Project description
Nano-printed optics boost AR glasses
Bulky smart glasses and dull virtual images are holding back the promise of augmented reality. Current AR displays struggle with limited brightness, narrow fields of view and power-hungry components. The EIC-funded METAPRINT project aims to change that by revolutionising how these displays are made. Using patented materials and nano-fabrication method, French company SOLNIL is directly printing ceramic-based photonic metasurfaces from a liquid resist of molecular titanium dioxide atop glass, fused silica and silicon carbide. This low-cost and high-performance material boosts image clarity and colour while increasing field of view by 40 %. The process is faster, cleaner and dramatically cheaper than traditional methods. METAPRINT is now building a pilot production line. If successful, the technology could power the next generation of lightweight, high-performance AR glasses.
Objective
"METAPRINT ""Nano-imprint lithography of titania-based metaoptics"" targets the nano-fabrication of near eye displays for augmented reality (AR) smart-glasses by direct printing hard ceramics (e.g. TiO2). It will deliver Photonic Metasurfaces capable of redirecting virtual images from a microdisplay to the eyes.
SOLNILs patented technology leverages: 1) printable inks based on sol-gel chemistry delivering a superior TiO2 material having a record high refractive index (up to 2.7) and transparency to increase the field of view of the virtual images by 40% with respect to current offers; 2) a deposition process, spin- or dip-coating performed at room temperature and pressure (avoiding slow and costly ultra-high vacuum approaches currently used for TiO2, e.g. atomic layer deposition); 3) a direct printing method of the liquid inks to produce 3D patterns (avoiding toxic resists for lithography, lift-off steps, and etching steps). Thus, beyond the superior performances of our material, we provide a massive reduction of both CapEx (>50 times) and CoO (>4 times) with respect to the incumbent top-down lithographic methods. SOLNIL has freedom to operate in this field and is already servicing several leading actors in the AR market by providing the technology for near eye displays based on diffractive waveguides (currently the leading method). METAPRINT will go beyond this common approach adopting Photonic Metasurfaces to: 1) enhance the light management efficiency (extending the battery lifetime), 2) improve spatial resolution of the virtual images and 3) the colour brightness. METAPRINT will showcase the viability of our approach by building a pilot-production line of near eye displays over 200 mm flat wafers and on 100 mm curved ones in order to define their performances and reproducibility and to estimate the costs of the process. The commercial goal is to license this technology either to our existing customers or to new ones scouted through the action."
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
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CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology materials engineering colors
- engineering and technology materials engineering ceramics
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Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.3.1 - The European Innovation Council (EIC)
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Call for proposal
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(opens in new window) HORIZON-EIC-2024-TRANSITION-01
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13002 Marseille
France
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