Fabrication of polarization-selective liquid crystal polymer diffusers via optical imprinting

Polarization-selective diffusion devices have significant potential for applications in Augmented Reality (AR) and 3D display technologies. Based on the Pancharatnam-Berry (PB) phase of liquid crystal polymers (LCP), this paper describes the design and fabrication of an LCP diffuser with high polarization selectivity. The polarization-selective characteristics of the diffuser are determined by the chiral dopant: circular polarized light with the same handedness as the device is effectively diffused. In contrast, circularly polarized light with the opposite handedness is transmitted directly. Fabricated via photoalignment, the diffuser exhibits an operating bandwidth of approximately 120 nm and a maximum diffusion efficiency of 84%. This diffuser is expected to be applied in AR and 3D display systems to dynamically switch the image focal plane, providing a new technical approach to resolving the vergence-accommodation conflict (VAC).