273 results about "Plane of incidence" patented technology

A surface inspection apparatus and a method are provided which include an illumination system configured to focus a beam of radiation at a non-orthogonal incidence angle to form an illumination line on a surface substantially in a plane of incidence of the focused beam. The apparatus and method further include a collection system configured to image the illumination line onto an array of detectors oriented parallel to the illumination line. The collection system includes an imaging lens for collecting light scattered from the illumination line, a focusing lens for focusing the collected light, and the array of detectors, each configured to detect a corresponding portion of the illumination line. The collection system may be configured to image the illumination line such that the width of the imaged illumination line on the array of detectors is larger than the pixel size of the detectors along the same direction.

A backlight unit has a light source, a reflection sheet, a light guide plate, an air space, and a diffuser, wherein the reflection sheet, the light guide plate, the air space, and the diffuser are overlaid in this order. The light source is configured to arrange individual light sources having different spectra or different light emission quantities near an incident plane of the light guide plate, and on a plane facing the reflection sheet of the light guide plate, scatter dots are disposed which take light propagating through the light guide plate out of the reflection sheet side. The backlight unit and a liquid crystal display device including the same have excellent display quality.

A compact and versatile multi-spot inspection imaging system employs an objective for focusing an array of radiation beams to a surface and a second reflective or refractive objective having a large numerical aperture for collecting scattered radiation from the array of illuminated spots. The scattered radiation from each illuminated spot is focused to a corresponding optical fiber channel so that information about a scattering may be conveyed to a corresponding detector in a remote detector array for processing. For patterned surface inspection, a cross-shaped filter is rotated along with the surface to reduce the effects of diffraction by Manhattan geometry. A spatial filter in the shape of an annular aperture may also be employed to reduce scattering from patterns such as arrays on the surface. In another embodiment, different portions of the same objective may be used for focusing the illumination beams onto the surface and for collecting the scattered radiation from the illuminated spots simultaneously. In another embodiment, a one-dimensional array of illumination beams are directed at an oblique angle to the surface to illuminate a line of illuminated spots at an angle to the plane of incidence. Radiation scattered from the spots are collected along directions perpendicular to the line of spots or in a double dark field configuration.

A virtual image display device includes: an image generator generating a picture light beam modulated based on a video signal; and an optical element including a plane of incidence to which the picture light beam emitted from the image generator is input, and an exit surface emitting the picture light beam after a cross-sectional area of the picture light beam input to the plane of incidence has been enlarged. The optical element includes a first light guide and a second light guide connecting the plane of incidence and the exit surface and guiding the picture light beam. A first light branching layer is disposed between the first and second light guides, and partially reflects and partially transmits the picture light beam. The picture light beam emitted from the image generator obliquely enters the first light branching layer.

An atomic magnetometer includes a cell containing an atomic group, a pump light source, a probe light source, a mirror, and a detector. The cell is disposed between the pump light source and the mirror and between the probe light source and the detector. A pump beam emitted from the pump light source is circularly polarized light. The pump beam passes through the cell and is reflected by the mirror and then passes through the cell again. The probe beam emitted from the probe light source is linearly polarized light. An optical path of the probe beam is parallel to a plane of incidence of the pump beam and is also parallel to a surface of the mirror. The optical path of the probe beam crosses an optical path of the pump beam in the cell. The probe beam which has passed through the cell enters the detector.

In order to make a reflection coefficient in boundary surface between materials to be zero and permeate 100% of a light independent of a polarization direction, an optical device made of an optical material composed of a metamaterial prepared by arranging a plurality of at least either of electrical resonators or magnetic resonators each being smaller than a wavelength of a light wave in only a predetermined plane, and at least either of the electrical resonators and the magnetic resonators arranged functioning with respect to s-polarization, whereby at least either of the dielectric constant or the magnetic permeability is controlled in response to the function to induce a Brewster phenomenon in the s-polarization wherein the incident plane of a light wave being set out at a Brewster's angle with respect to the p-polarization and further at least either of the dielectric constant and the magnetic permeability of the optical material being controlled with respect to the s-polarization of the optical material, whereby the Brewster condition is independently satisfied in both the p-polarization and the s-polarization at the same time.

A sensor and method for determining the optical properties of a sample material is disclosed. The sensor comprises a light source that generates a linearly polarized light beam having a predetermined polarization orientation with respect to the plane of incidence. The linearly polarized light beam is reflected off the sample and is split into second and third light beams where the second and third light beam consist of the combined projections of mutually orthogonal components of the first light beam. A signal processor measures the intensity difference between the second and third light beams to calculate the phase difference induced by the sample material.

A display device higher in light use efficiency than conventional ones, a display device substrate suitably used for such a display device, and a light guide suitably used for an illuminator of such a display device are provided. The light guide has a plane of incidence on which light is incident and a plane of emergence from which light emerges, and has a first photonic crystal structure having a refractive index changing periodically along a direction substantially parallel to the plane of emergence.

