JPS61284733A - Optical modulator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To display an image having good quality with high resolution by providing an optical element having a heating element for heating a molecular film consisting of org. compd. molecules having a hydrophilic part and hydrophobic part and driving means for driving said heating element. CONSTITUTION:The optical element OE of a transmission type consists of a substrate 1, the heating element 2, a monomolecular film or cumulative film 3 of monomolecular layers and a substrate sheet 4 for protection. the desired position of the element 2 is heated to generate a property change in the heated part 5 of the film 3. The optical path is changed or scattering is generated by the light passing through the part except the heated part 5 and the light passing through the heated part 6 if illuminating light 7 which is parallel light is made incident on the optical element 1 from the substrate 1 side thereof. The change is directly and indirectly detected and is displayed. A wide range of org. compds. having the hydrophobic part and hydrophilic part in the molecules are usable for the molecules constituting the monomolecular film or the cumulative film of the monomolecular layers.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a novel light modulation device that utilizes chemical and physical changes in organic compounds.

[Conventional technology]

Currently, cathode ray tubes (so-called CRTs) are widely used as terminal displays in various office equipment and measuring instruments, or as displays in monitors for televisions and video cameras. However, this CRT has 1 image quality and 1 resolution.
There is still some dissatisfaction that the display capacity does not reach the same level as hard copies using silver halide or electrophotography. In addition, as an alternative to CRT, attempts have been made to commercialize so-called liquid crystal panels that display dot matrix images using liquid crystals, but even with these liquid crystal panels, there are problems with drive performance, reliability, productivity, and durability. I haven't been able to get anything that I'm satisfied with yet.

Liquid crystals are also used as optical switching elements, but they generally have slow response speeds. If you try to improve this, the types of liquid crystals that can be used will be limited, but the liquid crystals themselves will still have a limited operating temperature. Because there are some problems,
It lacks versatility.

At present, an optical element that overcomes the above problems and has excellent versatility and a light modulation device using the same have not yet been obtained.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

The present invention aims to solve problems that could not be solved by the conventional techniques in this technical field.

In other words, one object of the present invention is to provide a novel light modulation device for use in display devices, recording devices, storage devices, etc. that display high-resolution, high-quality images and have excellent drive performance, productivity, durability, and reliability. It is about providing. Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel light modulation device using an optical element made of a monomolecular film or a monomolecular cumulative film of an organic compound.

[Means for solving problems]

The above object is achieved by the present invention as follows.

That is, the present invention comprises a monomolecular film or a monomolecular cumulative film made of organic compound molecules having at least a hydrophilic site and a hydrophobic site, and a heating element for heating the monomolecular film or monomolecular cumulative film. A light modulation device characterized by comprising an optical element and a driving means for driving the heat generating element.

[For production]

The method for producing an optical element used in the light modulation device of the present invention is as follows:
An optical element is produced that includes a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack made of organic compound molecules having at least a hydrophobic part and a hydrophilic part, and a heating element for heating the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack. The method is characterized in that the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack is formed by the Langmuir-Prodgett method.

Examples of optical elements produced by the above method will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the optical element, and the first
Figure (A) shows a transmission type optical element OE, and Figure 1 (B)
1 and 2 respectively indicate reflective optical elements OE. 1 is the board,
2 is a heat generating element, 3 is a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer cumulative film, 4
is a protective substrate.

The image forming principle of the transmission type optical element shown in FIG. 1(A) is as follows.

A desired position of the heat generating element 2 is heated according to a certain pattern for image formation, and a physical property change is caused in the heated portion 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation film 3 on the heated heat generating element 2. When illumination light 7, which is parallel light, is incident from the substrate l side of this optical element, the optical path changes and scattering occurs due to the light passing through parts other than the heating part 5 and the light passing through the heating part 6. Occurs. Capture and display this change directly or indirectly.

In the reflective optical element shown in FIG. 1(B), the irradiation light 7
Contrary to the transmission type, the light enters from the protective substrate 4 side and is reflected by a reflection film (not shown) provided on the substrate 1 side from the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3, and the heating part 5 and the heating part 5 Changes in the optical path of reflected light reflected at other parts are captured and displayed.

As the constituent molecules of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack of the optical element of the present invention, a wide variety of organic compounds can be used as long as they have a hydrophobic part and a hydrophilic part in the molecule.

Examples of such organic compounds include the following.

(1) Higher fatty acids CH8(CH2),, C00H CHl(CH2), 6COOH CH3(CH2),, C00H CH3(CH2)4 (CH=CHCH2), (CH
2) 2 COOC00HCCH(CH2)8COOH CH2= CH(CH2),, C0OH゛CH2=C
H(CH2)2ocooH CH8(CH2), 7CCOOH CH2 CH3(CH2)8C=C-C-C(CH2), C0
0HCH1 (CH2), C-C-C-C (CH2),
C00HCH3(CH2),,C=C-C-C(CH,
), C00HCH3(CH2), 3CmiC-C=C(
CH2)8Coo)! (2) Cyanine dye general formula (I) X - (CH= CH←X In the test, X is a group of ■ or m, y: is a group of ■ to ) Cyanine dye.

(1) (m) (■) (V) (■) (VIE) (+71
1) Go.

In the formulas from (2) to x, Z is N-R1, O, Se.

C(Me) 2 Te, Y is H or 2-Me
R1 is a C1-4 alkyl group, and R2 is a C1-4 alkyl group.
IO~30 general formula! Specific examples of the cyanine dye represented by are illustrated below.

(3) Abu dye (R2 is an alkyl group of c, ., 30) (4)
Phospholipid lecithin sphingomyelin plasmamalogen kephalin (5) Long chain dialkylammonium salt (m is lO~
(an integer of 30) As a method for creating a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer cumulative film using the organic compound, for example, I, Langmu
The Langmuir φ-plodget method developed by Ir et al.
LB method) is used. The Langmuir-Blodgett method is
In molecules with a structure that has a hydrophilic group and a hydrophobic group in the molecule,
When the balance between the two (balance of amphiphilic properties) is maintained appropriately, molecules form a monomolecular layer on the water surface with their hydrophilic groups facing down. This is a method of creating a cumulative film. When the monomolecular layer on the water surface is sparsely dispersed with zero molecules, which has the characteristics of a two-dimensional system,
The two-dimensional ideal gas equation, nA=kT, holds between the area per molecule A and the surface pressure n, resulting in a "gas film", where k is Portzmann's constant and T is the absolute temperature. If A is made sufficiently small, the intermolecular interaction becomes strong, resulting in a two-dimensional solid "condensed film (or solid!l)". The condensed film can be transferred layer by layer to the surface of a substrate such as glass. Using this method, a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack is produced, for example, in the following manner.

First, an organic compound is dissolved in a solvent, and this is expanded into an aqueous phase to precipitate the organic compound in the form of a film.

Next, to prevent this precipitate from freely diffusing on the aqueous phase and spreading too much, a partition plate (or float) is installed to limit the area of development and control the state of aggregation of the film substance, and the Obtain surface pressure ■.

By moving this partition plate, the developed area can be reduced to control the state of aggregation of the film material, and the surface pressure can be gradually increased to set the surface pressure (2) suitable for producing a cumulative film. The monomolecular film is transferred onto the substrate by gently vertically moving the clean substrate up and down while maintaining this surface pressure. A monomolecular layer film is produced as described above, and a monomolecular layer cumulative film having a desired degree of accumulation is formed by repeating the above-mentioned operations.

The film-forming molecules are selected from one or more of the above organic compounds.

The thickness of monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film is 30 to 300g.
m is suitable, and in particular 3000 people to 30 ILm is suitable.

