CN115663442A - Method of manufacturing waveguide combiner - Google Patents
Method of manufacturing waveguide combiner Download PDFInfo
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- CN115663442A CN115663442A CN202211223884.8A CN202211223884A CN115663442A CN 115663442 A CN115663442 A CN 115663442A CN 202211223884 A CN202211223884 A CN 202211223884A CN 115663442 A CN115663442 A CN 115663442A
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01P—WAVEGUIDES; RESONATORS, LINES, OR OTHER DEVICES OF THE WAVEGUIDE TYPE
- H01P5/00—Coupling devices of the waveguide type
- H01P5/12—Coupling devices having more than two ports
- H01P5/16—Conjugate devices, i.e. devices having at least one port decoupled from one other port
- H01P5/18—Conjugate devices, i.e. devices having at least one port decoupled from one other port consisting of two coupled guides, e.g. directional couplers
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01P—WAVEGUIDES; RESONATORS, LINES, OR OTHER DEVICES OF THE WAVEGUIDE TYPE
- H01P11/00—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing waveguides or resonators, lines, or other devices of the waveguide type
- H01P11/001—Manufacturing waveguides or transmission lines of the waveguide type
- H01P11/002—Manufacturing hollow waveguides
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01P—WAVEGUIDES; RESONATORS, LINES, OR OTHER DEVICES OF THE WAVEGUIDE TYPE
- H01P5/00—Coupling devices of the waveguide type
- H01P5/12—Coupling devices having more than two ports
- H01P5/16—Conjugate devices, i.e. devices having at least one port decoupled from one other port
- H01P5/19—Conjugate devices, i.e. devices having at least one port decoupled from one other port of the junction type
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Abstract
Embodiments described herein relate to methods for manufacturing waveguide combiners. The method provides a waveguide combiner having an input coupling region, a waveguide region, and an output coupling region formed of inorganic or hybrid (organic and inorganic) materials that define a fine grating. In one embodiment, the waveguide structure is formed from an imprint stamp having a positive waveguide pattern on a resist disposed on a surface of a substrate to form a negative waveguide structure. Depositing the inorganic or hybrid material on the substrate and then removing the resist to form a waveguide structure having a region corresponding to at least one of an input coupling region, a waveguide region and an output coupling region formed of inorganic or hybrid (organic and inorganic) material.
Description
The present application is a divisional application of an invention patent application having an application date of 2018, 11/13, and an application number of 201880081384.0, entitled "method for manufacturing waveguide combiner".
Technical Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to waveguides for augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality. More specifically, embodiments described herein provide methods of fabricating waveguides.
Background
Virtual reality is generally considered a computer-generated simulated environment in which a user has an apparent physical presence. The virtual reality experience may be generated in 3D and viewed with a Head Mounted Display (HMD), such as glasses or other wearable display device having a near-eye display panel as a lens to display a virtual reality environment that replaces the actual environment.
However, augmented reality technology provides an experience in which the user can still see the surrounding environment through the display lenses of the glasses or other HMD device, and can also see the images of virtual objects that are generated for display and appear as part of the environment. Augmented reality may include any type of input, such as audio and tactile input, as well as virtual images, graphics, and video that may augment or augment the environment experienced by the user. As an emerging technology, augmented reality presents many challenges and design constraints.
One such challenge is to display a virtual image superimposed over the surrounding environment. The waveguide is used to assist in superimposing the image. The generated light propagates through the waveguide until the light exits the waveguide and is superimposed on the surrounding environment. As waveguides tend to have non-uniform properties, it can be challenging to manufacture the waveguides. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for improved enhanced waveguides and methods of fabrication.
Disclosure of Invention
In one embodiment, a method of fabricating a waveguide structure is provided. The method includes imprinting a stamp into a resist. The stamp has a positive waveguide pattern including at least one pattern portion. The imprinting forms a negative waveguide structure that includes an anti-region with a residual layer. The resist is disposed on a surface of a portion of a substrate, and the substrate has a first refractive index. Curing the resist on the surface of the substrate. The stamp is released and the residual layer is removed. And depositing a coating. The coating has a second refractive index that substantially matches or is greater than the first refractive index of the surface of the substrate. The resist is removed from the waveguide structure including the region.
