Diffraction and scattering at antiglare structures for display devices

Antiglare layers for display devices feature a rough surface structure that scatters the incident light and thereby reduces the specular reflectivity of the screen. The same structure will, however, also diffuse part of the light from the phosphor layer, resulting in a degradation of image quality. The microstructure, light-scattering properties, and effects on image contrast and resolution of some relevant antiglare structures are examined. A model based on scalar diffraction theory that relates the various optical properties to the surface microstructure is presented.