In addition to the above-mentioned vertical dipping method, horizontal deposition method, rotating cylinder method, etc. are used to transfer the monomolecular layer onto the substrate. The horizontal attachment method is a method in which the substrate is transferred by touching it horizontally to the water surface, and the rotating cylinder method is a method in which the substrate is transferred by touching it horizontally to the water surface.
A monomolecular layer is formed by rotating the cylindrical substrate on the water surface.
This method involves transferring it to the surface of one body. In the vertical immersion method described above, when the substrate is raised in a direction across the water surface, a monomolecular layer with the hydrophilic groups facing the substrate is formed on one substrate. As mentioned above, when the substrate is moved up and down, the monomolecular layers overlap one by one in each process.The direction of the film-forming molecules is reversed in the pulling process and the dipping process, so according to this method, the spaces between each layer are hydrophilic. A Y-type film is formed in which the groups face each other, and the hydrophilic groups face each other, and the hydrophobic groups face each other. A schematic diagram of the monomolecular layer cumulative film produced in this manner is shown in FIG.

In the figure, 8-1 is a hydrophilic group, and 8-2 is a hydrophobic group.

On the other hand, the horizontal deposition method is a method in which the substrate is brought into horizontal contact with the water surface and transferred, and a monomolecular layer with hydrophobic groups facing the substrate is formed on the substrate. In this method, there is no change in the orientation of the film-forming molecules even if they are accumulated, and an X-shaped film is formed in which the hydrophobic groups face the substrate in all layers.On the contrary, in all the layers, the hydrophilic groups face the substrate. A cumulative film that is oriented toward is called a Z-type film.

The rotating cylinder method is a method in which a cylindrical substrate is rotated on the water surface to transfer a monomolecular layer onto the surface of the substrate. The method of transferring the monomolecular layer onto the substrate is not limited to these methods, and when using a large-area substrate, a method of extruding the substrate from a substrate roll into an aqueous phase may also be used. Furthermore, the directions of the hydrophilic groups and hydrophobic groups described above toward the substrate are in principle, and can be changed by surface treatment of the substrate, etc.

Other methods for creating a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack include a sputtering method, a plasma polymerization method, and a bilayer film production method.

Examples of materials that can be used as the substrate 1 include glass, metals such as aluminum, plastics, and ceramics. In the case of the transmission type shown in Figure 1 (A), it is preferable to use pressure-resistant and transparent glass or plastic, especially colorless or light-colored ones, and the substrate surface may not be sufficiently cleaned. When the monomolecular layer is transferred from the water surface, the monomolecular layer is disturbed and a good monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation film cannot be formed, so it is necessary to use a substrate with a clean surface.

As the protective substrate 4, pressure-resistant and transparent glass or plastic is suitable as much as possible, and colorless or light-colored ones are particularly preferable. Although this is preferable in order to improve the durability and stability of the cumulative film, the protective substrate may or may not be provided depending on the selection of film-forming molecules.

The heating element 2 generates heat in various forms such as a dot matrix shape (dotted line shape), a dot line shape (dotted line shape), a line shape, an island shape, etc., and heats a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer accumulation film by heat conduction. It is for the purpose of

Examples of the heat generating element 2 include those that utilize radiation heating such as infrared rays, and those that utilize Joule heat such as resistance heating. As the former, various inorganic or organic materials are suitable, such as alloys of Gd, Tb, and Fe, inorganic pigments such as carbon black, organic dyes such as nigrosine, and organic pigments such as azo. For the latter, metal compounds such as hafnium boride and tantalum nitride, and alloys such as nichrome are suitable.From these viewpoints, the film thickness of the heating element 2 affects energy transmission efficiency and resolution.
The preferred thickness of the heat generating element 2 is 2,000 to 2,000.

When the optical element is of a transmissive type, the heating element 2 is required to be transparent to visible light.

However, even if the heating element 2 is not specially provided, the substrate 1 can also serve as the heating element by selecting a substrate material having the above characteristics.

As the reflective film, a metal film, a galvanic mirror, or the like using a high melting point metal material or metal compound material is provided on the substrate 1 side from the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3 by sputtering, vapor deposition, or the like.

Like the heat generating element 2, the reflective film can also serve as the substrate 1 by selecting a material that can reflect light as the material for the substrate 1.

Although the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack on the substrate is sufficiently strongly fixed and there is little evidence of peeling or peeling off from the substrate, in order to strengthen the adhesion, it is necessary to Adhesive layers can also be provided between the membranes or monolayer stacks. Furthermore, monomolecular layer formation conditions LB
In this method, the adhesion force can also be strengthened by selecting the hydrogen ion concentration, ion species, or surface pressure of the aqueous phase, for example.

The above-mentioned change in physical properties in the heating section 5 particularly means a change in optical properties, such as the refractive index, density, and polarization of the molecular aggregates constituting a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack. It means a change in rate etc. and a phase transition. For example, regarding the refractive index, it is assumed that the temperature of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film 3 rises from the temperature t° C. to (t+Δt)° C. due to the heat generated by the heating portion 6 of the heat generating element 2. In this case, the refractive index of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack at a temperature of t°C is N, and this refractive index at a temperature of (t+Δt)°C is N.
+ΔN, the refractive index gradient is ΔN/Δ, −-104(
Although the rate of change in the refractive index, that is, the change in the refractive index with respect to temperature, which is 1/"0), is slight, a minute region of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer accumulation film 3 in the vicinity of the heating section 6 of the heating element is heated. Then, the refractive index gradient in the micro region is large, and therefore, the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3 of this heated micro region
The heating section 5 has power, and light is refracted, scattered, diffracted, etc. in a region where the refractive index gradient is large.

The heating portion 6 of the heat generating element 2 generates heat and is heated to such an extent that the physical properties of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack 3 change as described above, thereby forming the heating portion 5.

Since the other parts of the heating element 2 do not generate heat, there is almost no change in the physical properties of the corresponding monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stacked film 3 in the low temperature region, and the physical properties are approximately uniform. Even in low temperature regions, this is actually due to heat conduction from heating parts, etc.

Although the optical properties will change due to heating, this is relatively negligible in terms of changes in the heated portion.

The illumination light 7 passing through the heating part 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation film is refracted, scattered, diffracted, etc. due to the refractive index gradient (gradient index) thermally generated in this part, and the illumination light 7 passes through the heating part 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation film. The light does not travel straight through the monomolecular layer stacked a film 3, but is refracted and changes its optical path. Therefore, the illumination light 7 that passes through the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer accumulation film and the illumination light 7 that does not pass through it do not become parallel light when they exit the optical element OE. Their injection directions are different from each other 0 heating element 2
When the heating part 6 of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film stops heating, the heating part 5 of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film is cooled and disappears, and the optical element OE
The direction of the illumination light 7 emitted from is all the same direction. Therefore, the illumination light 7 that passes through the high-temperature region of the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation a3, and the illumination light 7 that passes through the low-temperature region of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation film 3 at a portion other than the heating section. are optically identified.

The aforementioned phase transitions are caused by changes in temperature, pressure, etc. The temperature at which a phase transition occurs, that is, the phase transition temperature (Tc
) is specific to each substance, and it is particularly preferable that the organic compound forming the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack has a crystalline phase below Tc and undergoes a phase transition to a liquid crystal phase above Tc.

