Foveated near-eye display for mixed reality using liquid crystal photonics

Foveated near-eye display is one of the most promising approaches to deliver immersive experience of mixed reality. However, it is challenged to conceive a compact optical system. Here, we introduce a method to use polarization optics via liquid crystal photonics to improve the foveated display performance. We demonstrate a benchtop prototype of this idea. We implement and combine two display modules for peripheral and foveal visions. A peripheral display consists of a polarization selective lens (PSL) module, a polarization selective diffuser (PSD), and a slanted projection system. An 80∘\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$^\circ$$\end{document} diagonal field of view is achieved by on-axis optical configuration of the PSL module and the PSD. A foveal holographic display is composed of a spatial light modulator (SLM), a volume grating lens, and a microelectromechanical system mirror possibly in combination with a switchable polarization selective grating module. The holographic reconstruction using the SLM enables accurate focus cue generation and high resolution above 30 cycles per degree within 15∘\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$^\circ$$\end{document} by 15∘\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$^\circ$$\end{document} field of view. We explore and discuss the liquid crystal photonics in the prototype that has a novel optical design using volume gratings with polarization selectivity.