In another embodiment, a method of manufacturing a waveguide structure is provided. The method includes depositing a coating having a second index of refraction on the negative waveguide structure of the stamp. The second refractive index substantially matches or is greater than the first refractive index of the substrate. The negative waveguide structure includes a counter region. Planarizing and bonding the coating to a surface of a portion of the substrate. The stamp is released to form a waveguide structure including a region.
In yet another embodiment, a method of manufacturing a waveguide structure is provided. The method includes depositing a coating having a second index of refraction between 1.5 and 2.5 on the negative waveguide structure of the stamp. The coating is substantially planar on the negative waveguide structure. The second index of refraction substantially matches or is greater than the first index of refraction of the substrate between 1.5 and 2.5. The negative waveguide structure includes an anti-input coupling region and an anti-output coupling region. Bonding the coating to a surface of a portion of the substrate. An optical adhesive is disposed on the surface of the substrate, the optical adhesive having a third refractive index that substantially matches the first refractive index and the second refractive index. The stamp is released to form a waveguide structure having regions.
Drawings
So that the manner in which the above recited features of the present disclosure can be understood in detail, a more particular description of the disclosure, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only exemplary embodiments and are therefore not to be considered limiting of the scope of the disclosure, for other equally effective embodiments may be considered.
Fig. 1 is a perspective front view of a waveguide combiner according to one embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating the operation of a method for fabricating a waveguide structure, according to one embodiment.
Fig. 3A to 3F are schematic cross-sectional views of a waveguide structure during a method for manufacturing a waveguide structure according to an embodiment.
Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating operations of a method for fabricating a waveguide structure according to one embodiment.
Fig. 5A to 5D are schematic cross-sectional views of a waveguide structure during a method for manufacturing a waveguide structure according to an embodiment.
To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is contemplated that elements and features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated in other embodiments without further recitation.
Detailed Description
Embodiments described herein relate to methods for fabricating waveguide structures. The methods described herein enable the fabrication of waveguide structures having input, waveguide, and output coupling regions formed of inorganic or hybrid (organic and inorganic) materials.
Fig. 1 is a perspective front view of a waveguide combiner 100. It is to be understood that the waveguide combiner 100 described below is an exemplary waveguide combiner. The waveguide combiner 100 includes an input coupling region 102 defined by a plurality of gratings 108, a waveguide region 104, and an output coupling region 106 defined by a plurality of gratings 110.
The in-coupling region 102 receives an incident light beam (virtual image) with a certain intensity from the microdisplay. Each grating of the plurality of gratings 108 divides an incident beam into a plurality of modes, each beam having one mode. The zero order mode (TO) beam is refracted back or lost in the waveguide combiner 100, the positive first order mode (T1) beam undergoes total-internal-reflection (TIR) through the waveguide combiner 100 across the waveguide region 104 TO the output coupling region 106, and the negative first order mode (T-1) beam propagates in the waveguide combiner 100 in the opposite direction TO the T1 beam. The T1 beam undergoes Total Internal Reflection (TIR) through waveguide combiner 100 until the T1 beam contacts the plurality of gratings 110 in the out-coupling region 106. The T1 beam contacts a grating in the plurality of gratings 110, where the T1 beam is split into a T0 beam, a T1 beam, and a T-1 beam, the T0 beam is refracted back or lost in the beam combiner 100, the T1 beam undergoes TIR in the out-coupling region 106 until the T1 beam contacts another grating in the plurality of gratings 110, and the T-1 beam is coupled out of the waveguide combiner 100.