Further, Tc of 50 to 100°C is suitable; for example, Tc of dialkylammonium salt is 20 to 60°C. Generally, Tc increases with the alkyl chain length. FIG. 3 schematically shows the phase transition phenomenon in the case of a dialkylammonium salt. As mentioned above,
Although the refractive index change is approximately proportional to the temperature change, the refractive index changes significantly before and after Tc. Therefore, it is more preferable to set the heating temperature to Tc or higher. Of course, Tc
It goes without saying that there is no need to set the refractive index higher than Tc if a sufficient refractive index change is obtained below.Furthermore, by appropriately selecting the constituent molecules of the cumulative film, the crystal phase can be changed from the crystal phase to the liquid crystal phase.
Or, it exhibits light scattering or non-light transmission due to a phase transition from a certain type of liquid crystal phase to a certain type of liquid crystal phase. Changes in physical properties other than the refractive index due to phase transition such as light scattering can also be used for image formation.

Although the optical element of the present invention is capable of direct viewing under certain illumination conditions (for example, illumination with parallel light), its use and utility as a display device can be further improved by combining it with an imaging optical system, which will be described later. spread. In the case of direct viewing display using a transmissive optical element, the display pixels are determined based on the difference in the amount of light that reaches an observation eye (not shown) positioned with respect to the direction of the light that has passed through the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film. can be identified. By utilizing light scattering due to phase transition, direct viewing display is simpler and more effective.

In the case of a combination of a reflective optical element and an imaging optical system (to be described later), the imaging position of the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stacked film by the imaging optical system and the position that is not heated by the heating element 2 ( Imaging optics for the low temperature region portion (hereinafter referred to as non-heating section) of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3 (including the case where the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3 is preheated by the heating element 2) Since the imaging positions differ depending on the system, display points can be more clearly identified by defocusing. Therefore, by defocusing, a bright spot can be inverted and displayed as a dark spot. If the imaging optical system described later is not used, parallel light is used as the illumination light 7 to increase the display effect of the optical element, and if a light-shielding grating as described later is attached, the display effect can be dramatically improved. In addition, in Figure 1,
The heating element 2 is in direct contact with the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack 113 to heat the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack, but the heat generating element 2 is placed near the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack. However, the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 may be heated by thermal conduction heating. For example, if one heating element 2 does not reflect light in FIG. A light-reflecting metal film, a dielectric mirror, or the like may be interposed between the film 3 and the heat generating element 2.

Note that in FIG. 1, in order to make the explanation easier to understand, the light flux that enters the optical element OE is shown as parallel light, but it is not limited to parallel light; essentially, the light that enters the optical element OE is a heat-generating element. 2, a high-temperature region of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3, that is, a heating section 5, is formed in the optical path due to the heat generated by the heating section 6 of No. 2. It takes advantage of the fact that change occurs.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an optical element for more specifically explaining the image forming principle of the optical element used in the light modulation device of the present invention, and FIG. 4(A) shows a transmissive optical element. Figure 4 (B
) indicate reflective optical elements.

In the figure, 9 is a radiation absorbing layer that absorbs radiation 10 and generates heat, 3 is a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack, and 4 is a protective substrate. In the reflective optical element OE shown, 11 is a reflective film for reflecting the illumination light 7 used for display, and 12 is for preheating the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3. This is the heating element layer. These reflective film 11 and heat generating layer 12 are not necessarily required for the optical element OE, but are provided as necessary. For example, when the radiation absorbing layer 9 has light reflectivity, the reflection@11 is not used, and also when the radiation intensity is sufficiently strong, the heating layer 12 is not necessary. However, since the heat generating layer 12 will be described later, the description will be made assuming that the heat generating layer 12 is not present in FIG. 4(B). Further, the heating element layer 12 is also provided in the transmission type optical element shown in FIG. 4(A) as necessary. The radiation absorbing layer 9 efficiently absorbs radiation, particularly infrared rays, and generates heat, but it must itself be difficult to melt due to heat generation.This radiation absorbing layer 9 is made of various inorganic or Obtained by depositing organic materials into films (including multilayer films). Since the radiation absorbing layer 9 itself has a thickness of only a few layers, it generally lacks a supporting function, so it is common to add a radiation transparent support plate made of glass, plastic, etc. (not shown) as a substrate. . There are the above-mentioned types of organic compounds constituting the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3, and those that are generally transparent to visible light are suitable;
Reference numeral 13 denotes a grating, which may or may not be transparent to O, and when the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 is not heated, it enters the optical element and converts the transmissive optical element. Illumination light 7 that is transmitted or reflected by a reflective optical element and exits from the optical element is blocked. When the optical element OE configured in this way is irradiated with radiation (particularly infrared rays) 10 from the right side of the drawing, corresponding points on the radiation absorption layer 9 generate heat. When a part of the radiation absorption M9 generates heat in this way, the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack 3 in the part that is in contact with or in close proximity to it is heated by thermal conduction, and the temperature rises. Its physical properties change from before heating, and a heated portion 5 in a high temperature region of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 is formed. The illumination light 7 passing through this heating section 5 is
, its optical path is changed by the mechanism described above in FIG. When at least a part of the illumination light 7 that has undergone this optical path change exits the optical element OE,
It passes through the opening in the grid 13. On the other hand, all of the illumination light 7 that does not pass through the heating section 5 is blocked by the grating 13, so when viewing the optical element OE through the grating 13, the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation on which the heating section 5 is formed The illumination light passing through the membrane part and the illumination light 7 passing through the non-heated part are distinguished.

Of course, if the illumination light 7 passing through the non-heating part is made to pass through the opening of the grating 13, the illumination light 7 passing through this part will be blocked by the grating 13 when the heating part 5 is formed. There is also an opening in the grating 13 through which the illumination light 7 does not pass.
An optical element having the opposite form to the above-mentioned example is also possible.

Even when there is no grating 13, the direction of the illumination light 7 passing through the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 and the direction of the illumination light 7 passing through the non-heating section are the same as those emitted from the optical element OE. Since the illumination light beams 7 are different from each other, the illumination light beams 7 can be optically distinguished when viewed in the direction in which either one of the light beams comes.

In addition, when irradiating the optical element OE with radiation lO,
It is possible to irradiate in a pattern corresponding to a predetermined image, or it is possible to use a laser light source to irradiate a large number of beams at once in a dot shape using the radiation 10 as a beam. Alternatively, a method may be adopted in which one line beam is scanned over the radiation absorbing N9.

Furthermore, in the case of the transmission type optical element OE shown in FIG. 4(A), the direction in which the radiation 10 is irradiated is not limited to the illustrated example; When the radiation 10 passes through the molecular layer aM3, it is also possible to irradiate the radiation 10 from the left side of the drawing.

Incidentally, the display is erased naturally by cooling the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack 3.

Although the method for forming display pixels by radiation heating has been described above, in the present invention, the radiation absorbing layer 9 in FIG. It is also possible to modify the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack by bringing a heating element (not shown) in close proximity to or in contact with this to heat the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack by conduction.

In the present invention, in order to further enhance the discrimination effect of display pixels, visible light reflection 11111 may be separately interposed between the radiation absorbing layer 9 and the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film as described above. . Such a reflective film 11 needs to be formed of a high melting point metal material or metal compound material that does not melt itself during heat conduction.

In order to obtain an effective display in the optical element used in the present invention, it is necessary to heat the surface of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack 3 in contact with the radiation absorption layer 9 and its vicinity. It is not a requirement that the heating extends to the surface of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 that is in contact with the protective substrate 4 and its vicinity.

However, the higher the temperature of the surface of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 that is in contact with the heating surface of the radiation absorption layer 9 and its vicinity is higher than the temperature of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 in the surrounding area, the more the optical Experiments have shown that the display contrast of element OE is improved. Furthermore, if this is actively utilized, it becomes possible to display halftones by varying the amount of heat for heating the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack 3.

