Method of making a substrate-guided optical device utilizing polarization beam splitters

1. A method for fabricating an optical device having a light-wave transmitting substrate with at least two major surfaces and edges and a plurality of partially reflecting surfaces carried by the substrate, for producing a substrate allowing light-waves to traverse the substrate between the two major surfaces, the method comprising:

attaching to each other a plurality of substantially completely transparent flat plates and a plurality of plates having one major surface that is partially reflecting and a second major surface that is transparent, the flat plates and the plates having a partially reflecting surface arranged in a staggered stack;

slicing the staggered stack to form a substrate containing a plurality of plates with a partially reflecting surface, each plate parallel to each other and not parallel to any of the edges of the substrate; and

grinding or polishing the substrate.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the flat plates and the partially reflecting surfaces are attached to each other by gluing.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein at least one of the plurality of plates has a partially reflecting anisotropic surface.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein at least two of the plurality of plates are flat transparent plates.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein at least two segments are sliced off from a single stacked form.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising cementing a blank plate to at least one of the major surfaces of the substrate, forming two external major surfaces of the substrate.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6 , wherein two external major surfaces are parallely cemented to each other.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising cementing an optical means to the substrate for coupling light into the substrate by total internal reflection.

9. A method for fabricating an optical device having a light wave transmitting substrate with at least two major surfaces and edges and a plurality of partially reflecting surfaces carried by the substrate, for producing a substrate allowing light-waves to traverse the substrate between the two major surfaces, the method comprising:

attaching a plurality of substantially completely transparent flat plates to a plurality of plates having one major surface that is partially reflecting and a second major surface that is transparent to produce a staggered stack of transparent plates and plates having partially reflecting surfaces;

slicing the staggered stack into a substrate having a plurality of plates with a partially reflecting surface parallel to each other and not parallel to any of the edges of the substrate;

grinding or polishing the substrate; and

cementing a blank plate to at least one of the major surfaces of the substrate to produce two external major surfaces of the substrate.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9 , wherein at least one of the plurality of plates is a flat transparent plate and at least one of the plurality of plates has a partially reflecting surface.

11. The method as claimed in claim 9 , wherein the two external major surfaces are parallel to each other.

12. The method as claimed in claim 9 , further cementing an optical means to the substrate for coupling the light into the substrate by total internal reflection.

13. A method for fabricating an optical device having a light wave transmitting substrate with at least two major surfaces and edges, the substrate including a plurality of partially reflecting surfaces, for producing a substrate allowing light-waves to traverse the substrate between the two major surfaces, the method comprising:

gluing a plurality of substantially completely transparent flat plates to a plurality of plates having one major surface that is partially reflecting and a second major surface that is transparent to produce a staggered stack of transparent plates and plates having a partially reflecting surface;

slicing the staggered stack into a substrate having a plurality of plates with a partially reflecting surface parallel to each other and not parallel to any of the edges of the substrate; and

grinding or polishing the substrate, producing a substrate with at least one edge slanted at an oblique angle with respect to the major surfaces of the substrate.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13 , further cementing an optical means to the substrate, at the slanted edge, for coupling light into the substrate by total internal reflection.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14 , wherein the optical means is a prism and wherein one of the prism's surfaces is located adjacent to the slanted edge of the substrate.

16. The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein at least one of the plurality of plates is a flat transparent plate and at least one of the plurality of plates has a partially reflecting surface.