Optical image shutter and method of manufacturing the same

• US 8,289,606 B2
• Filed: 07/29/2010
• Issued: 10/16/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/08/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Sungkyunkwan University Foundation For Corporate Collaboration (SungKyunKwan University)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Sungkyunkwan University Foundation For Corporate Collaboration (SungKyunKwan University)
• Inventors: Park, Yong-hwa, Yoon, Dae-ho, Jung, Chul-ho
• Primary Examiner(s): Dinh, Jack
• Application Number:
  US12/846,188
• Publication Number:
  US 20110170160A1
• Time in Patent Office: 810 Days
• Field of Search: 359/245, 359/321, 359/322, 359/900, 427/108, 427/596, 156/246
• US Class Current: 359/245
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/03 based on ceramics or electro-optical crystals, e.g. exhibiting Pockels effect or Kerr effect G02F1/061 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/21 by interference

Abstract

An optical image shutter having a transparent electro-optical crystal formed on a transparent amorphous substrate and a method of manufacturing the optical image shutter. The light image shutter is created by forming a buffer layer using a material having a similar crystalline structure to an electro-optical crystal, on a transparent amorphous substrate such as glass, and forming an electro-optical thin film layer such as the electro-optical crystal on the buffer layer.

Claims

1. A light image shutter comprising:

a transparent amorphous substrate;

a first reflective layer disposed on the transparent amorphous substrate;

a crystalline transparent buffer layer disposed on the first reflective layer;

a crystalline electro-optical thin film layer disposed on the crystalline transparent buffer layer, comprising a refractive index which varies with respect to an electric field;

a transparent electrode disposed on the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer; and

a second reflective layer disposed on the transparent electrode.

2. The light image shutter of claim 1, wherein the transparent amorphous substrate comprises glass.

3. The light image shutter of claim 1, wherein a difference between a lattice constant of the crystalline transparent buffer layer and a lattice constant of the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer is less than 20%.

4. The light image shutter of claim 1, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer comprises a first buffer layer having conductivity and a second buffer layer having a crystalline structure, and

wherein the crystalline structure of the second buffer layer and a crystalline structure of the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer are substantially same.

5. The light image shutter of claim 4, wherein the first buffer layer comprises a transparent conductive oxide.

6. The light image shutter of claim 5, wherein the transparent conductive oxide comprises a material based on ITO, AZO, IZO, SnO₂, In₂O₃, or a ZnO.

7. The light image shutter of claim 4, wherein the second buffer layer comprises SrTiO₃.

8. The light image shutter of claim 1, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer comprises a ZnO based material.

9. The light image shutter of claim 8, wherein the transparent buffer layer comprises ZnO doped with Al or Ga between 1 mol % and 5 mol %.

10. The light image shutter of claim 8, wherein the ZnO based material comprises Al—

In—

Zn—

O, In—

Ga—

Zn—

O, Sn—

Ga—

Zn—

O, or Sn—

Al—

Zn—

O.

11. The light image shutter of claim 8, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer has a multi-layer structure comprising an order of ZnO, Ag, and ZnO.

12. The light image shutter of claim 1, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer comprises a first material and the transparent electrode comprises a second material, and

wherein the first material and the second material are substantially same.

13. The light image shutter of claim 1, wherein the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer comprises at least one selected from the group consisting of KTa_1-xNb_xO₃ (0≦

x≦

1) (KTN), LiNbO₃ (LN), Pb (ZrO_1-xTi_x) O₃ (0≦

x≦

1) (PZT), and 4-dimethylamino-N-methyl-4 stilbazolium (DAST).

14. An optical device comprising the light image shutter of claim 1.

15. A light image shutter comprising:

a transparent substrate;

a first reflective layer disposed on the transparent substrate;

a transparent electrode disposed on the first reflective layer;

a crystalline electro-optical thin film layer disposed on the transparent electrode, comprising a refractive index which varies with respect to an electric field;

a crystalline transparent buffer layer disposed on the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer; and

a second reflective layer disposed on the crystalline transparent buffer layer.

16. The light image shutter of claim 15, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer comprises a first buffer layer having conductivity and a second buffer layer having a crystalline structure, and

wherein the crystalline structure of the second buffer layer and a crystalline structure of the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer are substantially same.

17. The light image shutter of claim 16, wherein the first buffer layer comprises a material based on ITO, AZO, IZO, SnO₂, In₂O₃, or a ZnO, and

wherein the second buffer layer comprises SrTiO₃.

18. The light image shutter of claim 15, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer comprises a ZnO based material.

19. A method of manufacturing a light image shutter, the method comprising:

forming a first reflective layer on a transparent amorphous substrate;

forming a crystalline transparent buffer layer on the first reflective layer;

forming a crystalline electro-optical thin film layer comprising a refractive index which varies with respect to an electric field, on the crystalline transparent buffer layer;

forming a transparent electrode on the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer; and

forming a second reflective layer on the transparent electrode.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the forming of the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer comprises forming the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer at a temperature below 300°

C. using a pulsed laser deposition (PLD).

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer comprises a first buffer layer having conductivity and a second buffer layer having a crystalline structure, and

wherein the crystalline structure of the second buffer layer and a crystalline structure of the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer are substantially same.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the first buffer layer comprises a material based on ITO, AZO, IZO, SnO₂, In₂O₃, or a ZnO, and

wherein the second buffer layer comprises SrTiO₃.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer comprises a ZnO based material.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the forming of the transparent buffer layer comprises doping ZnO with Al or Ga between 1 mol % and 5 mol %.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein the ZnO based material comprises Al—

In—

Zn—

O, In—

Ga—

Zn—

O, Sn—

Ga—

Zn—

O, or Sn—

Al—

Zn—

O.

26. The method of claim 23, wherein the crystalline transparent buffer layer has a multi-layer structure comprising an order of ZnO, Ag, and ZnO.

27. A method of manufacturing a light image shutter, the method comprising:

forming a sacrificial layer on a crystalline substrate;

forming a first reflective layer on the sacrificial layer;

forming a crystalline transparent buffer layer on the first reflective layer;

forming a crystalline electro-optical thin film layer comprising a refractive index which varies with respect to an electric field, on the crystalline transparent buffer layer;

forming a transparent electrode on the crystalline electro-optical thin film layer;

forming a second reflective layer on the transparent electrode;

bonding the second reflective layer on a transparent substrate by using a flip-chip bonding method; and

removing the sacrificial layer and the crystalline substrate from the first reflective layer.