Incidentally, the smaller the diameter of the irradiation spot for irradiating the radiation 10 onto the radiation absorption layer 9, the better the contrast of the display, and the suitable spot diameter (diameter) of the radiation 10 is 0.5 g to 1 oo. be.

However, even if the radiation absorbing layer 9 is irradiated with the radiation 10 in the form of a rectangular light beam having a width of 2 mm and a length of 10 mm, a displayed image can be obtained. In the detailed description of the present invention, the heating section 5 of a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stacked film, which is often used, includes the latter range. However, even if the heating part 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation film is not very small, the temperature of the heating surface is not uniform, so the direction of the optical path of light in the heating part 5 and the optical path of light in the non-heating part are different. If there is a difference in direction, a discrimination effect will occur. therefore.

In the present invention, the heating portion 5 of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack is not limited to a minute range.

In the optical element used in the present invention, as shown in FIG. 4(B), in order to greatly accelerate the formation speed of the heating portion 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film as one display pixel, reflection If no film is used, and if a reflective film is used between the radiation absorbing layer 9 and the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3 of the optical element OE, the difference between the radiation absorbing layer 9 and the reflective film 11 is In some cases, it may be desirable to preheat a predetermined monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack by providing a heat generating layer 12 that generates heat by Joule heat between the two layers. At this time, the radiation absorbing layer 9 or the reflective film 1
When 1 is a conductor, it is desirable to provide an insulating layer (not shown) between the conductor and the heating element layer 12.

As such a heating element layer 12, a linear heating element or a grid heating element (none of which are shown) corresponding to one or more scanning lines of a radiation beam is suitable. When 12 is a linear heating element, it is thought that good display results can be obtained because the heating portion is minute in the width direction.

At this time, it is preferable to synchronize the irradiation of the radiation 10 onto the radiation absorbing layer 9 and the heating of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 by the heating element layer 12.

Examples of the material for the heating element layer I2 include metal compounds such as hafnium boride and tantalum nitride, and alloys such as nichrome.

Furthermore, in the present invention, the structure of the optical element in which a corrosive component comes into direct contact with the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack aS should be avoided since it will shorten the life of the element. It is. This is because in a configuration in which a corrosive component is in contact with a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack, chemical corrosion, thermal oxidation, etc. occur, and the optical element is often damaged or deteriorated.

Therefore, in such cases, it is desirable to form a corrosion-resistant protective film (not shown) at the interface between the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack and the corrosive component. Examples of the material for this protective film include dielectric materials such as silicon oxide and titanium oxide, heat-resistant plastics, and the like. A reflective film may also serve as this protective film.

Note that when a metal or the like is used as the radiation absorption layer 9, it is generally formed into a film on a radiation-transparent support plate as a substrate. There is no need to worry about it being oxidized by external air.

If the radiation absorption rate of the radiation absorption layer 9 is not perfect,
An anti-reflection coating (not shown) is provided on the side to which the radiation 10 is irradiated.
By applying this, the absorption rate of the radiation 10 of the radiation absorption layer 9 can be significantly increased.

Next, the light valve type projection device will be explained with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. A light valve refers to a device that controls or modulates light, thus converting light from an independent light source into a suitable medium (in the case of the present invention, a monolayer film or a monolayer stack of optical elements). This includes all displays that are controlled and projected onto a screen. Compared to self-luminous displays such as cathode ray tubes, this method can theoretically increase the size and brightness of the display screen by increasing the intensity of the light source used, so it is especially suitable for large screen displays that require a large amount of light. suitable for Among them, the one shown in Figure 5 is also called a schlieren light bulb.
Depending on the input signal, patterns with different refraction angles, diffraction angles, or reflection angles of light or patterns due to scattering are created in the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack film that is the control medium, and the changes are visualized as bright and dark images using a schlieren optical system. Convert to .

This is a method of projecting onto a screen.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram for explaining the basic principle of the display device. The images of each slit of the first grating 13a are arranged so as to be respectively formed by a schlieren lens 14 onto each bar of the second grating 13b so as to be shielded from light. The monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 81 film as a medium of the transmission type optical element OE placed between the Schlieren lens 14 and the second grating 13b is not heated, and its physical properties (for example, refractive index) is uniformly smooth, the first grating 13a
All incident light that has passed through the optical element OE is blocked by the second grating 13b and does not reach the screen 15.
When a part of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 3 is heated by the heat generating element to a high temperature and a heated portion 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film is formed, the optical path of light passing therethrough is increased. changes as described above, so the incident light 16 passing through it changes
reaches the screen 15 through the gap (opening) of the second lattice 13b without being blocked by the second lattice 13b.

Therefore, if the imaging lens 17 is arranged so that the heating surface heating the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film of the optical element OE or the medium surface in the vicinity thereof is imaged on the screen 15, A bright and dark image corresponding to the amount of temperature change of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film of the optical element OE is obtained on the screen 15. Note that the first and second gratings 13a used for this
The openings 13b and 13b may be linear or dotted.

FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of a transmission type light valve type projection device, and shows an example of arrangement of signal input means for transmission type optical elements. 13a is a first grating, OE is a transmission type optical element, 14 is a Schley lens, 13b is a second grating, 17
1 is an imaging lens, and 15 is a screen, the construction of which is similar to that of the display device shown in FIG. Radiation modulated through a laser light source and a light modulator (not shown) (mainly,
The signal light (infrared rays) 10 is horizontally scanned by a rotating polygon mirror as a horizontal scanner 18, vertically scanned via a lens 20, by a rotating polygon mirror or a galvano mirror as a vertical scanner 19, and reflected by a cold filter 21. 4. An image is formed on the radiation absorption layer 9 using the transmission type optical element shown in Fig. 4 (A), and the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film is heated in a dot matrix shape to form a monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film. A two-dimensional image of the heated portion 5 of the membrane is formed. on the other hand,
Since the incident light 16 that has passed through the first grating 13a passes through the cold filter 21, the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film of the optical element OE is placed on the screen 15 by the mechanism described above in FIG. It forms a two-dimensional visible image corresponding to the Of course, the radiation absorbing layer of the optical element OE used in this figure must be transparent to visible light.

Note that if a semiconductor laser array or a light emitting diode array (arrayed in a line) is used, the horizontal scanner can be omitted. Also, cold filter and galvano mirror
may be shared.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a light valve type projection device as a display device using the light modulation method according to the present invention.

22 is a video generation circuit that generates a video signal.

23 controls the video signal and sends this signal to the video amplification circuit 24
and a control circuit for supplying the horizontal and vertical drive circuits 25;
26 is a laser light source; 27 is an optical modulator that modulates the laser beam from the laser light source according to a signal from the video amplification circuit 24;

The light modulated by the optical modulator 27 is transmitted to the horizontal scanner 1
8 or vertical scanner 19. Further, the horizontal scanner 18 and the vertical scanner 19 operate in response to drive signals synchronized with the video signals from the horizontal and vertical drive circuits 25, respectively. The configuration of the other portions within the broken line is the same as the configuration described above, so the description thereof will be omitted.

The video signal output from the video generation circuit 22 is sent to the control circuit 2.
3 and is amplified by the video amplification circuit 24. The optical modulator 27 is driven by input of the amplified video signal and modulates the laser beam emitted from the laser light source 26. on the other hand,
A horizontal synchronization signal and a vertical synchronization signal are output from the control circuit 23 and drive the horizontal scanner 18 and vertical scanner 19 via the horizontal and vertical drive circuits 25, respectively. In this way, a thermal two-dimensional image is formed in the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack of the optical element OE.The subsequent configuration operations within the broken line are as described above and are omitted here for simplicity. do. Note that when receiving TV radio waves, a receiver may be used instead of the video generation circuit 22.

