Wire Grid Polarizer With Coverage-Controlled Protective Film
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wire grid polarizing elements face issues with heat tolerance, heat dissipation, manufacturing cost, and decreased polarization splitting properties for oblique incident light at large and wide-range angles, leading to decreased image quality and light utilization efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A hybrid-type wire grid polarizing element with a substrate made of inorganic material and a grid structural body made of organic material, combined with a functional film and protection film, is designed to maintain optical properties and reliability by covering the grid structural body with a specific coverage rate and thickness ratio, using nano-imprinting for cost-effective mass production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a conventional wire grid polarizing element is used, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but heat dissipation deteriorates and heat tolerance decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a composite structure combining organic material (resin base material) and metal material (conductive wires) to create a wire grid polarizing element that achieves both cost-effectiveness and improved heat dissipation. The organic base material provides manufacturing advantages while the metal wire grid structure enhances thermal conductivity, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing cost and heat dissipation performance.
2Reliability
If the array pitch of the wire grid is reduced to improve polarization properties, then polarization splitting properties improve, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the array pitch parameter of the wire grid to achieve effective polarization splitting while remaining within manufacturable precision ranges. By carefully selecting and adjusting the pitch parameter, the invention balances polarization performance with manufacturing capabilities, avoiding excessive precision requirements while maintaining effective light separation.
3Temperature
If a reflection-type polarizing element is added to prevent solar light incident, then heat tolerance improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The wire grid polarizing element is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as both a polarization splitting element and a heat management component. The metal wire grid structure provides both optical polarization functionality and thermal management by reflecting solar light and dissipating heat, eliminating the need for separate reflection-type polarizing elements and reducing overall device complexity.
4Reliability
If the wire grid structure is optimized for normal incident light, then polarization properties improve, but transmissivity for oblique incident light decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes specific local parameters of the wire grid structure, such as the array pitch and wire diameter, to achieve a balance between polarization performance for normal incident light and transmissivity for oblique incident light. By carefully controlling these local structural qualities, the invention maintains effective polarization splitting while preserving adequate light transmission across various incident angles.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The hybrid-type wire grid polarizing element maintains high transmissivity and polarization splitting properties for oblique incident light, improves heat dissipation, and ensures reliability under high-temperature environments, while reducing manufacturing costs.
Implementation Method 1
By setting the array pitch of the wire grid at a pitch smaller than (for example, less than or equal to a half of) the wavelength of incident light (for example, visible light), most of light of an electric field vector component that vibrates in parallel to the conductive wires can be reflected, and most of light of an electric field vector component perpendicular to the conductive wires can be transmitted.
Data Source
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AI summary
In a case where a grid structural body having a complicated concave-convex structure is covered by a thin protection film, the grid structural body is restrained from degrading to improve reliability with optical properties of a wire grid polarizing element being maintained. A wire grid polarizing element 1 includes a substrate 10, a grid structural body 20 in which a base part 21 and a plurality of ridge portions 22 are integrally formed, a functional film 30 covering part of the ridge portion 22, and a protection film 40. The functional film 30 covers and wraps the top of the ridge portion 22, and does not cover a bottom side of the ridge portion 22 and the base part 21. A coverage rate (Rc) thereof is more than or equal to 30% and less than or equal to 70%. The protection film 40 continuously covers a surface of the functional film 30, a lower side of both side surfaces of the ridge portion 22, and a surface of the base part 21. "Bt/Tt ≥ 0.85" is satisfied where Tt is a thickness of the protection film 40 that covers the top of the functional film 30, and Bt is a thickness of the protection film 40 that covers the lower side of both the side surfaces of the ridge portion 22 and the surface of the base part 21.