Citizen Watch Company, Ltd.

Citizen Holdings Company, Ltd.

Japan Science and Technology Agency

Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology

Nobuyuki Hashimoto

Ayano Tanabe

Makoto Kurihara

Kenji Matsumoto

Masafumi Yokoyama

Shigeru Morokawa

Yuichi Kozawa

Shinya Sato

Yuka Saito

Tomomi Nemoto

Terumasa Hibi

Kanetaka Sekiguchi

Hiroyuki Yokoyama

Akira Tsuzuki

Minoru Natori

Hideshi Ohno

Masami Kikuchi

Koichi Hoshino

Yasushi Suzuki

Akira Miyajima

Katsu Ito

Yasuhiro Takaki

Shunichi Sato

Munehiro Shinabe

Kohei Otomo

Kazuya Ohike

Ei-ichiro Nishihara

An illumination devicehas: a light sourcefor emitting polarized light having a Gaussian beam profile and including a first polarized light component and a second polarized light component orthogonal to each other; and a spiral phase element for imparting a phase modulation amount which increases for each predetermined step amount along a circumferential direction about an optical axis OA to the first polarized light component of transmitted polarized light from the light sourceand making the beam profile of the first polarized light component a Laguerre-Gaussian beam profile, and forming a composite beam having a top-hat-shaped beam profile in which the second polarized light component of the transmitted polarized light from the light sourceand the first polarized light component having a Laguerre-Gaussian beam profile are synthesized.

Illumination device and method for generating illumination light

A light modulating deviceincludes: a selective diffraction device (') which generates diffracted light beams of a plurality of orders by diffracting illumination light into one of a plurality of directions, the illumination light being linearly polarized light having a polarization plane oriented in a first polarization direction, and which causes a phase difference between the diffracted light beams of the plurality of orders; and a polarization plane rotating devicewhich rotates the polarization plane of the diffracted light beam of each order so as to be oriented in a direction perpendicular to a direction radiating from an optical axis.

Light modulating device

An aberration correction device () corrects wave front aberration arising in an optical system that includes an object lens () disposed in an optical path for light beams output by a coherent light source (). The aberration correction device () has a symmetrical aberration correction element () that corrects symmetrical aberrations, which are the wave front aberrations that are symmetrical with respect to the optical axis among the wave front aberrations generated in the optical path, and an asymmetrical aberration correction element () that corrects asymmetrical aberrations, which are wave front aberrations that are asymmetrical with respect to the optical axis, generated in light beams incident obliquely on the object lens ().

Aberration correction device and laser microscope

A phase modulation device corrects wave front aberrations generated by an optical system including an objective lens disposed on an optical path of a light flux. The phase modulation device includes a phase modulation element which includes a plurality of electrodes, and modulates the phase of the light flux in accordance with a voltage applied to each electrode, and a control circuit which controls the voltage to be applied to each electrode. The control circuit controls the voltage to be applied to each electrode in such a manner that the light flux is imparted with a phase modulation amount in accordance with a phase modulation profile having a polarity opposite to the polarity of a phase distribution to be determined according to a relational equation representing a relationship between a numerical aperture of the objective lens and a ratio between third-order spherical aberration and fifth-order spherical aberration.

Phase modulation device and laser microscope

A polarization conversion element includes a phase reversal element and a polarization plane rotation element including a liquid crystal layer. The liquid crystal layer has a plurality of regions disposed along circumferential direction with the intersection point of the polarization plane rotation element and the optical axis as the center with alignment directions different from each other. When electric voltage in accordance with the wavelength of linear polarization incident on the polarization plane rotation element is applied, each region rotates the polarization plane of the polarization component transmitted by each region, and thereby converts linear polarization to radial polarization. The phase reversal element reverses, among the first and the second annular portions alternately disposed along the radial direction with the optical axis as the center, the phase of light incident on the first annular portion relative to the phase of light incident on the second annular portion.

Polarization conversion element

A refractive index measurement apparatus includes a light source, a measurement cell including a sample as an object of refractive index measurement and diffracting light incident from the light source, a detector that detects the amount of diffracted light in at least one diffraction order other than zero order of diffracted light exiting from the measurement cell, and a control unit that determines refractive index of the sample based on the measured value of the amount of diffracted light by the detector. The measurement cell includes two substrates disposed so as to be opposed to each other and a diffraction grating disposed between the two substrates, and the diffraction grating has a plurality of members whose width decreases stepwise as approaching from one of the substrates to the other of the substrates, the sample being filled in the space between the substrates not occupied by the diffraction grating.

Refractive index measurment apparatus and refractive index measurment method

The microscope apparatus includes a light source which outputs linear polarization having a first wavelength, a polarization conversion element which includes a liquid crystal layer, and by causing linear polarization to pass the liquid crystal layer, converts linear polarization to radial polarization, an objective lens which focuses the radial polarization onto an object surface, a condenser lens which collimates the light reflected from the object surface, a light receiving element which receives light collimated by the condenser lens and outputs signal in accordance with the intensity of light, and a controller which applies electric voltage in accordance with the first wavelength to the liquid crystal layer of the polarization conversion element. The polarization conversion element is disposed in the pupil plane of the objective lens on the light source side.