FIG. 8 is an example of a color optical element used in the light modulation device of the present invention. For convenience of explanation, the upper half is a transmissive optical element and the lower half is a reflective optical element. be. 9 is a radiation absorption layer, 11 is a reflective film, which is not provided in the transmission type optical element shown in the upper half of the figure; 2
Reference numeral 8 is a color mosaic filter, and its specific configuration and manufacturing technology have already been explained in detail in Japanese Patent Publications No. 52-13094 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 52-36019. Detailed explanations will be omitted here as these will be referred to.

3 is a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack, 4 is a protective substrate,
28 indicates a color mosaic filter.

In the illustrated example, the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack 3 in contact with the red filter portion (R) of the color mosaic filter 28 is heated by thermal conduction by the radiation absorbing layer 9 that absorbs the radiation lO, Heating section 5 of monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film
When this occurs, the collimated illumination light 7 that has been reflected by the reflective film 11 or transmitted through the radiation absorption layer 9 passes through the heating section 5 of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer accumulation film, thereby causing
Due to the mechanism described above, the light passes through a bent optical path as shown by the two-dot chain line, which is different from the optical path of the light that would have passed in the absence of the heating section 5 as shown by the broken line.

The light is emitted outside the optical element OE. When white light enters the red filter section (R), the transmitted light or reflected light coming out of the display element DE is:

Red is the only visible light (hereinafter referred to as red light),
The path of the light passing through the blue filter section (B) and the green filter section (G) is also the same as the path of the light passing through the red filter section (R). However, in the case of FIG. 8, only the light rays that do not pass through the heating section 5 are shown for the green filter section (G). Furthermore, when the incident light is white light, the light that has passed through the blue filter section (B) is only the light that makes blue visible (hereinafter referred to as blue light), and the light that has passed through the green filter section (G). The optical element OE is directed toward the direction of the light that passes through the heating section 5 of this monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film, which is only the light that makes green visible (hereinafter referred to as green light). When viewed, an unillustrated observer
For example, the red filter section (R), the green filter section (G), and the blue filter section (
When the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack 3 is simultaneously heated to form the heated portion 5 in step B), an observer (not shown) can see a white color.

Further, as explained in FIG. 4, only the light coming out of the optical element OE and passing through the heating section 5 of the internal molecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film is filtered through a light-shielding grating (not shown). By passing the light through the aperture, a clearer pseudo-color display using an additive coloring method can be obtained.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of another optical element used in the light modulation device of the present invention, and FIG. 9(A) is a transmissive type, and FIG.
B) is in Figure 0 showing reflective optical elements, respectively.
3 is a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer cumulative film, 4 is a protective substrate, 2
8 indicates a color mosaic filter, which are shown in FIG.

This is an element having the same function as that explained in FIG.

29 is a thermally conductive insulating layer, on both sides of which a plurality of heat generating resistance wires 30 and 31 as heat generating elements are arranged in a matrix pattern so as to intersect each other with the insulating layer in between. be.

Reference numeral 1 designates a substrate as a support plate for these heat generating resistance wires 30 and 31 and the insulating layer 29. In the case of the transmission type optical element DE shown in FIG. 9(A), these heating resistance wires 30, 31.
The substrate 1 and the insulating layer 29 are transparent, and the heating resistance wires 30 and 31 are made of a transparent thin film of indium tin oxide, for example. And these display elements D
In E, the predetermined heating resistance &! The design is such that only when both 30 and 31 are selected and heat is generated, a heating region (not shown) in a high temperature region that can be displayed in the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film 3 is formed in the intersection region of both. It is. The color mosaic filter may be provided at least at the intersection of the heating resistance wires 30 and 31, and the reflective film 11 may be provided as necessary, as described above in FIG.

Next, an example of driving such optical elements in a matrix will be described in more detail using FIG. 10.

In the figure, OE indicates an optical element, and this optical element OE L* has the same detailed configuration as explained in FIG.
X l, X m, X n, X o, X
p (7) Heat generating resistance wire on the row axis (these are called row lines)
The column line Yc is made up of Yc, Yd, and Ye column-axis heating resistance wires (these are called column lines).

One of Yd and Ye is connected to a common DC power supply, and the other is emitter-grounded and connected to transistors Tr1 to Tr.
It is connected to the collector side of 3.

Row lines X l , X m , X n , X o ,
X P D sequentially.

When a heating current pulse is applied, the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film (not shown) corresponding to these row lines is sequentially heated linearly. Or, since it is set to be below the heating display threshold of the monomolecular layer cumulative film, a heating area in the high temperature region for heating display does not occur in the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film. By applying a video signal pulse to the base sides of the transistors Tr1 to Tr3 whose emitters are grounded in synchronization with the application of a current signal to turn on the transistors Tr1 to Tr3.

A predetermined video signal is applied to the 0 column lines Yc, Yd, and Ye connected to these transistors Tr1 to Tr3, respectively. By applying this video signal, the first column conductor Yc
, Yd, and Ye are linearly heated. As a result, at the intersection of the row line and the column line where the heating current pulse and the video signal are synchronized, heat is generated additively from both, and the degree of heating of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer accumulation film increases. Beyond the display threshold,
A heating portion 5 of a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack is formed at the intersection of the selected row line and column line.

Note that in the above example, even when the driving method is changed as follows, images can be formed in exactly the same way. That is, even if a modification is made in which a video signal is applied to the row lines and a heating current signal is applied to the column lines, the effect is exactly the same. In this way, the optical element OE illustrated in FIG. 10 also enables matrix driving. When the thickness of the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film of the optical element OE is very thin, it is possible to install heating resistance wires arranged in stripes on both the protective substrate side and the substrate side as described above. , the following effects occur.

■ The manufacturing process is simplified and the yield is improved.

■ Thermal efficiency is good because the monomolecular film or monomolecular layer stack is heated from both sides.

etc.

In order to enhance the heat dissipation effect of the heat-generating resistance wire, it is desirable to separately provide a heat sink.The board 1 (FIG. 9) can be used as a substitute for this heat sink.

Incidentally, it is not necessary that all of both signal lines be formed of heat-generating resistors; rather, in order to save energy, only the crossing portions of row lines and column lines are formed of heat-generating resistors.
It can be said that it is preferable to construct the other parts with good conductors such as A and G, but this has the disadvantage that the manufacturing process becomes complicated.

Further, another example of a heat generating element as a heat generating element for configuring an optical element suitable for performing matrix drive as shown in the 1θth figure will be explained with reference to FIG.

FIG. 11 is an external perspective view schematically depicting a part of the heat generating element. In FIG. 1, 32 indicates a heat generating resistance layer;
This can be obtained by forming a film of a known heating resistor (for example, nichrome alloy, hafnium boride, tantalum nitride, etc.) into a planar shape.

Although not shown, the resistance layer 32 also extends downward in the drawing, as well as 33a, 33b, 33c,
33d are all column conductors, 34a, 34b, 34c
are all row conductors. And all these wires are
Obtained from good conductors such as gold, silver, copper, and aluminum (
Although not mentioned, the conductor wire is made of a 5i02 insulating film (
In the illustrated heating element, for example, when column conductor 33b and row conductor 34c are selected and a voltage is applied to both.

Electricity is applied to a part of the resistance layer 32 corresponding to the intersection 35 of the two, and heat is generated.

In this way, any (row/column) intersection of the row conductor and the column conductor can be heated.

Therefore, the heating element shown in FIG.
In the optical element incorporated in place of the heating element made of the insulating layer 29, a dot matrix image can be displayed using the same matrix driving method as in the example shown in FIG.

