Image projection systems are an essential technological part of our society to exchange visual information, e.g. in the form of text, images or movies. State-of-the-art in display technology has two branches: (a) high resolution, full colour, high repetition rate, two-dimensional screens and (b) monochromatic, still, and three-dimensional (3D) projection by holograms. Recent advances in optics, material research and scaling by the semiconductor electronics industry bring us on the verge to merge the former two branches and create true 3D displays. The additional dimension is not only adding depth to the projected information to a standard display of everyday use as in smartphones, computer screens or in cinemas but as a hologram it is doing it in a natural way by keeping each object in its corresponding focal distance. This brings display technology closer to the goal of image projection to generate the identical perception for a remote user as to a person at the place of recording.
It is the goal of the ERC to develop and demonstrate an electrically switchable optical element to generate 3D images in red-green-blue (RGB) colours with video compatible repetition rate. Within the switchable element the refractive index is spatially modulated by attached electrical contacts. To achieve 3D images, holograms are generated by the element and the resulting image perception fulfils all the physiological vision requirements. It is essential for the generation of holograms that the intensity and phase of the emitted light are controlled on a subwavelength scale within the emitter.
In this ERC, the emission is controlled by electro-optical switching. Therefore, we develop materials and structures that combine low optical losses with electrical contacts on the nanoscale. For this purpose, we use state-of-the-art semiconductor technology with its advanced patterning technology to reach the strict demands on scaling and process reliability.
The technological advances are accompanied by a multi-level modelling approach, where we compute the material properties as well as the generation of complex material parameter variations on the nanoscale by external electrical control. These approaches and results are relevant to a wide range of other electro-optical application that demand a fast and precise control of light on the nano- and microscale.
