Micromechanical light modulator with optically interlaced output

Abstract

A light pattern generating system based on a micromechanical light modulator (50) is disclosed whereby the outputs of two staggered rows of modulator mirrors are optically combined to produce a single line pixel pattern. The preferred embodiment contains birefringent film (28) deposited onto one row (20) of two rows of modulator mirrors (20) so they rotate the incident beam (41) polarization by 90 degrees. The reflections off that row of mirrors (20) and off an unaltered mirror row (25) are then optically combined by a birefringent optical element (36) into a single line pixel pattern. Another embodiment features splitting the linearly polarized incident light beam (41) into two orthogonally polarized beams (45) and (47) by utilizing a berefringent beam splitter (44), illuminating two rows of mirrors (20) and (25) separately, and then optically re-combining their outputs with either conventional mirrors and beam splitters, or a berefringent optical element (36). An additional embodiment shows splitting a dual-wavelength incident light beam (52) into two beams (58 ) and (59) with each having a different wavelength, by utilizing dichroic beamsplitter (56), then illuminating two rows of mirrors (60) and (61) separately, and optically re-combining their outputs with either conventional mirrors and beam splitters, or a dichroic mirror (57).

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.