By the way, in the heating element shown in FIG. 11, the heating resistance layer 32 may be divided and provided only at the intersection of the row conducting wire 34 and the column conducting wire 33 (the conducting wires may be insulated from each other in other areas). This is possible, and in such a configuration (FIG. 12), it is possible to substantially prevent the occurrence of losstalk, which is inconvenient for image formation faithful to the signal.

In the example of FIG. 11, the row conductor 34a.

34b-... (hereinafter referred to as row conductor 34) and column conductor 3
3a, 33bs** (hereinafter referred to as row conductor 33) is 5
i02. Although they are provided through an insulating film (not shown) such as Si3N4, the insulating film in the intersection area of the first row conductor 34 and the column conductor 33 is removed.

Instead, heating resistors 32a, 32b, . . . (hereinafter referred to as heating resistors 32) are embedded in those portions.

Next, in FIG. 13, the heating element as the heating element shown in FIG. 12 is connected to the heating resistance wire 30.3 shown in FIG.
An example in which an optical element incorporated in place of the heating element consisting of the heating element 1 and the insulating layer 29 is driven in a matrix will be described in more detail. The bamboo wheel selection circuit 36 is a rod shaft drive circuit 37a.

37b... (hereinafter referred to as the rod shaft drive circuit 37) by a signal line, and furthermore, each output terminal of each rod shaft drive circuit 37 is connected to a respective row conductor 34. ing. There are various ways to connect the output terminals and the row conducting wires 34, but in order to explain the basic aspect in this specification, it is assumed that there are as many output terminals as there are row conducting wires 34,
It is assumed that one output terminal is connected to the negative row conductor.

Outer axis selection circuit 38, column axis drive circuit 39a.

39b, ...... (hereinafter referred to as the column axis drive circuit 39) and the column conductor wires 33.
The image control circuit 40 is electrically connected to the bamboo wheel selection circuit 36 and the outer axis selection circuit 38 by signal lines. Direct what to choose.

The same applies to the outer axis selection circuit 38. That is, the chikuwa selection circuit 3 is controlled by the image control signal from the image control circuit 40.
6 is a specific bamboo wheel (
For example, if the bamboo wheel selection circuit 36 selects the row conductor Xp, it will issue an Xp row selection signal, and in response, the rod drive circuit 37Xp will select (switch on) the row conductor Xp. Also inputs the rod shaft drive signal. On the other hand, when a video signal, which is one of the image control signals from the image control circuit 40, is input to the outer axis selection circuit 38, in response to the command, the outer axis selection circuit 38 selects a predetermined column axis (column conductor). Select 0
For example, if the outer axis selection circuit 38 selects the column conductor Ye, 1
The column axis drive circuit 39Ye receives the Ye column selection signal issued from the outer axis selection circuit 38 and switches on (conducts) the column conductor line Ye.

If the selection of the bamboo wheel and the selection of the column axis are performed synchronously, in this example, the intersection point of the row conductor XP and the column conductor Ye (selection point; xp
-Ye), current flows through the heating resistor, generating Joule heat.

A heating portion is formed in a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack (not shown). Although a leakage current flows also at the non-selected points, the current value is less than the current value for forming the heating part of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack, so that no heating part is formed in the monomolecular film or the monomolecular stack stack. Further, by providing the heating resistor with a diode function, the leakage current can be made even weaker.

In this way, in the same way as explained in FIG. 10, in FIG. 13, line-sequential scanning is performed using the bamboo wheel drive signal, and in synchronization with this, the column axis selection signal is output, and the column axis drive circuit 39 A two-dimensional image display can be performed by bringing the selected column conducting wire 33 into a conductive state via the conductive line 33. The first column axis selection circuit 38 receives a command from a video signal and outputs a column axis selection signal. At this time, such a row and column axis selection circuit 3 does not matter the direction of the current flowing through the heating resistor.
The row and column axis selection circuits 6.38 and 37.39 are constructed by known techniques using shift transistors, transistor arrays, and the like.

In addition, in the matrix drive display system using the heat generating elements described above, as described above in FIG. 4(B), the optical element OE having the configuration shown in FIG. 9 CB) also
If necessary, a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer cumulative film 3, a reflective film or a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer cumulative film 3, and a heating element (
For example, by interposing a corrosion-resistant silicon oxide film or silicon nitride film between the heat-generating resistance wire 30), reaction corrosion between the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film and these can be prevented as appropriate. can.

In addition, the red filter part (R), the green filter part (G), and the blue filter part (B) of the color mosaic filter shown in FIG. In optical element DE, heating resistor &1
By arranging them at the intersection of 30 and 31 (or, in the case of the heating element shown in FIG. 12, on the heating resistor 32), a structure similar to the example shown in FIG. Of course, by employing this, color display can be performed using the same principle as in FIG. 8 with a display element using the heating elements shown in FIGS. 9 and 12, respectively.

Such a matrix-driven optical element can also be applied to the light pulp type projection device shown in Figures 5 and 6. Light, light, and
It is also possible to obtain an optical element having a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack that can be controlled by electric ions or the like.

FIG. 14 shows an embodiment of the optical modulation device of the present invention. An optical element 41 capable of generating a refractive index distribution in a two-dimensional pattern is irradiated with a light beam from a light beam generating means 40 consisting of a light source 40a and a collimator lens 40b. The light flux that is not diverged by the refractive index distribution is condensed by the lens 42 and blocked by a light shielding filter 43 provided at the focal plane of the lens 42. The optical element 41
Since the light beam scattering position of is set to almost coincide with the other focal plane of the lens 42, the light beam diverged by the optical element 41 becomes a substantially parallel light beam at the lens 42, and the light beam scattered by the lens 41
5, an image is formed on the photosensitive medium surface 46 to form a two-dimensional image according to the pattern of the refractive index distribution. lens 42
By disposing a deflecting mirror 44 between the lens 45 and the lens 45 to deflect the diverging light beam, the two-dimensional scanning image described above can be obtained on the photoreceptor surface 46.

For example, if it is designed so that various character patterns can be formed by the refractive index distribution using the optical element that generates the refractive index distribution two-dimensionally, it can be realized as a printer-terminal device such as a word processor. The rotation of the deflection mirror is preferably one intermittent rotation because the optical element 41 does not simultaneously produce a refractive index distribution over the entire surface.

Furthermore, even in optical elements that can form two-dimensional patterns,
It goes without saying that a transmitted light type optical element as shown in FIG. 9(A) can be obtained.

In the above embodiment, an example was described in which a refractive index distribution was formed using a heating resistor, but in order to obtain a refractive index distribution,
It is also possible to obtain heat by scanning a light beam and converting the scanned beam into heat. FIG. 15 shows an embodiment in which a refractive index distribution is formed by scanning a light beam, and the optical element OE includes a transparent protection plate 54, a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer cumulative film layer 55, and a thermally conductive insulator. Layer 56 and transparent support 5
7, and a heat absorbing layer 58 is provided on the support body 57. 59 is a self-modulating semiconductor laser, and the light beam from the laser 59 is passed through a collimator lens 6.
0, the beam becomes a parallel beam and is imaged onto the heat absorption layer 58 by a scanning condensing lens 62 via a galvanometer mirror 61. This heat absorption layer 58 is made of a material that particularly absorbs the light beam of the wavelength from the semiconductor laser 59,
Therefore, the light flux passing through the absorption layer 58 is approximately zero.

The scanning optical system is set so that when the galvanometer mirror 61 is rotated around the rotation axis, the light beam spot moves in the direction of arrow A2 along the absorption layer 58. In the region of the absorption layer 58 where the beam spot by the semiconductor laser 59 is formed, the light beam is converted into heat, and a refractive index distribution is imparted to the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer cumulative film via the insulating layer 56. Form. Therefore, by turning on and off the beam emitted from the semiconductor laser as the galvanomirror 61 rotates, it is possible to form a refractive index distribution at a desired position.