Fig. 2 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a method 200 for fabricating a waveguide structure 300 as shown in fig. 3A-3F. In one embodiment, the waveguide structure 300 corresponds to at least one of the input coupling region 102, the waveguide region 104, and the output coupling region 106 of the waveguide combiner 100. In another embodiment, the waveguide structure 300 corresponds to a motherboard of at least one of the input coupling region 102, the waveguide region 104, and the output coupling region 106 of the waveguide combiner 100. At operation 201, a stamp 308 having a positive waveguide pattern 310 is imprinted on a resist 326 disposed on a surface 306 of a portion 302 of a substrate 304 to form a negative waveguide structure 312. The substrate 304 has a first refractive index. In one embodiment, the substrate 304 comprises at least one of a glass and a plastic material.
As shown in fig. 3A, the positive waveguide pattern 310 includes at least one pattern portion 314 to form at least one of the input coupling region 102, the waveguide region 104, and the output coupling region 106 of the waveguide combiner 100. As shown in fig. 3A and 3B, negative waveguide structure 312 includes an anti-region 316 having a residual layer 318, commonly referred to as a bottom surface. In one embodiment, the counter-region 316 includes a plurality of counter-gratings 320 to form at least one of the plurality of gratings 108 of the input coupling region 102, the plurality of gratings 110 of the output coupling region 106, and the waveguide region 104. In one embodiment, the light reflecting grating 320 has an opposite top surface 322 parallel to the surface 306 of the substrate 304, an opposite sidewall surface 324, and a remnant layer 318 parallel to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In one embodiment, each of the opposing sidewall surfaces 324 of the light reflecting grate 320 is oriented perpendicular to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In another embodiment, each of the opposing sidewall surfaces 324 of the light reflecting grate 320 is angled relative to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In yet another embodiment, a portion of the opposing sidewall surface 324 is oriented vertically, and a portion of the opposing sidewall surface 324 of the opposing grating 320 is angled with respect to the surface 306 of the substrate 304.
At operation 202, the resist 326 on the surface 306 of the substrate 304 is cured to stabilize the resist 326. At operation 203, the stamp 308 is released from the resist 326. In one embodiment, the stamp 308 is made of a waveguide master having a negative pattern that includes an inverse pattern portion. The stamp 308 is molded from a waveguide master. The stamp 308 comprises a translucent material, such as fused silica or Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), to allow the resist 326 to be cured by exposure to electromagnetic radiation, such as Infrared (IR) radiation or Ultraviolet (UV) radiation. In one embodiment, the Resist 326 comprises a UV curable material (such as mr-N210 available from Micro Resist Technology) that can be nanoimprinted by the stamp 308 comprising PDMS. In one embodiment, the surface 306 of the substrate 304 is prepared by UV ozone treatment, oxygen (O) 2 ) The UV curable material is spin coated by plasma treatment or by applying a primer, such as mr-APS1 available from Micro Resist Technology. The resist 326 may alternatively be thermally cured. In another embodiment, the resist 326 comprises a thermally curable material that can be cured by a solvent evaporation curing process including thermal heating or infrared illumination heating. Can use liquid material casting process, spin coating process, liquid spraying process, dry powder coating process, silk screenA printing process, a doctor blade process, a Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) process, a Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) process, a Flowable CVD (FCVD) process, or an Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) process to deposit a resist 326 on the surface 306.
At operation 204, the residual layer 318 is removed. In one embodiment, by using oxygen containing gas (O) 2 ) Plasma, fluorine-containing gas (F) 2 ) Plasma, chlorine-containing gas (Cl) 2 ) Plasma and methane (CH) containing 4 ) The plasma removes the residual layer 318 by plasma ashing, commonly referred to as plasma ashing. In another embodiment, radio Frequency (RF) power is applied to O 2 And an inert gas such as argon (Ar) or nitrogen (N) until the residual layer 318 is removed. As shown in fig. 3C, the light reflecting grating 320 has reverse depths 328, 330 extending from the reverse top surface 322 to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In one embodiment, inverse depth 328 and inverse depth 330 are substantially the same. In another embodiment, inverse depth 328 and inverse depth 330 are different.
