Patent ID: 7792005

Claim:
An optical pickup apparatus for carrying out at least either a process of reading information recorded in the optical recording medium or a process of recording information onto the optical recording medium by irradiating an optical recording medium with a laser beam, the apparatus comprising: a light source for emitting a laser beam having a predetermined wavelength range; a light-condensing section for condensing the laser beam emitted from the light source on the optical recording medium; a light-detecting section for detecting the laser beam emitted from the light source and reflected by the optical recording medium; and an optical path changing section provided on an optical path between the light source and the light-condensing section, for changing a predetermined optical path of undesired light other than the laser beam to be applied for reading or recording of information from/onto the optical recording medium, of the laser beam emitted from the light source, from the predetermined optical path to another optical path, wherein the optical path changing section includes a plate having an aperture portion for allowing the laser beam emitted from the light source to pass through, an aperture wall which defines the aperture portion of the plate includes a taper portion which is formed in a tapered-shape and slants so as to come close to an optical axis line of the light source in association with movement toward a laser beam outgoing direction and a flat portion which is parallel to the optical axis line of the light source and connects to a part of the taper portion having a smallest aperture cross section, and the aperture wall is configured to reflect the undesired light into a space facing the part of the taper portion having the smallest aperture cross section.