The optical system for projecting the light beam diverging due to the refractive index distribution and guiding the diverging light to the light-receiving medium is as follows.

It goes without saying that all of the above-mentioned reflection type optical systems can be used, so their explanation will be omitted here.

Further, by providing the heat absorption layer 58 on the entire surface and using a two-dimensional scanning optical system as a scanning optical system that irradiates the absorption layer with a light beam, a light modulation device using a refractive index distribution having a two-dimensional pattern is obtained. I can do it.

The main effects of the present invention are summarized as follows.

(1) 1 of the heating part of a minute monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer cumulative film
Since these pixels can be arranged in high density as display pixel units, high resolution images can be displayed.

(2) Still images or moving images including slow motion can be easily displayed by adjusting the duration of the heating portion of the monomolecular film or the monomolecular layer stack as display pixels.

(3) Multicolor display and full color display can be easily implemented.

(4) Since the structure of the device is relatively simple, productivity is excellent, and the device has high durability and reliability.

r R'+rf*[II? P l[R 纏h -#
-! p t= -1 a -pa capital X
(6) Since a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer cumulative film can be produced using the Langmuir-Blodgett method, it is extremely easy to increase the area. (7) Since no liquid such as liquid crystal is used, manufacturing is easy and safe.

(8) Optical elements using the light modulation method according to the present invention include:
Application is not limited to display devices, but also to light modulation devices used in electrophotography and the like.

(9) Since the phase transition temperature is not so high, less power is required for optical elements, etc., and the power supply section, that is, the light modulation device and the display device, can be made smaller accordingly.

(10) When utilizing the phase transition of a monomolecular film or a monomolecular layer stack, some molecules maintain the phase transition state for a long time depending on the structure of the molecules constituting the stack. In such a case, the optical element according to the present invention can also be used as a recording device (material) or a storage device (material).

In order to explain the present invention more specifically, Examples are given below.

Example! An optical element was manufactured as follows.

Gd@Tb.Fe (gadolinium.
A layer of terbium (iron) was deposited to form a radiation absorbing layer 9. In order to prevent oxidation of this Gd/TbeFe layer,
It was coated with a 5io2 protective film over it.

Next, after thoroughly cleaning the above board, the
LBII production equipment (T r
o u g h-4) (F)4X 10-4 mol
of cdct2.

Thereafter, 0.1 ml of a chloroform solution containing 5XIO-3 moles of alaxic acid was dropped into the aqueous phase using a syringe. After volatilization of chloroform, the surface pressure of the monomolecular layer of araxic acid was adjusted to 30 dyne/cm'', and by repeating pulling and dipping at a speed of 1 cm/min, a film thickness of 5 was formed on the surface of the 5i02 membrane. A Y-shaped cumulative film of ~10 mm was deposited and a glass substrate was placed thereon as a protective substrate 4.Furthermore, a linear grating of 5 mm/mm was formed closely or close to the outer surface of the glass substrate 4. was installed.

A semiconductor laser that emits light at a wavelength of 830 nm was used as a radiant heat source. The alchidic acid was heated by irradiation with a semiconductor laser, and the wavefront of the incident light beam passing through it was deformed, resulting in a light modulation effect.

Example 2 An optical element was manufactured as follows.

On the surface of a 50 m square glass substrate, a 1500 mm thick indium tin oxide (T0) was applied by sputtering, and a linear pattern of 10 wood/mm was formed using the 0-order photoetching method. As a result, a transparent heat generating resistance wire 31 was obtained. As the etching solution for I@T-0, a mixed solution of ferric chloride aqueous solution and hydrochloric acid was used.

Next, an insulating layer 29 was formed by depositing a 2,000-thick 5i02 film on the surface of the glass substrate on which the transparent heating resistance wire 31 was placed by sputtering. Furthermore, a film thickness of 1,500 mm was applied thereon, and a transparent heat generating resistor wire 30 was formed perpendicularly to the transparent heat generating resistor wire 31 by photo-etching.

Next, a cumulative film of stearic acid was deposited on the above substrate in Example 1.
A film was formed to a thickness of 5 to 10 ILm according to the same conditions and steps as described above, and a glass substrate 4 was placed thereon.

A semiconductor laser that emits light at a wavelength of 830 nm was used as a radiant heat source.

It has been confirmed that when driven in combination with a suitable Schlieren optical system as shown in FIG. 5, a predetermined light modulation effect can be obtained. That is, a predetermined portion of the stearic acid layer was heated by the irradiation with the semiconductor laser, and the wavefront of the incident light flux passing through the predetermined portion was deformed.

Example 3 An optical element was manufactured as follows.

A radiation absorption layer 9 was formed by depositing a Gd11Tb.Fe (gadolinium terbium iron) layer with a thickness of 1500 on the surface of a 50 mm square glass substrate by sputtering. In order to prevent oxidation of this Gd-Tb a Fe layer, a 0-order, LB
A monomolecular film of cadmium araxinate was formed on the water surface of the film fabrication device, and a Y-type cumulative film with a thickness of 10 ILm was deposited on the surface of the Si02 film by a vertical dipping method, and a protective substrate 4 was placed on top of it. A glass substrate was then covered. Furthermore, 5 wood/m closely or in close proximity to the outer surface of the glass substrate 4.
A linear grid of m was installed.

As shown in Figure 5, as a radiant heat source.

A semiconductor laser that emits light at a wavelength of 830 nm was used. It was confirmed that a certain display effect could be achieved when driven under appropriate transmitted illumination.

Example 4 An optical element was manufactured as follows.

On the surface of a 50 mm square glass substrate, a 1500 mm thick indium tin Φ oxide (T0) was deposited by sputtering, and a linear pattern of 10 mm/m layer was formed using the 0-order photoetching method. Thus, a transparent heat generating resistance wire 31 is obtained. As the etching solution for T.O., a mixed solution of ferric chloride aqueous solution and hydrochloric acid was used.

Next, on the surface of the glass substrate on which the transparent heating resistance wire 31 was installed, a 5to2 film having a thickness of 2000 was deposited by sputtering to form the insulating layer 29. Furthermore, a film thickness of 1,500 people was added on top of the transparent heat-generating resistor wire 30 using a photo-etching method.
A monomolecular film of cadmium 7-rachidate was formed on the water surface of the LB film production device, and
A Y-shaped cumulative film having a film thickness of 10 m was formed on the surface of the 5i02 film by a vertical dipping method, and a glass substrate 4 was placed thereon. When operated under the above-mentioned transmitted illumination optical system, a predetermined display effect was obtained.

Example 5 An optical element was manufactured as follows.

Gd, Tb, Fe (gadolinium,
A radiation absorbing layer 9 was formed by depositing a TV ram layer. In order to prevent oxidation of this Gd/Tb@Fe layer,
It was then coated with a Si02 overcoat.

Next, after thoroughly cleaning the above board, Joysuleple (J
oyce-Loebl) LBI! ! Fabrication device (Trough-4) (7) Immersed in the aqueous phase. Then, distearyldimethylammonium bromide 5X1
0.1 ml of a chloroform solution containing 0-3 mol was dropped into the aqueous phase using a syringe. After volatilization of chloroform, the surface pressure of the monomolecular layer of distearyldimethylammonium bromide was adjusted to 30 dyne/crn', and by repeating pulling and dipping at a speed of 1 cm/min, a film thickness was formed on the surface of the 5i02 film. A Y-shaped cumulative film of 5 to 10 gm was deposited, and a glass substrate was placed thereon as a protective substrate 4. Furthermore, a linear grid of 5 grids/mm was placed closely or close to the outer surface of the glass substrate 4.