The invention concerns high sensitivity light scattering detection and its application to evaporative light scattering detection in liquid chromatography. The exemplary embodiment includes a detection cell to accept particles suspended in a gas stream and permit a polarized light beam to pass through a trajectory of the particles and gas stream. A sample light detector is disposed to detect light scattered in the detection cell. A light trap accepts the polarized beam after it passes through the detection cell. The light trap includes an elongated housing through which the polarized beam passes, and light absorptive material within the elongated housing. An absorptive filter is aligned such that the angle of incidence of the light beam upon the filter approximates Brewster's angle and the electric field vector of the beam is aligned with the plane of incidence between the beam and the filter. Other embodiments of the invention provide increased light collection. Embodiments of the invention include temperature-controlled entrance and exit ports that control particle trajectory. Embodiments of the invention include a reference cell disposed between a detection cell and a light trap, and the reference cell includes lensing and a spherical mirror to direct light toward a reference light detector. The reference light detector provides a reference signal that may be used with noise cancellation circuitry, operating in either voltage or current mode, to reduce light source noise in the sample signal.

By use of a substrate which can be stably formed and has a relatively small groove depth, a very high density optical recording medium having good recording/reading characteristics is provided. In an optical recording medium of a surface incidence type, in which a reflective layer, a recording layer containing a dye as a main component and a cover layer are sequentially formed on a substrate having guide grooves formed therein, a guide groove part on a far side from a plane of incidence of a recording/reading light beam on the cover layer is set as a recording groove part, and reflected light intensity in a recorded pit portion formed in the recording groove part is increased by a phase shift and is set higher than reflected light intensity in unrecorded.

The projector device can be reduced in thickness by using a total internal reflection (TIR) prism wherein the angle formed between a line of projection of the normal vector of the total reflection plane on the surface of a digital micromirror device (DMD) and the long or short side of the DMD is set to be smaller than 45°. The TIR prism has a total reflection plane for totally reflecting illuminating light brought to incidence by an illuminating optical system to guide it to the DMD and totally transmit light optically modulated by the DMD to guide it to a projecting optical system, and this total reflection plane is so arranged relative to the DMD that the angle formed between a line of projection of its normal vector on the surface of the DMD and the long side of the DMD form an angle smaller than 45°. An incidence plane on which the illuminating light is brought to incidence by the illuminating optical system is so formed that the illuminating light brought to incidence vertically on its incidence plane, when totally reflected by the total reflection plane and emitted from an emission plane toward the DMD, be emitted at an incidence angle of 24° to the surface of the DMD in a direction at an angle of 45° to the long side of the DMD.

[PROBLEMS] An optical component in which the viewing angle can be widened while sustaining a high luminance and the defect of a display can be made inconspicuous, and a backlight employing the optical component.

[MEANS FOR SOLVING PROBLEMS] When a substantially collimated light impinges on the plane of incidence (9), an outgoing light from the outgoing plane (10) exhibits anisotropy in its intensity along an azimuth of 30° to normal to the outgoing plane (10), the anisotropy being such that the ratio between a highest intensity and a lowest intensity in the intensity distribution of outgoing light intensity along the azimuth of 30° is set to not smaller than 1.2.

The invention relates to a microscope comprising a microscope housing (18), an optics system (16) consisting of at least one lens system that contains at least one respective lens (48) and is positioned at one end of a passage (19) of the microscope housing (18), at least one observation device, in particular an ocular, located at the other end of the passage (19), an illumination device, whose light forms at least one illumination beam (44), originating from a plane of incidence (45) that vertically intersects the passage (19), said beam traversing the lens system and striking an object carrier (36) at a predetermined angle (β). According to the invention, the illumination beam or beams (44) originating from the plane of incidence (45) is/are provided by an optical device, whose cross-section lying in the vicinity of the passage (19) is substantially smaller than the cross-section of said passage (19).

Methods and systems for performing simultaneous spectroscopic measurements of semiconductor structures at ultraviolet, visible, and infrared wavelengths are presented herein. In another aspect, wavelength errors are reduced by orienting the direction of wavelength dispersion on the detector surface perpendicular to the projection of the plane of incidence onto the detector surface. In another aspect, a broad range of infrared wavelengths are detected by a detector that includes multiple photosensitive areas having different sensitivity characteristics. Collected light is linearly dispersed across the surface of the detector according to wavelength. Each different photosensitive area is arranged on the detector to sense a different range of incident wavelengths. In this manner, a broad range of infrared wavelengths are detected with high signal to noise ratio by a single detector. These features enable high throughput measurements of high aspect ratio structures with high throughput, precision, and accuracy.