At operation 205, a coating 322 is deposited on the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In one embodiment, as shown in fig. 3D and 3E, a coating 322 is deposited on the surface 306 of the substrate 304 and the remaining protrusions of the negative waveguide structure 312. The coating 322 has a second index of refraction that substantially matches or is greater than the first index of refraction. The coating 322 comprises at least one of spin-on glass (SOG), flowable SOG, sol-gel, organic nanoimprint able material, inorganic nanoimprint able material, and hybrid (organic and inorganic) nanoimprint able material, such as silicon oxide containing carbon (SiOC), titanium dioxide containing (TiO), and the like 2 ) Material, silicon dioxide (SiO) containing 2 ) Material, vanadium-containing oxide (VO) x ) Material, alumina (Al) 2 O 3 ) Material, indium Tin Oxide (ITO) -containing material, zinc oxide (ZnO) -containing material, tantalum pentoxide (Ta) 2 O 5 ) Material, silicon (Si) nitride 3 N 4 ) Material comprising titanium nitride (TiN) and/or zirconium dioxide (ZrO) 2 ) At least one of the materials. A liquid material casting process, a spin coating process, a liquid spray coating process, a dry powder coating process, a screen printing process, a doctor blade process, a PVD process, a CVD process, a FCVD process, or an ALD process may be usedTo deposit coating 322 on surface 306. Further, the coating 322, such as a SiOC coating, may undergo UV curing or thermal curing. As shown in fig. 3D, in one embodiment, excess coating 322 may be present. In an embodiment, excess coating 322 is removed using a thermal reflow or etch of the material. As shown in FIG. 3E, coating 322 is flush with the remaining protrusions of negative waveguide structure 312 or extends above substrate 304 to the same height as the remaining protrusions of negative waveguide structure 312. In one embodiment, the coating 322 is liquid deposited and excess coating 322 is removed by mechanical planarization.
The index of refraction of the coating 322, such as the resulting plurality of gratings 108 of the in-coupling region 102 and/or the resulting plurality of gratings 110 of the out-coupling region 106 formed by the method 200, is tuned based on the first index of refraction of the substrate 304 and the strength of the gratings. The refractive index of the coating 322 is tuned based on the first refractive index of the substrate 304 and the strength of the grating to control in-coupling and out-coupling of light and facilitate propagation of light through the waveguide structure 300. For example, the material of surface 306 of substrate 304 has a first index of refraction between about 1.5 and about 2.5, and material 322 of the coating has a second index of refraction between about 1.5 and about 2.5. By matching the refractive indices of the material used to fabricate the substrate 304 and the material of the coating 322, light propagation through both the substrate 304 and the material of the coating 322 can be achieved without significant light refraction at the interface between the surface 306 of the substrate 304 and the material of the coating 322. By utilizing a material of the coating 322 having a refractive index greater than the refractive index of the material used to fabricate the substrate 304, more light will be coupled in and out of the waveguide structure 300 through the light-receiving angle. The materials of the substrate 304 and the coating 322 collectively comprise the waveguide structure 300. By utilizing a material having a refractive index between about 1.5 and about 2.5 for substrate 304, total internal reflection, or at least a high degree of reflection, as compared to the refractive index of air (1.0), is achieved to facilitate light propagation through waveguide structure 300.
At operation 206, the resist 326 is removed to form the waveguide structure 300. In one embodiment, an oxygen-containing compound is used 2 Plasma of F-containing 2 Plasma, containing Cl 2 Plasma and/or containing CH 4 Plasma, by plasma ashThe resist 326 is removed by the chemical etching. In another embodiment, RF power is applied to O 2 And an inert gas such as argon (Ar) or nitrogen (N) until the resist 326 is removed. As shown in fig. 3F, waveguide structure 300 includes region 334. In one embodiment, region 334 corresponds to at least one of input coupling region 102, waveguide region 104, and output coupling region 106 of waveguide combiner 100. Region 334 includes a plurality of gratings 336. In one embodiment, the region 334 includes a plurality of gratings 336 corresponding to at least one of the plurality of gratings 108 of the input coupling region 102, the plurality of gratings 110 of the output coupling region 106, and the waveguide region 104. In one embodiment, grating 336 has a top surface 338 parallel to surface 306 of substrate 304, and sidewall surfaces 340. In one embodiment, each of the sidewall surfaces 340 of the grating 336 is oriented perpendicular to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In another embodiment, each of the sidewall surfaces 340 of the grating 336 is angled relative to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In yet another embodiment, a portion of the sidewall surface 340 is oriented vertically, and a portion of the sidewall surface 340 of the grating 336 is angled relative to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In one embodiment, sidewall surface 340 is angled at an angle between about 15 degrees and about 75 degrees. The grating 336 has depths 342, 344 extending from the surface 306 to the top surface 338 of the substrate 304. In one embodiment, depth 342 and depth 344 are substantially the same. In another embodiment, depth 342 and depth 344 are different.