A semiconductor laser that emits light at a wavelength of 830 nm was used as a radiant heat source. The distearyldimethylammonium bromide layer was heated to 60° C. or higher by irradiation with a semiconductor laser, at which time a phase transition occurred, causing scattering, and a display effect was confirmed.

Example 6 An optical element was manufactured as follows.

On the surface of a 50 mm square glass substrate, a 1500 mm thick indium tin oxide (I-T 0) was applied by sputtering, and a linear pattern of lO wood/mm was formed using the 0-order photoetching method. As a result, a transparent heat generating resistance wire 31 is obtained. In addition, a mixed solution of ferric chloride aqueous solution and hydrochloric acid was used as the etching solution for T. 4 welfare 18 trout 31 are completely stuck to the surface of the six Golas substrate with a film thickness of 2000 cF) SiO211! J was deposited by sputtering to form an insulating layer 29. moreover,
I@T-0 with a film thickness of 1500 was applied thereon, and a transparent heat generating resistor wire 30 was formed perpendicularly to the transparent heat generating resistor wire 31 by photoetching.

Next, a cumulative film of distearyldimethylammonium bromide was formed on the substrate to a thickness of 5 to 10 ILm according to the same conditions and steps as in Example 1, and the glass substrate 4 was placed on top of the film.

A semiconductor laser that emits light at a wavelength of 830 nm was used as a radiant heat source.

It was confirmed that when driven in combination with an appropriate Schlieren optical system, a predetermined light modulation effect can be obtained. That is, when a predetermined portion of the distearyldimethylammonium bromide layer was heated to 60° C. or higher by irradiation with a semiconductor laser, a phase transition occurred and light scattering occurred.

Example 7 A color optical element having a radiation absorption layer as a heat generating element was manufactured as follows.

Gd-Tb Fe (Gadolinium
The radiation absorbing layer 9 was formed by depositing a layer of iron (TVram/iron). In order to prevent oxidation of this Gd/Tb-Fe layer,
It was then coated with a Si02 overcoat.

A mosaic filter having a red colored area (R), a green colored area (G), and a blue colored area (B) as a color separation filter was prepared according to the following method. The arrangement is Bayer one-sided, and the size of one mosaic is 5.
It was set to 0JLm square.

A solvent-soluble polyester resin (Vylon-200, Toyo Doube Co., Ltd.) was used as the polymer material for each colored polymer layer. In addition, the colorants are Sukamilon Red 5-CG (manufactured by Sumitomo Chemical) as a red colorant, Cibaset Green 5G (manufactured by Cibaken Geigy) as a green colorant, and Miketon Fast Blue Extra (Mitsui Toatsu Co., Ltd.) as a blue colorant. (manufactured by Kagaku) were used respectively.

First, a mother liquor of a colored polymer was prepared by uniformly dissolving Vylon-200 (40 parts), nitrocellulose (10 parts), and methyl ethyl ketone (80 parts) while stirring.

50 cc of the above mother liquor and 1 mg of the above red coloring agent were sufficiently mixed (about 2 hours) in a stainless steel ball mill to prepare a red colored polymer. A green colored polymer and a blue colored polymer were prepared in the same manner.

Next, apply the red colored polymer onto the glass plate using a spinner (
IH-5 type made by Mikasa), the thickness is 0.8
It was applied to form a uniform Bm film. After the film was sufficiently cured, a photoresist OMR-81 (manufactured by Tokyo Ohka), which was to serve as an etching mask, was applied thereon using a spinner as well. Thereafter, an etching mask was formed by exposing with a predetermined patterning mask and developing.

Next, unnecessary portions (non-mask portions) were removed by ashing and etching using a plasma etching device (PLASMOD, manufactured by Tegal corp) in which oxygen gas was flowed, thereby obtaining a red filter element. Similarly, each green and blue colored polymer was applied using a spinner.

A green filter element and a blue filter element each having a predetermined pattern were provided on the glass substrate by creating an etching mask using photoresist and performing plasma etching in this order. As a result, a three-color mosaic filter consisting of red, green, and blue colored areas with a predetermined pattern was created.

Next, a cadmium araxinate monomolecular film was formed on the water surface of the LB film production apparatus, and a 10 pm thick film of Xlk 111 for V rows or needle holder 1. Let's go to the spear! It was covered with a glass substrate as Bonda Orisaka 1.

A semiconductor laser that emits light at a wavelength of 830 nm was used as a radiant heat source. It has been confirmed that when driven in combination with an appropriate Schlieren optical system, a certain display effect can be achieved.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1(A) is a cross-sectional view of a transmissive optical element using the light modulation method according to the invention, FIG. 1(B) is a cross-sectional view of a reflective optical element using the light modulation method according to the invention, Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a monomolecular layer cumulative film, Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a phase transition phenomenon in a monomolecular layer cumulative film, and Figure 4 is an image forming principle of an optical element using the light modulation method according to the present invention. This is an explanatory diagram of the fourth
FIG. 4(A) shows the case of a transmissive optical element, and FIG. 4(B) shows the case of a reflective optical element. 5 and 6 are schematic configuration diagrams of a light valve type projection device incorporating an optical element that utilizes the light modulation method according to the present invention. FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a light valve type projection device as a display device using the light modulation method according to the present invention. FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a color optical element using the light modulation method according to the present invention, FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing a configuration example of a matrix-driven optical element, and FIG. 9(A) is a transmissive type optical element. The optical element shown in FIG. 9(B) is a reflective optical element. 10th
The figure is a schematic explanatory diagram of an image forming method using the light modulation method according to the present invention, and FIGS. 11 and 12 are diagrams of heating elements. FIG. 14 and FIG. 15 are diagrams showing embodiments of the optical modulation device according to the present invention. oE: display element with substrate 2; heating element 3: monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 4: protective substrate 5: heating part of monomolecular film or monomolecular layer cumulative film 6: heating part of heating element 7: illumination Hydrophilic group for light 8- 8-2 = Hydrophobic group 9: Radiation absorption layer lO: Reflective film 12 for radiation l Two heating element layers 13: Grating 13a: First grating 13b: Second grating 14: Schlieren lens 15 Niscreen 16: Incident light 17: Imaging lens 18: Horizontal scanner 19: Vertical scanner 20: Lens 21: Cold filter 22: Image generation circuit 23: Control circuit 24: Image amplification circuit 25: Horizontal drive circuit, vertical drive circuit 26 :Laser light source 27:Light modulator 28:Color mosaic filter 29:Insulating layer 30.31:Heating resistance wire 32.32a, 32b, 33cm... :Heating resistor layer 1 Heat generating resistor 33.33a, 33b, 33c... :Column conductor 34.34
a, 34b, 34c ---: Row conductor 35: Cross section 36: Bamboo wheel selection circuit 37.37a, 37b ---: Bamboo wheel drive circuit 38: Column axis selection circuit 39.39a, 39b ---: Column axis drive Circuit 40: Image control circuit 40a: Light source 40b: Collimator lens 42, 45: Lens 44: Polarizing mirror 46: Photoreceptor 54: Transparent protective plate 55: Monomolecular cumulative layer 56: Insulating layer 57: Support 58: Heat absorption Layer 59: Semiconductor laser 60: Collimator lens 61: Galvano mirror Fig. 1 (A) (B') (, A') (f3) No. 80 Darkness

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) An optical element comprising a monomolecular film or a cumulative film thereof made of organic compound molecules having at least a hydrophobic part and a hydrophilic part, and a heat generating element for heating the monomolecular film or the cumulative film, and the heat generating element. A light modulation device comprising: a driving means for driving a light modulating device.