Patent ID: 9466941
Filing Date: 2016-10-11
CPC Classification: G02B,H01S,H04N

Claim Text:
1. An apparatus for producing a laser beam, said apparatus comprising: a patterned retarder comprising a plurality N of pattern elements; and a plurality N of laser sources, each configured to produce a corresponding laser beam, wherein each of the plurality N of laser sources is arranged to direct the corresponding laser beam to radiate onto an entrance side of a corresponding one of the pattern elements and to exit from an exit side of the pattern element, wherein the plurality N of pattern elements includes a plurality of first pattern elements and a plurality of second pattern elements, and wherein, for each of the plurality of first pattern elements, variation of an arc angle between representation points on a Poincaré sphere of (A) a polarization state of the corresponding laser beam at the entrance side and (B) a polarization state of the corresponding laser beam at the exit side is within ten percent of a value P1, and wherein, for each of the plurality of second pattern elements, variation of an arc angle between representation points on the Poincaré sphere of (A) a polarization state of the corresponding laser beam at the entrance side and (B) a polarization state of the corresponding laser beam at the exit side is within ten percent of a value P2, and wherein a difference between the value P1 and the value P2 is pi radians.