Fig. 4 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a method 400 for fabricating the waveguide structure 500 shown in fig. 5A-5D. In one embodiment, the waveguide structure 500 corresponds to at least one of the input coupling region 102, the waveguide region 104, and/or the output coupling region 106 of the waveguide combiner 100. In another embodiment, the waveguide structure 500 corresponds to a motherboard of at least one of the input coupling region 102, the waveguide region 104, and the output coupling region 106 of the waveguide combiner 100. At operation 401, a coating 322 is deposited on the negative waveguide structure 512 of the stamp 308. As shown in FIG. 5A, in one embodiment, the deposited coating 322 conforms to the negative waveguide structure 512 of the stamp 308. As shown in FIG. 5B, in one embodiment, the deposited coating 322 is substantially planar with respect to the negative waveguide structure 512 of the stamp 308. Thus, the coating 322 is not necessarily planarized at optional operation 402. At optional operation 402, in one embodiment, planarizing the coating 322 includes mechanical planarization by gravity, thermal reflow, or Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP).
The stamp 308 is molded from a waveguide master and may be made of a translucent material, such as a fused silica or PDMS material, to allow the coating 322 to be cured by exposure to electromagnetic radiation, such as IR radiation or UV radiation. In one embodiment, stamp 308 includes a rigid backing sheet, such as a glass sheet, to add mechanical strength to facilitate deposition and planarization of coating 322.
The coating 322 comprises at least one of an SOG, a flowable SOG, a sol-gel, an organic nanoimprint able material, an inorganic nanoimprint able material, and a mixed (organic and inorganic) nanoimprint able material, such as a SiOC-containing material, a TiO-containing material 2 Material, siO-containing 2 Material, VO-containing x Material, containing Al 2 O 3 Material, ITO-containing material, znO-containing material, and Ta-containing material 2 O 5 Material, containing Si 3 N 4 Material, TIN-containing material and ZrO-containing material 2 At least one of the materials. The coating 322 may be deposited using a liquid material casting process, a spin coating process, a liquid spray coating process, a dry powder coating process, a screen printing process, a doctor blade process, a PVD process, a CVD process, an FCVD process, or an ALD process. In one embodiment, the coating material is doped with a dopant material in order to reduce the melting temperature of the coating material and allow improved flow of the coating material during planarization. The dopant material may include a phosphorus (P) -containing material and/or a boron (B) -containing material that allows for thermal reflow at lower temperatures.