Microscope apparatus, optical pickup apparatus and light irradiation apparatus

A light modulator element includes a liquid crystal element which has a liquid crystal layer containing liquid crystal molecules aligned along a first direction, and two transparent electrodes disposed in opposition to each other with the liquid crystal layer sandwiched therebetween, and which controls the phase of linear polarization light and passing through said liquid crystal layer by applying an electric voltage between said two transparent electrodes; a polarizer plate which is disposed between a light source and said liquid crystal element and which has the transmission axis along the first direction or along a direction orthogonal to said first direction; and a rotation mechanism which supports the liquid crystal element and the polarizer plate and which rotates the liquid crystal element and the polarizer plate integrally in one unit with the optical axis of the liquid crystal element as the rotation axis.

Light modulator element and microscope apparatus including light modulation element

The present invention is directed to the provision of a liquid crystal device constructed by sealing a liquid crystal material between substrates, wherein provisions are made to prevent reflections at the sealing, thereby achieving excellent transparency. The liquid crystal device includes a first substrate disposed on a viewing side, a second substrate disposed opposite the first substrate, a sealing member disposed between the first substrate and the second substrate, a liquid crystal layer provided between the first substrate and the second substrate and sealed by the sealing member, and a muslin structure or moth-eye structure placed between the first substrate and the sealing member. The muslin structure or moth-eye structure serves to form a smooth refractive index gradient between the sealing member and the first transparent substrate, thereby enhancing the transparency of the liquid crystal device.

Liquid crystal device

The present invention is directed to the provision of a liquid crystal optical element that can accurately change the numerical aperture of an objective lens regardless of variations in temperature or wavelength. The liquid crystal optical element comprises a first substrate, a second substrate, a liquid crystal provided between the first and second substrates, an electrode pattern formed on one of the first and second substrates and having an aperture control region, and an opposite electrode formed on the other one of the first and second substrates, the opposite electrode being opposed to the electrode pattern for applying a voltage therebetween, wherein a plurality of electrodes, for changing refractive index and thereby causing the incident light passing through the aperture control region to diverge, are formed in the aperture control region.

Liquid crystal optical element, optical device, and aperture control method

The present invention is directed to the provision of a liquid crystal optical element that is inexpensive, has an ideal refractive index profile, and functions as a high-performance gradient-index lens. The liquid crystal optical element () includes a first planar substrate (), a second planar substrate (), a liquid crystal () provided between the first and second planar substrates, an electrode pattern () formed on one of the first and second planar substrates and having a plurality of regions (to) each for varying an effective refractive index for a light beam by a respectively different degree, and a counter electrode (), formed on the other one of the first and second planar substrates, for applying voltage with respect to the electrode pattern, wherein the refractive index for a light beam varies with the square of the distance from the center of the liquid crystal optical element along a radial direction across the liquid crystal optical element when the voltage is applied between the electrode pattern and the counter electrode.

Liquid crystal optical element and method for manufacturing thereof

An object of the present invention is to provide a wavefront aberration correcting device comprising a liquid crystal device that maximizes transmittance and minimizes light transmittance fluctuations even when the liquid crystal is driven by voltage. Disclosed is a wavefront aberration correcting device for correcting a wavefront aberration of light generated in an optical path of an optical system for irradiating light onto a recording medium or guiding the reflected light reflected by the abovementioned recording medium is characterized in that it comprises a pair of opposing transparent electrode layers provided in the abovementioned optical path; and a liquid crystal sandwiched between the abovementioned transparent electrode layers, for generating phase change in passing light due to voltage applied to the abovementioned transparent electrode layers, the abovementioned transparent electrode layer is arranged on an antireflective body comprising a substrate, and a finestructure formed on a substrate and having a concave-convex structure.

Wavefront aberration correcting device and optical pickup equipped with the same

The invention is directed to the provision of a liquid crystal optical element, for correcting wavefront aberrations (principally, coma aberration and spherical aberration), that can be mounted separately from an objective lens, and an optical apparatus using such a liquid crystal optical element. The liquid crystal optical element according to the invention includes a first transparent substrate, a second transparent substrate, a liquid crystal sealed between the first and second transparent substrates, and an electrode pattern as a region for advancing or delaying the phase of a light beam and thereby correcting wavefront aberration, wherein the region is formed smaller than the field of view of the objective lens so that the region substantially stays within the field of view of the objective lens regardless of the tracking motion of tracking means.

Liquid crystal optical element and optical device

The present invention provides a compact liquid crystal optical element for optical modulation and a compact optical device. A liquid crystal optical element for optical modulation is prepared by connecting two transparent substrates, each formed with a transparent electrode and an orientation film, with a sealing member, leaving a clearance between the two transparent substrates. On at least one surface of at least one of these transparent substrates, a diaphragm is formed using a shielding member. With this arrangement, it is possible to provide a more compact liquid crystal optical element than has been conventionally available. At the same time, it is possible to substantially reduce the occurrence of noise. Therefore, it is possible to provide a liquid crystal optical element and an optical device having excellent performance.

Liquid crystal optical element and an optical device

A compact liquid crystal optical element for optical modulation and a compact optical device. A liquid crystal optical element for optical modulation is prepared by connecting two transparent substrates, each formed with a transparent electrode and an orientation film, with a sealing member, leaving a clearance between the two transparent substrates. On at least one surface of at least one of these transparent substrates, a diaphragm is formed using a shielding member. With this arrangement, it is possible to provide a more compact liquid crystal optical element than has been conventionally available. At the same time, it is possible to substantially reduce the occurrence of noise. Therefore, it is possible to provide a liquid crystal optical element and an optical device having excellent performance.

Growing community of inventors

Iruma, Japan

Nobuyuki Hashimoto