Keywords

AR; HVS; Liquid Crystal; Transparent display; Foveated display; Waveguide display

Abstract

In the dynamic arena of display technology, augmented reality (AR) displays represent a pivotal advancement, seamlessly bridging the digital and physical worlds. This dissertation delves into the realm of AR display technologies, spotlighting the challenges and limitations of current systems, including transparent and near-eye displays, and proposes innovative solutions to enhance user experience and display performance. With a focus on overcoming issues such as diffraction-induced image blur, the trade-off between resolution and field of view (FoV) in near-eye displays, and FoV constraints in waveguide-based displays, this research introduces new evaluation methods, optimization techniques, and system designs. First, the dissertation presents a quantitative evaluation of diffraction effects on background objects, leading to the development of a pixel structure optimization method aimed at reducing diffraction in transparent displays with small aperture ratios. This advancement promises to enhance image clarity and visibility, addressing one of the key challenges in the deployment of AR technology for transparent displays. Next, we introduce a novel Maxwellian-type foveated AR system that leverages a single light engine. This system employs a temporal polarization-multiplexing method to encode both high-resolution foveal and low-resolution peripheral images through the same light engine. With the aid of polarization-selective lenses, this system effectively separates the two views, delivering a wide FoV and high angular resolution in the foveal region, effectively minimizing the resolution-FoV compromise in near-eye displays. Furthermore, the dissertation conducts a detailed analysis of FoV limitations in single-layer waveguides, proposing a strategic combination of a gradient-pitch polarization volume grating (PVG) with a butterfly exit-pupil expansion (EPE) scheme. This approach aims to extend the FoV in single-layer waveguides towards the theoretical full-color limit. This research addresses pivotal challenges in waveguide-based AR technology, marking a significant step towards realizing more immersive and user-friendly AR systems.

Completion Date

2024

Semester

Spring

Committee Chair

Wu, Shin-Tson

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

College

College of Optics and Photonics

Degree Program

Laser and Optical Engineering

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

DP0028277

URL

https://purls.library.ucf.edu/go/DP0028277

Language

English

Rights

In copyright

Release Date

May 2024

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Doctoral Dissertation (Open Access)

Campus Location

Orlando (Main) Campus

Accessibility Status

Meets minimum standards for ETDs/HUTs

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Optics Commons

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