As shown in fig. 5A and 5B, the negative waveguide structure 512 includes a counter region 516. The counter region 516 includes a plurality of counter gratings 520 to form at least one of the plurality of gratings 108 of the input coupling region 102, the plurality of gratings 110 of the output coupling region 106, and the waveguide region 104. In one embodiment, the light reflecting grating 520 has an opposite top surface 522 parallel to the bottom surface 521 of the stamp 308, an opposite sidewall surface 524, and an opposite bottom surface 523 parallel to the bottom surface 521 of the stamp 308. In one embodiment, each of the opposing sidewall surfaces 524 of the reflective grating 520 is oriented perpendicular to the bottom surface 521 of the stamp 308. In another embodiment, each of the opposing sidewall surfaces 524 of the light reflecting grating 520 is angled with respect to the bottom surface 521 of the stamp 308. In another embodiment, the light reflecting grating 520 is a blazed inverse angled grating, including an inverse blazed surface 502 that is angled relative to the bottom surface 521 of the stamp 308 and an inverse sidewall surface 524 that is oriented perpendicular to the bottom surface 521 of the stamp 308. In yet another embodiment, the counter region 516 comprises a blazed inverse angled grating and a plurality of inverse gratings 520, wherein a portion of the inverse sidewall surfaces 524 are oriented vertically and a portion of the inverse sidewall surfaces 524 of the inverse gratings 520 are angled with respect to the bottom surface 521 of the stamp 308. As shown in fig. 5A and 5B, the reflective grating 520 has reverse depths 528, 530 extending from the reverse top surface 522 to the bottom surface 521 of the stamp 308. In one embodiment, inverse depth 528 and inverse depth 530 are substantially the same. In another embodiment, inverse depth 528 and inverse depth 530 are different.
At operation 403, as shown in fig. 5C, a coating 322 is bonded to the surface 306 of the portion 302 of the substrate 304. Optical adhesive 501 is used to bond coating 322 to surface 306 of substrate 304. In one embodiment, optical adhesive 501 may contain a transparent metal oxide material or a transparent acrylic polymer. Optical adhesive 501 has a third index of refraction.
The coating 322 has a second index of refraction that substantially matches or is greater than the first index of refraction of the substrate 304. The second index of refraction of the coating is tuned based on the first index of refraction of the substrate 304 and the strength of the grating, such as the resulting plurality of gratings 108 of the in-coupling region 102 and/or the resulting plurality of gratings 110 of the out-coupling region 106 formed by the method 400. The refractive index of the coating 322 is tuned based on the first refractive index of the substrate 304 and the strength of the grating to control in-coupling and out-coupling of light and facilitate propagation of light through the waveguide structure 500. Also, optical adhesive 501 has a third refractive index that substantially matches the first refractive index and the second refractive index. For example, the material of surface 306 of substrate 304 has a first index of refraction between about 1.5 and about 2.5, the material of optical adhesive 501 has a third index of refraction between about 1.5 and about 2.5, and the material 322 of the coating has a second index of refraction between about 1.5 and about 2.5. By matching the refractive indices of the material used to make substrate 304, the material of optical adhesive 501, and the material of coating 322, it is possible to achieve propagation of light through substrate 304, the material of optical adhesive 501, and the material of coating 322 without significant refraction of light at the interface between substrate 304, the material of optical adhesive 501, and the material of coating 322. By utilizing a material of the coating 322 having a refractive index greater than the refractive index of the material used to fabricate the substrate 304, more light will be coupled in and out of the waveguide structure 500 through the light-receiving angle. By utilizing a material having a refractive index between about 1.5 and about 2.5 for the materials of substrate 304 and optical adhesive 501, as compared to the refractive index of air (1.0), total internal reflection, or at least a high degree of reflection, is achieved to facilitate the propagation of light through waveguide structure 500.
At operation 404, the stamp 308 is released to form the waveguide structure 500. As shown in fig. 5D, the waveguide structure 500 includes a region 534. In one embodiment, the region 534 corresponds to at least one of the input coupling region 102, the waveguide region 104, and the output coupling region 106 of the waveguide combiner 100. The region 534 includes a plurality of gratings 536. In one embodiment, the plurality of gratings 536 corresponds to at least one of the plurality of gratings 108 of the input coupling region 102, the plurality of gratings 110 of the output coupling region 106, and the waveguide region 104. In one embodiment, grating 536 has a top surface 538 parallel to surface 306 of substrate 304, and sidewall surfaces 540. In one embodiment, each of the sidewall surfaces 540 of the grating 536 is oriented perpendicular to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In another embodiment, each of the sidewall surfaces 540 of the grating 536 are angled relative to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In another embodiment, the grating 536 is a blazed angled grating including a blazed surface 506 angled relative to the surface 306 of the substrate 304 and a sidewall surface 540 oriented perpendicular to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. In yet another embodiment, the region 534 includes a blazed angled grating and the grating 536, wherein a portion of the sidewall surface 540 is oriented vertically and a portion of the sidewall surface 540 of the grating 536 is angled relative to the surface 306 of the substrate 304. The grating 536 has depths 542, 544 that extend from the optical adhesive 501 to the top surface 538. In one embodiment, depth 542 and depth 544 are substantially the same. In another embodiment, depth 542 and depth 544 are different.
