Abstract

Planar optical elements combine holographic elements with a substrate mode planar structure where the light is trapped inside the structure by total internal reflections. As a result, usual free space propagation can be replaced by guided propagation in the planar structures on which holographic elements are recorded on either side. These configurations can thus be very compact and readily modularized, so as to eliminate the usually needed, extreme alignment accuracies between input light sources, elements, and output detectors in display, interconnect, and optical data processing applications.

© 1994 IEEE