Liquid crystal optical element

Abstract

According to one embodiment, a liquid crystal optical element includes a transparent substrate, a liquid crystal layer provided above the transparent substrate, including a cholesteric liquid crystal, and configured to reflect first circularly polarized light having a same direction as a twist direction of the cholesteric liquid crystal, and a polarization control layer provided on the liquid crystal layer, and configured to control a polarization state of second circularly polarized light having a direction opposite to the first circularly polarized light, totally reflect the second circularly polarized light which passed through the liquid crystal layer and emit the light to the liquid crystal layer as the second circularly polarized light.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.