In summary, a method for manufacturing a waveguide combiner is described herein. The method provides a waveguide combiner having an input coupling region, a waveguide region, and an output coupling region formed of inorganic or hybrid (organic and inorganic) materials that define a fine grating. The inorganic or hybrid waveguide structure is stable, has low light absorption losses, and has an optimum refractive index for propagating light through the waveguide combiner, as compared to an organic resist that is not embossable to form a grating having an optimum refractive index for propagating light through the waveguide.
While the foregoing is directed to examples of the present disclosure, other and further examples are contemplated and the scope of the examples is determined by the appended claims without departing from the basic scope of the disclosure.
Claims (14)
1. A method of fabricating a waveguide structure, comprising:
imprinting a stamp into the resist, the stamp having: a positive waveguide pattern having a plurality of angled stamp structures, the imprinting forming negative waveguide structures, the negative waveguide structures including regions having a residual layer and containing a plurality of inverse gratings, the resist being disposed on a surface of a portion of a substrate, the substrate having a first refractive index, and a portion of a sidewall surface corresponding to each of the plurality of inverse gratings of the angled stamp structures being angled non-perpendicularly with respect to the surface of the substrate;
curing the resist on the surface of the substrate;
releasing the stamp;
removing the residual layer;
depositing a coating having a second index of refraction that matches or is greater than the first index of refraction of the surface of the substrate; and
forming a waveguide structure comprising a region having a plurality of gratings, wherein each grating of the plurality of gratings has a sidewall surface that is non-perpendicular and angled with respect to the surface of the substrate, wherein the coating comprises a silicon oxide containing carbon (SiOC) material, vanadium (IV) oxide (VO) x ) Material, alumina (Al) 2 O 3 ) Material, zinc oxide (ZnO) -containing material, silicon nitride (Si) 3 N 4 ) Material, titanium nitride (TiN) -containing material and zirconium dioxide (ZrO) -containing material 2 ) At least one of the materials.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the region is at least one of an input coupling region, a waveguide region, and an output coupling region of a waveguide combiner.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the plurality of gratings are a plurality of gratings of at least one of the in-coupling region and the out-coupling region.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of inverse gratings has a different inverse depth.
5. A method of fabricating a waveguide structure, comprising:
depositing a coating having a second index of refraction on a negative waveguide structure of a stamp, the negative waveguide structure having a plurality of stamp structures of different depths, the second index of refraction matching or being greater than the first index of refraction of the substrate, and the negative waveguide structure including a region including a plurality of inverse gratings corresponding to the plurality of stamp structures of different depths and each having a different inverse depth;
planarizing the coating;
bonding the coating to a surface of a portion of the substrate; and
releasing the stamp to form a waveguide structure, the waveguideThe structure includes a region comprising a plurality of gratings, each grating of the plurality of gratings having a different depth, wherein the coating comprises a silicon oxide containing carbon (SiOC) material, vanadium (IV) containing oxide (VO) x ) Material, alumina (Al) 2 O 3 ) Material, zinc oxide (ZnO) -containing material, silicon nitride (Si) 3 N 4 ) Material, titanium nitride (TiN) -containing material and zirconium dioxide (ZrO) -containing material 2 ) At least one of the materials.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the depositing of the coating comprises a liquid material casting process, a spin-on process, a liquid spray process, a dry powder coating process, a screen printing process, a doctor blade process, a Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) process, a Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) process, a Flowable CVD (FCVD) process, or an Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) process.
