laser sources 15A, 15B having different wavelengths are spaced a predetermined distance D from each other in order to compensate for the difference between the diffraction angles &thgr;A1, &thgr;B of the hologram 19A.

Abstract: An optical pick-up includes light sources for emitting light beams having different wavelength, the light sources being switched according to the kind of optical discs, a refractive lens element for converging the light beams from the light sources onto recording layer of the optical disc; and a spherical aberration correcting element on which a concentric phase grating structure is formed, the phase grating structure altering spherical aberration in response to change of wavelength to correct change of the spherical aberration due to change of the thickness of the cover layer. The spherical aberration correcting element has a wavelength dependence such that spherical aberration varies in the undercorrected direction as wavelength of incident light increases.

Abstract: An optical head for reproducing information contained on an optical information disk includes a plurality of light sources and a plurality of light receiving elements in correspondence with the plurality of laser light sources. There is constructed a constitution in which one laser light source in the plurality of laser light sources is constituted by an individual laser diode and which includes a laser module constituted by other laser light sources and the plurality of light receiving elements to thereby enable to realize the small size of the optical head.

Abstract: In an optical pickup method and device of the present invention, a grating unit separates a light beam, emitted by a light source, into a 0th order diffracted beam and 1st order diffracted beams. An objective lens focuses the diffracted beams, sent from the grating unit, onto a recording surface of an optical recording medium through a transparent substrate of the medium, so that a main spot is formed on the recording surface by the 0th order diffracted beam and sub-spots, interposing the main spot therebetween, are formed on the recording surface by the 1st order diffracted beams. A reflection beam detector receives reflection beams from the main spot and the sub-spots of the medium to generate detection signals from the received reflection beams.

Abstract: An optical pickup device includes a double-source built-in semiconductor laser for emitting light of a first wavelength and light of a second wavelength, a first divergence modifying device for modifying the diverging rate of emitted light from the double-source built-in semiconductor laser to a first diverging rate, a second divergence modifying device for modifying the diverging rate of a part of transmitted light through the first divergence modifying device to a second diverging rate, and an objective lens which focalizes the light with the first wavelength modified to the first diverging rate by the first divergence modifying device onto a first optical disc, and focalizes the light with the second wavelength modified to the second diverging rate by the first and second divergence modifying devices onto a second optical disc.

Abstract: The spot diameter D3 of a side beam 21 imaged on a disc 5 is set to at least 2.5 times as large as that of a main beam. Via this configuration, an output signal from a detector detecting a reflected light via a side beam, that is, a signal representing a different in the output from photo-detection devices split by split lines in the radial contains a negligible track cross component caused by a beam spot crossing a track. The signal substantially contains a DC offset component alone caused by the shift of an objective lens in the radial direction under tracking control. Thus, by subtracting the output signal of the detector from the push-pull signal of the main beam, a tracking signal substantially containing no DC offset.

Abstract: An optical pickup includes: a first projector for projecting a first light beam of a first wavelength so as to record and reproduce information with respect to an optical disk having a first light transmissive layer; a second projector for projecting a second light beam of a second wavelength longer than the first wavelength so as to record and reproduce information with respect to an optical disk having a second light transmissive layer; an objective lens common to the first and second light beams; and a diffraction optical element made of a lens with a diffraction grating and a refracting face and disposed in an optical path between the first and second projectors and the objective lens. The diffraction optical element is set to satisfy a predetermined equation.

Abstract: An optical pickup includes a semiconductor laser for emitting light at a wavelength &lgr;1 and a semiconductor laser for emitting light at a different wavelength &lgr;2 from the wavelength &lgr;1. The light at the wavelength &lgr;1 transmitted through an objective lens forms a light-collecting spot on an optical disk to record/reproduce information thereon. The light at the wavelength &lgr;2 transmitted through the objective lens forms a light-collecting spot on an optical disk to record/reproduce information thereon, the two optical disks having different substrate thicknesses. Between the semiconductor laser and the objective lens is there provided a combination-type diffractive element fabricated by combining two raw materials having different refractive index behaviors in relation to wavelength at a combining plane shaped as a grating.

Abstract: A compound objective lens is composed of a hologram lens or transmitting a part of incident light without any diffraction to form a beam of transmitted light and diffracting a remaining part of the incident light to form a beam of first-order diffracted light, and an objective lens for converging the transmitted light to form a first converging spot on a front surface of a thin type of first information medium and converging the diffracted light to form a second converging spot on a front surface of a thick type of second information medium. Because the hologram selectively functions as a concave lens for the diffracted light, a curvature of the transmitted light differs from that of the diffracted light.