Abstract

With a progress in optical disk memory devices that have such as writable function and higher memory density, the efficient use of laser output power is strongly required, specially for DVD. One of the most practical solution for this is to implement a polarized beam splitter in optical pick-up modules. Conventional device once used in early stage of commercialization, which utilizes evaporated multi-layer thin films on a glass prism is hard to use commercially due to its large volume, heavy weight and high cost. Thus, development for new type of polarized beam splitter devices using birefringence material become very active recently 1),2). We have fabricated "Grating type Polarized Beam Splitter" (GPBS) using fine patterned photo-polymerized liquid crystal. Because of its high performance together with inherent nature of low cost and compact size, it has a large potential to be used in optical pick-ups for the advanced optical disk memory devices.

© 1996 Optical Society of America