7. The method of claim 5, wherein the plurality of gratings are a plurality of gratings of at least one of an input-coupling region and an output-coupling region of a waveguide combiner.
8. The method of claim 5, wherein the coating is bonded to the surface of the substrate using an optical adhesive, and the optical adhesive has a third refractive index that substantially matches the first refractive index and the second refractive index.
9. The method of claim 5, wherein the plurality of gratings comprise sidewall surfaces that are sloped with respect to the surface of the substrate.
10. A method of fabricating a waveguide structure, comprising:
depositing a coating having a second index of refraction between 1.5 and 2.5 on a negative waveguide structure of a stamp, the negative waveguide structure comprising a plurality of stamp structures of different depths, the coating being substantially planar on the negative waveguide structure, the second index of refraction matching or being greater than a first index of refraction of a substrate between 1.5 and 2.5, and the negative waveguide structure comprising an input coupling area and an output coupling area, and a plurality of inverse gratings of different depths, the plurality of inverse gratings corresponding to the plurality of stamp structures of different depths and each having a different inverse depth extending from an inverse top surface of each inverse grating to a bottom surface of the stamp;
bonding the coating to a surface of a portion of the substrate having disposed thereon an optical adhesive having a third refractive index that substantially matches the first and second refractive indices; and
releasing the stamp to form a waveguide structure having an area including a plurality of gratings, each grating of the plurality of gratings having a different depth extending from a top surface of each grating to an optical adhesive disposed over the substrate,
wherein the coating comprises a carbon-containing silicon oxide (SiOC) material, a vanadium (IV) -containing oxide (VO) x ) Material, alumina (Al) 2 O 3 ) Material, zinc oxide (ZnO) -containing material, silicon nitride (Si) 3 N 4 ) Material, titanium nitride (TiN) -containing material, and zirconium dioxide (ZrO) -containing material 2 ) At least one of the materials.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the optical adhesive comprises a transparent metal oxide material or a transparent acrylic polymer, and wherein the third refractive index is between 1.5 and 2.5.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein the plurality of gratings is a plurality of gratings of at least one of an input-coupling region and an output-coupling region of a waveguide combiner.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein the plurality of gratings comprises a top surface parallel to the surface of the substrate and a sidewall surface that is tilted by an amount relative to the surface of the substrate.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein the plurality of gratings are blazed angled gratings comprising a blazed surface angled relative to the surface of the substrate and a sidewall surface oriented perpendicular to the surface of the substrate.
Applications Claiming Priority (6)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US201762589457P | 2017-11-21 | 2017-11-21 | |
| US62/589,457 | 2017-11-21 | ||
| US201762593756P | 2017-12-01 | 2017-12-01 | |
| US62/593,756 | 2017-12-01 | ||
| PCT/US2018/060641 WO2019103871A1 (en) | 2017-11-21 | 2018-11-13 | Method of fabrication of waveguide combiners |
| CN201880081384.0A CN111480262B (en) | 2017-11-21 | 2018-11-13 | Method of manufacturing waveguide combiner |
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| FI130396B (en) * | 2020-09-23 | 2023-08-10 | Dispelix Oy | Optical Waveguide for Augmented Reality Display |
| WO2022197712A1 (en) * | 2021-03-17 | 2022-09-22 | Applied Materials, Inc. | Airgap structures for improved eyepiece efficiency |
| US20230360890A1 (en) * | 2022-04-13 | 2023-11-09 | Applied Materials, Inc. | Optical device improvement |
| CN117930417A (en) * | 2022-10-14 | 2024-04-26 | Oppo广东移动通信有限公司 | Optical waveguide assembly and augmented reality device |
| WO2024084965A1 (en) * | 2022-10-18 | 2024-04-25 | 東京エレクトロン株式会社 | Diffraction grating formation method |
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| CN111480262A (en) | 2020-07-31 |
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| CN111480262B (en) | 2022-10-25 |
| JP2021504736A (en) | 2021-02-15 |
| JP2022163081A (en) | 2022-10-25 |
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